Coming of Age

“There is a certain part of all of us that lives outside of time. Perhaps we become aware of our age only at exceptional moments and most of the time we are ageless.” ― Milan Kundera

It’s my birthday, and it’s a big one. I feel lucky to be able to commemorate the occasion in some small way. I’m sure, like Ozymandias, that these words will blow away with the winds of time, but it’s nice to have an opportunity like this, in this moment, to celebrate. I seem to be celebrating a lot of milestones recently, which means that life has been good to me. Like I said, I feel lucky.

AGES by Brian Young

I’ve chosen a puzzle and potion pairing that compliment the themes of the day well, at least for me. The puzzle is Brian Young’s “Ages”, his most recent limited edition offering. Ages is a handsome burr puzzle beautifully crafted from Queensland Silky Oak & Western Australian Jarrah woods. Outward appearances would suggest that it is composed of either six or perhaps nine or more interlocking pieces to form a classic six sided burr shape. There appear to be three sections on each side, capped with a solid piece of the darker wood. The whole affair is sturdy and pleasing in appearance. Most six piece burr puzzles would come apart into separate pieces after a few manipulations of the pieces. Some even require many moves, but technically this is limited in a standard six piece burr to less than a dozen. I’m not suggesting that this makes burr puzzles easy, far from. Burrs are not my forte or favorite. I’m just explaining what is typically expected. Ages is not typical in any way, shape or form. It’s momentous, like living to a certain age.

“No, that is the great fallacy: the wisdom of old men. They do not grow wise. They grow careful.” ― Ernest Hemingway

Ages is a bit hard to pin down and categorize as a puzzle. Like an experienced traveler who has seen many sights and learned many secrets, it brings a lot to the table. The journey might best be described, as expected based on appearances, as a burr puzzle after all - in other words, a challenging (very challenging) interlocking piece puzzle, whose objective is to be taken apart and then put back together again. Which is much easier said than done. Consider that most people quickly discover two initial moves that are rather obvious, and remain stuck there for … ages. There are reportedly over forty-five or more moves needed to take all the pieces apart, and thirty-six before the first real piece is released, although I lost count myself, once I made it past those first two moves. But what makes it hard to characterize is that along the way there are other elements sprinkled in, with secret locks, twists and turns, false paths and dead ends, discovered tools and tricks. It doesn’t follow the guide book or play by the rules. At the end of the journey there is treasure, too, which just makes everything even more exciting and literally rewarding. Brian and his wife Sue, who together have run their Mr. Puzzle shop in Queensland for decades, have placed a tiny piece of authentic Australian Lightening Ridge Opal inside the puzzle, hidden at its heart in a final secret compartment. So of course I love this puzzle, because whatever else it might be called, it is also a puzzle box.

The Brave by Bobby Heugel

Brian offers a few explanations about why the puzzle is named Ages. First of all he mentions that he designed the puzzle in 2010 (when it was originally going to be named the “Berlin Beer Burr”!) and never got around to making it until 2019. But he explains that another reason has to do with a software program many of those who love burr type puzzles may be familiar with, Andreas Rover’s BurrTools, which can be used to analyze, take apart, put together and create new burr puzzles, and much more. The program can be used to analyze a set of pieces to see how many moves are required and how many solutions to a puzzle there may be. This can help a designer refine things to make the solution unique, for example. When Brian plugged in his design, the program told him the analysis would take a while. Specifically, (the program has its own sense of humor) it reported this: “Time left: unknown -> days -> years -> millennia -> ages”, which amused and satisfied Brian so much he renamed his puzzle. Sue relates that at one time, they had an old computer dedicated to the analysis of potential Ages configurations that would run twenty-four hours a day. Some days it would find so many solutions it would come to a crashing halt, and sometimes it would run for weeks without finding a single solution. It became a daily part of the workflow, turning on the lights, powering things up, deleting the Ages files and rebooting the old computer. In the end, the full analysis was never completed. This should also give anyone unwise enough to attempt this puzzle some serious pause. Like many of his limited editions, Brian did not initially send any instructions or solution with the puzzle. To take it all apart, if one were ever to find oneself in a clever enough position to do so, would invite the great fear of never being able to put it all back together again. To do this, according to Sue, one would have to be “very brave”. She is just using nice words, I think.

"Wrinkles should merely indicate where the smiles have been." - Mark Twain

With that in mind, I selected this particular cocktail to pair with this puzzle and toast the day. There are a few things going on here that make this one special. When I first got serious about craft cocktails and the refined art of a well made drink, there was only one true craft cocktail bar in Houston, my hometown. Anvil Bar & Refuge, and its owner Bobby Heugel, became the epicenters and architects of Houston’s subsequent cocktail culture. The bar remains one of the best in America, consistently and reliably named on national “best of” lists and garnering six James Beard Award nominations over the years. It’s still my favorite bar in Houston. There’s a famous drink they serve there, created by Heugel at the beginning, which has a permanent spot on the menu. Legend has it that he spent an entire year perfecting this drink, before he even opened his famous bar. Heugel is also well known for his passion about true origin agave spirits, featured prominently in this drink, which is largely a fifty-fifty mix of tequila and mezcal – another reason I selected it for this offering. The agave is mellowed, and amplified, with a bit of Averna, a dark amaro known for its touch of sweetness, citrus and chocolate flavors, that pair well with the agave spirits. The citrus is further enhanced with a hint of citrus liqueur, and the drink is finished with Angostura mist and a flamed orange peel.

“The older I grow, the more I distrust the familiar doctrine that age brings wisdom.” ― H.L. Mencken

Another interesting thing about this cocktail is how it is prepared and served – at room temperature. Unlike most cocktails that are either shaken or stirred with ice, this is a “scaffa”, a room temperature cocktail that is already perfect, undiluted and unchilled. It’s strong, bold, and may not be for the faint of heart, which is why they call it “The Brave”. I don’t think you have to be brave to enjoy it, though. It’s a perfect cocktail, well balanced and delicious. I did something a little extra to it as well, a final nod to the auspicious occasion at hand. I added the ingredients to a charred oak barrel and left it in for AGES before decanting. Exactly three weeks, at any rate, which is a fine amount of time for a small barrel to work plenty of magic. The final cocktail was a bit darker, softer in texture and palate, imbued with oak and perhaps even more delicious. Now I raise my glass to the Ages, and bravely face the future. Cheers.

“Age is an issue of mind over matter. If you don’t mind, it doesn’t matter.” ― Mark Twain

The Brave by Bobby Heugel

1 ounce mezcal (preferably Del Maguey Vida)

1 ounce blanco tequila (preferably Siembra Azul)

1/2 ounce Averna

1/4 ounce Royal Combier

Garnish: 3 mists Angostura and a flamed orange peel

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