A to Z Challenge Blog 2021 Cocktails A to Z From the letter W

Here we are again with another cocktail for you to try. Today’s alcoholic treat comes from the letter W. Yesterday I mentioned that this week I’ll finish the last book in the Harvester files series, but the series started with the first book, The White Carnation set in Boston, Massachusetts.

He’s watching, waiting…
The last person disgraced reporter Faye Lewis wants back in her life is Detective Rob Halliday, her former fiancé, the man she blames for ruining her career and breaking her heart. But when she discovers her best friend’s mother murdered, she doesn’t hesitate to call him.
Breaking up with Faye after she unjustly accused him of sabotaging her career was a crippling personal blow for Rob, but he coped by burying himself in his work. For the past year, his team has been hunting the Harvester, a serial killer who ritualistically murders new mothers and vanishes with their infants. What Rob doesn’t need is another case, especially one involving his ex-fiancée. But, when the killer’s newest victim resembles Faye, all bets are off.
When Faye is assaulted in her own apartment, Rob realizes that not only are these cases connected, Faye may be the key to finding the elusive killer, providing Rob can keep her out of the maniac’s hands.
Realizing her vulnerability, Faye agrees to set aside their past to work the case together, but the more they investigate, the more complex the situation becomes. The mad man has an agenda, one that involves Faye. Can they catch the Harvester before he finds Faye and reaps another prize?

So, in honor of the novel’s setting, today’s cocktail from the letter W is the Ward 8. According to Wikipedia, in 1898 Democratic political czar Martin M. Lomasney hoped to capture a seat in the state’s legislature, the General Court of Massachusetts. Lomasney held considerable power in the city for nearly 50 years. The story goes that the drink was created to honor his election, and the city’s Ward 8 which historically delivered him a winning margin. In 1915 the Santa Clara Company registered “Ward 8” as a trademark with the United States Patent Office claiming use since November 1912 and published a notice that they would prosecute any infringement. During prohibition the Daily Boston Globe reported that the drink was believed to have originated at the “old” and abandoned Quincy House. Competing, but unfounded myths abound in print and on the Internet. One story reports that it originated in New York in an area known for political corruption, another that the cocktail is a traditional drink of the Scots Guards. Following the end of prohibition, Locke-Ober reopened its bar using this recipe.

Make It Your Own