Friday Belt: Pure Value Tartans

Leather Man Pure Wool Tartan Belt

Usquaebach (oos-ke-bah) Pure Highland Malt Scotch Whisky

We've established I like good value. I like to say I'm cheap and while there's some truth to that when it comes to buying toilet paper - - I'll pay a premium for something unique. What I live for is to find something unique and cheap. Here are two belts that fit that bill.

I called in an order to Leather Man Belts for some tartan ribbon belts. I'd been admiring them over a year and they're unique. I knew I could customise the webbing but didn't know I could request an odd numbered length instead of even. So I did. I asked the fella taking the order if he could do something unique for me that nobody else can get. He wants to know why and I tell him about the Friday Belt.

He says, "I'm working on something new. Let me send you a sample and I'll see if we can't find something - - You know- - Understated." I like this guy a lot and he tells me his name is Cecil and thanks me for the order. The day after the tartans arrive I get this belt up there with a nice letter from Cecil who turns out to be the owner. This is a wool tartan, understated and in an odd length. You just don't see belts like this everyday. And you sure as hell don't get a letter from the owner of a company everyday.

Usquaebach is an off the radar pure malt (as opposed to single) blend that was sold to me as a single malt but according to the bottle is a blend and I can't find out anything about it. It was cheap for a single malt (but not for a blend) and reminds me of the crazily expensive Midleton Irish Whiskey which is a blend. Very honey like mouth feel with the roundness that comes from a blend but a tiny bit of fire in the after taste. For some odd reason room temp Volvic water is my must-have bloomer for neat whisky and it's required here.

Usquaebach was sold to me by a straight arrow salesman. A no nonsense gentleman who suggested I give it a try when I wanted something almost double the price. Maybe the current economy has everyone looking for good value. Whether you're selling or buying...we can all sympathize.

Friday Belt: Green & Orange Sidecar

Hands down my favorite Leather Man tartan belt. The Buchnan pretty much goes with any color because every color is in it. The orange cords are Italian, washable and they'll get you a free coffee at ING Cafe on Friday. The Golf Foxtrot threw them in the dryer and now they're very hi - water. And that's ok. They're perfect for slushing through NY winters in LL Bean Boots.

The other Friday belt is an opportunity to hoist my frugal flag: Brandy. Decaumont has been aged 10 years, it's made in France and can be had for $15 to $20. It's softer than a VSOP cognac at a third of the price. Perfect for mixing. Legend claims the Sidecar cocktail was invented during WW I in Paris by an American army captain who rode in a motorcycle's sidecar to the bar he invented it in . That makes me so proud.

It's classic and like all things classic - it's simple. 2oz of Brandy. 2oz of Cointreau. 1oz of fresh squeezed lemon juice. Shake with ice and strain into a chilled martini glass. Tart and sweet with cinnamon undercurrent from the Brandy. It's amazing.

I remember hearing old folks order these at a road house just west of Lake Bluff, IL on 176. That was 1990. Now I'm old folk drinking 'em. In my hi - water orange cords. Life is going by fast and like my father told me...it's just like a roll of toilet paper. The closer you get to the end - - the faster it goes.

Friday Belt: A Sucker for Color

Sure it's busy but so am I hence the MTM gingham (part 3)

The pattern matching is off on that belt loop

A 6 pack that belongs in MOMA

In Jungle Expert School we tried to lure spider monkeys from the trees with shiny c- ration can tops in the hope of fresh meat. If I were a spider monkey in Panama I would have been dead a long time ago. I like bright and shiny.

Friday's belt is a tartan from Leather Man. They're a surcingle belt and cheap as all get out. Less than 30 bucks and you're still getting something very original. You pick out the ribbon and the backing from plenty of options. That's a Dress Stewart ribbon on red cotton webbing.

We went into Colon and I was introduced to legalized prostitution and nasty Panamanian hooch. One outta two ain't bad. There was a local whiskey that tasted like tea and their beer was horrible. You could say the same for Schmidt but is that can a work of art or what?

It has a sour/tart after taste but it's crisp and drinks well when it's really cold. Take one out of the fridge and pop it into the freezer for five minutes. I would imagine pee tastes good that cold but I'd prefer to imagine. $14 a case. I hear you can find it for $11 a case in some places. And sitting among today's most boring packaging, beer bottles and cans, it really stands out with a nostalgia I like.

Cheap beer and cheap belts. You couldn't ask for more. Except maybe cheap prostitution which takes us back to Panama.

The Friday Belt: Black Bottled Winter

Let Us Unite


Cameron Hunting Tartan


Black Bottle Islay Blended Scotch

It's always nice to come back to the Friday Belt. Whenever I meet someone who's familiar with The Trad -- it's usually the first thing they comment on. I write it Thursday night while trying on content and trying to figure out a different way to photograph a belt and a bottle. It ain't easy, and it isn't always successful but that's what I like about it. Geez, I feel like Andy Rooney... Anyway, here's another tartan belt by Leather Man in Essex, CT

Cecil, the owner and a helluva nice guy, calls this a Cameron tartan (located here). For $30 bucks, that's a lotta belt. Most anything you get from Leather Man usually is. I did some digging around and this tartan appears to be the Cameron 'Hunting' tart designed in 1956. That doesn't do much for dusting off the history books, but I almost always prefer the darker Hunting tartans.

Pairs well with thick Winter cords and moleskins. I have a shirt of the same tartan. Love to pair it with this belt. Freaks people out, "Hey, is that the same...?" "What?" "Your belt. It's the same as your..." "What are you talking about?" I feel like Carson Kressley.

Dark Winter nights do not favor the sun kissed Gin & Tonic or Dark & Stormy. When it's cold and black out (or in), I need something that'll burn bright going down.

Black Bottle reminds me of a dangerous shore at night. A night we would describe as, "darker than the inside of a goat" at Ft Bragg. It's peaty - 7 different Islay single malts - and, I kid you not, you can smell and taste the sea. Maybe that's the Laphroaig coming through. Maybe not. No one knows what the single malts are but at $22 a bottle -- Who cares.

That's two Black Bottles for one green Laphroaig. I love Laphroaig, but $22 cuts a lot of Islay family ties, mate. You can slip this past your single malt drinkers friends -- they'll never know it's a blend. Serve two ounces neat with just a bloom of water and no one's the wiser... but ignore all questions pertaining to your belt and shirt.