Menace

Here’s a quick update on a quick update from Dee Dixon, proprietor at DED Wood Crafts, whose creative mind knows no limit. He has been churning out new puzzle box designs as quick as can be. Hot off the heels of his recently acclaimed sequential discovery puzzle box world dominating angry robot comes another menacing mystery. Unlike Walter (the angry robot), there is nothing actually menacing in this box’s appearance. Dee purposefully veered away from his typical colorful accent contrasts and details, which give each box a distinctive personality, and opted for the uniqueness of an unbroken simplicity in this piece. Granted, he used very fine and textured wood, such as this gorgeous example of highly figured Black Limba. The box does have a few subtle features notable upon exploration, but no discernable movement. It’s a lovely piece, which appears quite simplistic as a pretty box. The name, and provenance, of course, tell an entirely different story.

I stumbled upon Dee Dixon’s work about three years ago, when in addition to his jewelry boxes he was offering a few pretty looking hand crafted wood boxes in exotic woods which were advertised as “puzzle boxes”. I contacted him to enquire about them, curious if they hid anything truly interesting or just the usual simple mechanisms one might expect. He insisted they were not so simple, but had no one other than his poor family to inflict his designs on up until that point, so didn’t really know what to think. I purchased a few early boxes, and recognized right away that Dee possessed the clever knack for puzzle design that would make him very popular in this niche pastime. I encouraged him to start “naming” his designs, a great marketing strategy and a way to differentiate things. Early examples included “Curious Box” and “the Abyss” (a nearly impossible box – most humans would not want to get lost there). Soon after, Dee produced a box covered in a beautiful mosaic of square tiles that looked highly intriguing and held the potential of promised discovery. It did not disappoint, and “Where’s My Hammer” became the touchpoint for Dee’s subsequent creative puzzling spree. His newest creation dials back the external fireworks, which further serves to highlight his woodworking skill, while focusing on the extremely well designed and hidden secrets that demonstrate his clever creativity, and sense of humor.

“The idea for Menace was taken from a rather large puzzle that I've been working on for several months. It didn't really work well as a small part of a big solve but was more suited for a puzzle all its own. I wanted it to have a simple appearance so I used a single wood species for the entire puzzle. Worked out well and I'm pretty happy with how the puzzle flows. It starts out kinda tricky then gives you a bit of a break for a couple steps. Menace finishes with a rather difficult move followed by a giggle or two. After the solve you may understand why its called Menace. Hopefully solvers put it on their shelf with a smile on their face.”

The toast to this menacing box required something equally threatening and dangerous, hidden in a tranquil and smooth appearing package. I found what I was searching for in a drink from the team at the Dead Rabbit Grocery and Grog, an Irish Pub like no other. Named World’s Best Bar twice over, the drinks created by their team of world class bartenders are reliably delicious. Despite their love of Irish whiskey, they have offered many scotch based cocktails in their lineup over the years. The “Bengali Menace” is one that appeals to the classic cocktail enthusiast, and is a variation on the white negroni. Bar Manager Jillian Vose explains that despite the menacing name, it’s not so scary.

The cocktail is based with Glendfiddich 12, an extremely affordable scotch for the quality. It is not overly complex and has typical Speyside character, with notes of fruit, such as apple, oak and vanilla, making it ideal for mixing in cocktails as well. Here it is paired both with the bitter and herbal French aperitif Suze, and the Italian aperitif Cocchi Americano. Apple liqueur and absinthe both bring out the apple flavors in the scotch, turning this potentially menacing drink into a deliciously sweet scotch negroni you’ll be happily growling about in no time. Cheers!

Bengali Menace by The Dead Rabbit

1 oz Glenfiddich 12

¾ oz Cocchi Americano

½ oz Suze

¾ oz apple liqueur

½ tsp cane syrup

3 dashes absinthe

Stir ingredients with ice and strain into a favorite glass with a large cube. Express lemon oil over the drink.

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