Issue #33 | 12.31.25
Drink
One Two Cocktails to Know For NYE
Martini Spritz (left) and French 75 (right)
Two Cocktails That'll Carry You Through Every NYE Scenario
Hosting a party, showing up to one, making drinks for two, or pouring solo—you need exactly two cocktails in your back pocket. Not 47 recipes you'll never make. Two clean, crowd-pleasing drinks that work anywhere.
Martini Spritz
A martini that won't floor you by 10 PM.
1 oz gin
1 oz dry vermouth
1/2 oz olive brine (if you like it dirty)
1 dash orange bitters
3 oz club soda
Olives and lemon peel
Fill a wine glass with ice. Add gin, vermouth, brine, and bitters. Stir 10 seconds. Top with club soda. Garnish.
French 75
Champagne cocktail without the pretension.
1 1/2 oz gin
3/4 oz fresh lemon juice
3/4 oz simple syrup
3-4 oz Champagne
Lemon peel
Shake gin, lemon juice, and simple syrup with ice. Strain into a champagne flute. Top with bubbly. Add lemon twist.
Why These Work
Gin-forward. Actually taste like cocktails. Scale from one drink to ten. Impress without requiring a mixology degree. Master them tonight. Use them all year.
Not the drink they expect. The one they remember.
Food
Salt & Swagger
Mettle Chicken - The Only Chicken Marinade You'll Ever Need
Stop collecting chicken recipes. This one works for everything—weeknight grills, meal prep, company coming over. Master it once, use it forever.
What You Need:
5 chicken breasts or 10 thighs (boneless, skinless)
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 cup lime juice (lemon works too)
2 to 5 hot peppers, based on spice tolerance (jalapeño or serrano)
12 garlic cloves
1 TBS smoked paprika
1 TBS dried oregano
3 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
Handful of cilantro (optional)
How to Do It:
Throw everything except the chicken into a blender. Blend until smooth. Pour over chicken in a glass container (or large ziploc bags)—not plastic unless you want your Tupperware smelling like garlic until 2027. Refrigerate 24-48 hours, flipping it twice.
Here's the Move:
Grill your chicken however you normally would. But before you plate up, pour that leftover marinade into a saucepan, bring it to a boil, then simmer for 5 minutes.
Serve the chicken over rice with grilled vegetables. Drizzle that cooked marinade over everything. That sauce is what separates dinner from a damn good dinner.
Because eating well is never just about the food.
Presence
The Power Move
New Year's Eve: The Only Two Moves That Matter
If you've got plans, go out and own the night. Be present with the people you're with. Make one memory worth keeping. Then call it.
If you don't have plans, keep reading.
An empty calendar on December 31st isn't something to apologize for. It's a choice—and maybe the smarter one.
No overpriced reservations. No forced energy. No waking up January 1st wondering why you spent $300 to feel exhausted.
A great New Year's Eve isn't about excitement—it's about satisfaction. That might be a good meal at home. A bottle you've been saving. A movie you actually want to watch. Or just a quiet night that lets you reset before the year really starts.
There's real confidence in opting out when everyone assumes you should opt in.
Strong men don't chase moments—they choose them.
When you wake up January 1st rested, clear-headed, and ready to move, you didn't miss anything.
Own the room. Set the tone.
News
The Feed
This Week’s Sharp Clicks
What’s the difference between at $15 and $150 bottle of wine?
Whether you want to chill wine, vodka, or beer fast, Martha Stewart has some tips. Don’t think she learned this in prison.
Firework Fails - don’t do this on New Year’s Eve…and don’t go down the doom scrolling rabbit hole with this highlight reel.
10 Whiskeys to ring in the new year, according to Whisky Advocate.
5 Unlucky things to do on New Year’s Day
Stay Sharp,
The Mettle Team
