A Dour Perspective On Your Morning Cup O’ Joe

I’m not a big fan of pessimism. In fact, it’s a characteristic I find loathesome unless it comes served with two heaping scoops of sarcasm.

Appropriate for Monday mornings, the Pessimist’s Mug is a perfect gift for someone you know (or yourself) that looks upon the day with a certain degree of dour. I’m a relatively can-do kind of guy, but when my first cup of coffee finds its way past my mug’s midpoint, I tend to look upon it with scorn more than caffeinated happiness.

Despite any sullen outlooks, the Pessimist’s Mug is made from high-grade materials, but more importantly built for high-grade sarcasm.

Cost: $10

Also See: Nerf Office Elimination Game | Hot Cold Mug

Ben Bowers… bending it like Beckham.

For many of you East Coasters, Fall golf, and the golf season in general is rapidly winding down. Do yourself a favor and avoid regrets later in the winter when the best you can do is putt on your living room carpet. Squeeze in one last round and immerse yourself in some gorgeous foliage and crisp Fall air. Grab a few of your cronies, skip the cart (like true golfers) and soak it in.

Taking our own advice, some of the GP team here hit up the course this past weekend. Here, we’re teeing off at hole 10 at Garrison Country Club in the heart of New York’s Hudson Valley. If you look closely, you can see the buildings of West Point peeking over the treetops in the distance. Gorgeous day.

It’s Monday, so schedule that tee time now.

A 45 MPG BRABUS. Yeah…

The notion of miles per gallon and efficiency don’t really come to mind when one thinks ofBRABUS. As a matter of fact, terms like “what the hell?”, “why?”, “holy shit”, and “you’ve gotta be kidding” tend to be conjured up in sentences with BRABUS in them.

It was inevitable that BRABUS would tune the Smart Car Fortwo seing that it’s Mercedes based, but it’s finally coming to the United States and reservations started… er as of last night at 8pm. The 98 horsepower model comes with 15 inch front and 17 inch rear wheels with a sport tuned exhaust and suspension, and all the aggressive visual styling cues you’d expect from BRABUS.

Image of interior after the jump.

Available February 2009
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Jimmy Russell gives the okay at Wild Turkey, and I’m okay with that.

Like you, good distilled beverages get better with time. As a matter of fact, I was treated to a supurbly aged and decanted 10 year old Cabernet Sauvignon this past weekend that literally gave me chills of vino-delight. It had a body like Filippa Hamilton and… okay, I digress.

The Wild Turkey Distillery is tended by Master Distillers Jimmy Russell (pictured above) and Eddie, his son. Every morning they inspect the shipments of grain that dock at the distillery and constantly meander through the warehouses of barrels, ensuring every last drop receives the proper circulation. Tending one’s own batch of bourbon. Sounds like a nice life.

Russell’s Reserve is a 10 year old batch of bourbon deep in amber with a nose of vanilla, oak, and toffee. The taste is bold with flavors like peppers, tamarind, almonds and cumin. The 90 proof batch is a special kind of beverage for a special kind of guy.

Unlike many beverages that I come across, Russell’s Reserve isn’t made with added flavors or colors. There are no cut corner and mass quantities isn’t something in mind from the onset of production.

That alone makes it worthy of my bar.

Cost: $26 @ Your Local Store

Also See: National Bourbon Heritage Month | Innis & Gunn Original Oak Aged Beer

Double Certified True European Goose Down. Sounds Nice.

If there’s a clothing outfitter I’d like to see make a decent comeback it’s Eddie Bauer. Call me old school, but the brand had the right roots, but somewhere, somehow a bunch of penny pinchers and incompetent marketers decided to take the brand towards a world of ill-fitted flannel and pleated khaki.

Looks like they’re getting back on the path to resurrection.

The EB800 down vest uses double-certified true European Goose down imported from Hungary. The high-loft qualities of the goose-down give it higher compression qualities and it’s incredibly soft and warm.

Better yet, it’s priced incredibly well for a down vest.

Editor’s Note: Sure, this is what you want on your next ski trip, but it’s also perfect over a well-weighted blazer. We’re American, we invented the concept of mixing & matching sports/formal wear.

Cost: $99 @ Eddie Bauer

Also See: Lands’ End Canvas Field Coat | Merrell Gatherer Jacket | J.Crew Premium Officer’s Chino

Lock, Stock And One Online Grocery List

For those men that declare themselves as foodies (and those that don’t) the concept of grocery shopping is typically an annoyance. Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to automatically jot down a reminder every time you run out of a certain product? Sea salt, import lagers, aged angus beef, free range eggs, 9-grain bread, olive oil, pappardelle, oh and toilet paper.

Enter Ikan. Ikan scans the UPC barcode on any package you’re finished (or not finished) with and automatically adds that product to an online shipping cart. The cart remains stored until you’re ready to make a grocery order thereby eliminating the hassle of going through a mental or physical inventory.

If the barcode isn’t clever enough, you can use the voice recorder to add items (”Q-Tips. Almonds. Beer!”) or the built-in Search & Add feature. Set the Ikan to automatically send email reminders or if you prefer shopping in person, the Ikan can also print out your saved shopping list to take with you.

After all, every man should find himself well-acquainted with the local grocery’s meat aisle and butcher/monger. It’s your god-given right and duty.

Cost: $399 @ Ikan | Check Available Retailers

Also See: 131 Best Grocery Foods For Men @ Men’s Health