Wine and Tobacco

I like a well-made wine, preferably red. Wine helps us to drown our sorrows, to heal our bodies (of all alcoholic drinks, only wine contains lots of minerals), and to help us celebrate triumphs and joy. That, in a nutshell, is why I am a wino.

I also enjoy a good smoke. By that I mean well-made tobacco, preferably pipe tobacco. If you can find such a thing now-a-days, without added chemicals and “flavors,” then you’re lucky. The reason you’re lucky is because tobacco has been so demonized and over-taxed as to have been effectively exiled from commerce. Sad but true. Yes, proper tobacco too has been swept up in the regulatory witch hunt.

If you’re looking for the chemical reasons why each “carcinogen” is actually good for you, well, look around and good luck. For example, the resveratrol in red wine has been touted as a kind of fountain of youth. But look here and you may reconsider; you may have been conned:  

The Best Source of Resveratrol

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ihz3aKca5lQ

Tobacco offers nothing similar to resveratrol. It just has tar and nicotine, right? But doesn’t it keep evil spirits away? So I’m told. And while I am not a Native American purist when it comes to tobacco, it is reassuring to know that it bequeaths spiritual benefits when not misused:

Traditional Tobacco Use

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PXFPBD6k73I

But my point here is not to prove anything scientifically or otherwise about these two guilty pleasures. I only wish to state for the record that I enjoy fine wine and, for example, a pipeful of Rattray’s (if that good ol' tobacco can be found at all these days). After a long day of dealing with the mundane and irritating details of living what can be more relaxing than good wine with good food, followed by a smoke?

That’s all I wish to say (though I may add to this little micro-opinion-piece as the spirit moves me).