Cocktail and Movie Pairing: Live from New York, It's Sour-Day Night!
Cocktail and Movie Pairing: Live from New York, It's Sour-Day Night!
“Okay, let’s see if we can get through one of these skits.”
The leaves are falling, and somewhere on the East Coast, a lone saxophonist is playing a bluesy riff at 1 AM. Welcome to awards season! We’re pairing Saturday Night with a cocktail that is equal parts classic, sour, and more than a little inspired by New York City.
Saturday Night (2024) is a fast-paced, frenzied film that fictionalizes the 90 minutes before the first episode of Saturday Night Live goes to air. Cacophony is the name of the game, and the clock keeps ticking closer to air. The actors are fighting with each other when they’re not on stage - the self-righteous star Chevy Chase (Cory Michael Smith) won’t be seen with the self-important John Belushi (Matt Wood), who thinks of himself as the next coming of Marlon Brando. The writers keep getting their crude, off-beat script torn to shreds by a buttoned-up representative from Standards and Practices. Sweet Jim Henson (Nicholas Braun) keeps finding his Muppets in precarious R-rated positions around Studio 8H. Nobody’s seen Andy Kaufman (also Nicholas Braun), but everyone keeps running into the network affiliates with big cigars and bigger 10 gallon hats in the green room. George Carlin (Matthew Rhys) is hosting, but feels like the sketches don’t push enough boundaries of societal norms and wants to do one long standup act. And one guy is single-handedly trying to lay the brick foundation on the stage in the final minutes to air. Lorne Michaels (Gabriel LaBelle) is just trying to get his anti-established sketch comedy show to air, and herding cats while doing it.
There’s a great Lorne Michaels quote that opens the movie: “The show doesn't go on because it's ready, it goes on because it's 11:30". While there’s certainly a lot going on as the clock ticks down to 11:30 PM, the screenplay manages to find a driving force and a sense of urgency by following the leader through the most crucial 90 minutes of his life to date. Director Jason Reitman (Juno, Up In The Air) co-wrote the brilliant screenplay with Gil Kenan (Ghostbusters: Afterlife), and the structure of the screenplay combined with shots that literally follow Lorne Michaels throughout the building create an easy path through the cacophony happening all around. This is a textbook perfect script with a clear three act structure, great character development for a large ensemble cast, and a sense of urgency that hasn’t been seen on the big screen in quite some time.
Today, Saturday Night Live is a cultural institution celebrating 50 years of live sketch comedy that has become appointment television. It’s fascinating to see the left-of-center roots of the very first season of the show, and how SNL has moved from anti-establishment to seated in the middle of everything zeitgeist-y. A lot of that staying power has come from the tremendous cast of characters that have become household names because of their time on Saturday Night Live, and I predict that this stellar ensemble cast of actors playing the cast and crew of SNL will have a similar trajectory. In addition to the previously mentioned actors, Dylan O’Brien (playing Dan Aykroyd), and Kim Matula (playing Jane Curtin), deserve an extra special shout out for commendable performances with flashy moments. But, of course, a veteran actor or two doesn’t hurt to keep the young ensemble on its toes (both within the context of the movie and on set in real life); Lamorne Morris (playing Garrett Morris - no relation) adds gravitas to the younger cast of characters assembled to play the “Not Ready for Primetime Players”, while J.K. Simmons’ cameo as Milton Berle is hauntingly effective as a towering presence looming and lurking around the action.
Saturday Night is as complex and nuanced as it is busy, which makes for a thrilling 109 minutes in a movie theater. See this movie on the big screen now, and come back to it time and again once it hits streaming and physical release.
Because there’s so much going on in the movie, and because it naturally has a late night vibe to it, I decided to bring back the cocktail pairing in lieu of a wine for this movie. What do I want to sip on while watching Saturday Night again and again? A New York Sour!
The New York Sour has a complicated history dating back to the 19th Century. It’s been named and renamed time after time, but from what historians can gather, the drink was created in Chicago when it became popular with New York’s cocktail-drinking hoi polloi. After being referred to as a Chicago Sour, a Southern Whiskey Sour, or even a Claret Snap, the New York Sour name stuck, and has become a classic cocktail and an enduring symbol of fall vibes with its lush, frothy texture and a colorful spoonful of red wine atop the glass. (Sounds an awful lot like comedians from Chicago’s Steppenwolf or Los Angeles’ The Groundlings that find their way to fame as part of New York’s Saturday Night Live cast).
Despite its colorful build, a New York Sour can be fairly easy to build with the right ingredients and a steady hand. Recipes will vary, but most people agree on a 2:1:1 ratio of whiskey to lemon juice to simple syrup (though some will use demerara syrup as a richer alternative to simple syrup). Combine these ingredients with an egg white, give it a dry shake without ice to get the fluffy fluffy texture, then shake again with ice to get everything cold. Pour it all into a glass and use a barspoon to float an ounce of fruity red wine on top, and you have yourself a delicious cocktail.
My ingredients of choice? I generally prefer rye as a spicier, autumnal alternative to bourbon for this drink. Rittenhouse is my go-to rye for cocktail builds, though this might be a good opportunity to use Sazerac rye, too. Bourbon is a bit sweeter and more traditional, and Buffalo Trace would be a fun bourbon to use, giving a nod to New York’s Buffalo symbolism. Find fresh lemon juice (it has to be fresh!), whip up a quick simple syrup with equal parts sugar and water, and get an egg white (or aquafaba, for those avoiding eggs). As for a choice of wine to create the burgundy-hued topper? Opt for something fruity, preferably with some body without a whole bunch of tannin. If you have a bottle of Merlot that you successfully hid from Miles during last week’s Sideways viewing, now would be the time to pull it out again. Can’t go wrong with a good Syrah, Grenache, or even a hearty Gamay, either.
Food pairing? A leftover sandwich someone is force feeding you as you walk and talk your way through a late night television studio. Or movie theater popcorn. Whatever circumstance throws your way. Just get the show on the air!
Here’s a video from one of my favorite cocktail creators on YouTube to show you how to build a New York Sour:
Check out Wine-Searcher for details on spirits stockists near you. Thank you for shopping at your local independent wine and spirits store!
Saturday Night (2024) is now playing in theaters near you.