Gimme Five

What’s heavy and made of brass, has six pieces that fit together, looks the same as four other things and is totally different? Damned if I know but let’s talk about the Brass Monkey 5, the newest brass burr puzzle from those traders of tricky entanglement, the Two Brass Monkeys. Steve Nichols and Ali Morris have played to their strengths and can apparently count to five, possibly even on one hand. They have wisely saved their brain power on names and put all their smarts into the ingeniously hidden mechanics of these puzzles. Despite having initials that reference bathroom habits, their beautiful brass burr series is so gorgeous the puzzles have been known to elicit cat calls – especially this last one.

For anyone keeping track, BM5 is what Steve and Ali consider to be a “four kebab” puzzle. Being very serious people with respectable day jobs, they don’t like to waste any time during their Friday evening Brass Monkey business and brainstorming sessions and dispense with dinner arrangements by getting take-out kebabs. The origins of this particular puzzle mechanism can be traced to a specific gathering of their fellow puzzle enthusiasts many years back where a certain creation by Australian puzzle maker Brian Young garnered much merriment and mischief making. It’s also an homage to a sort of group mantra these fellows have whenever asked for advice on how to approach a new puzzle. Armed with ill intent, the Monkeys had worked out a design after just two kebab evenings. A third kebab was dedicated to incorporating a rather evil and joyful (I swear that’s possible - Steve calls it “fun/annoying”) item that Steve discovered, and the fourth kebab occupied the Monkeys in an evening wasted entirely on imaging people’s responses to said item. They were not wrong, or disappointed, and have been contacted “mid-solve” by more people for BM5 than on any other puzzle they have created.

The goal of these six piece puzzles, like most burr puzzles, is to take them apart. Purists who prefer classic linear moves in such puzzles might frown on the use of “unorthodox” elements, and that’s fine. We know those people and they are boring. Boring people have a lot to offer the world and I love them just as much. This puzzle, and all but the first BM in the set, is not for them. No, this one requires some thinking outside the burr. You might need to listen to music while solving, to expand your mind, maybe something by Otis Redding, or Bobby McFerrin. Or watch a film to let your unconscious flow, perhaps The Breakfast Club, or Casablanca. Great movies. Sorry, none of that will probably help. Maybe try some things you learned from the others in the BM series. No? Well, here’s a thought. Throw caution to the wind and have a cocktail.

I’ve offered a toast to many of the two monkey’s creations, yet never made them one of their namesake cocktails yet – the Brass Monkey. The reason is that the Brass Monkey cocktail is, to put it bluntly, a crappy cocktail. No one wants a crappy cocktail. What does it say about the person who serves it, or the person (or puzzle) it goes to, after all? I don’t serve crappy puzzles around here, and I certainly don’t serve crappy cocktails. I also don’t typically use such unsavory language, either, but I suppose all the BMs are effecting me.

The Brass Monkey cocktail is a footnote in the archives of bad drinks inspired by pop culture. The drink has two iterations - the combination of malt liquor plus orange juice, or the combination of dark rum, vodka and orange juice – which are both awful. It was popularized in the Nineties by the music group the Beastie Boys, who wrote a song about the drink and its intoxicating qualities. The song wasn’t very good either, but that has never been a prerequisite for popularity or success. For better or (likely) worse, it’s time to resurrect the Brass Monkey and toast the Two Brass Monkeys. But I just couldn’t stomach the original, so you’ll have to forgive me for making it better. I realized I could just make another version and give it a new number – what a novel idea! For this updated, improved and renumbered BM I ditched the rum and vodka for some very special rye (only the best for the TBMs), turned it into a highball, and gave it a little grenadine kiss. WhistlePig rye is crafted in Vermont using old world techniques with modern craft vision, keeping only the very best results and continuously innovating their products. It is considered to be the best rye whiskey in the world. I probably shouldn’t use it in a BM cocktail but I’m sure the Monkeys won’t mind. Cheers!

Brass Monkey No 5

1 ½ oz WhistlePig rye

1 ½ oz fresh squeezed orange

6 oz ginger beer

¼ oz grenadine

Build ingredients in a tall glass in order and garnish with a barrel of monkey peels.

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