It’s Charles Dickens’ birthday. Though there’s a fair amount of drinking in the legendary storyteller’s works, Dickens kept his own boozing largely under wraps, fearful of denting his sterling reputation in Victorian England. He was a master punch-maker, and never seemed to lack a special occasion for throwing together one of his festive and potent bowls, and you can hardly call out a man as a souse when he’s just drinking punch during a special occasion, now can you. Dickens continually experimented with new recipes and ingredients, to the degree that, after his death in 1870, an astounding 2,160 bottles of booze were found hidden in his home. But they were just used for making punch, so let’s not talk scandals. Just a guy with a fun hobby.
