On Thu, 14 Nov 2002, Michelle Goepp wrote: > >I beg to differ. I've finally tracked down the quote >(see, I *knew* I wasn't going crazy!) to page 197 of >my ACE paperback copy of Yendi, where Vlad comments: >"I helped myself to a large glass of brandy, which I >despise, but it's stronger than wine..." I would say >that's a pretty strong indication that he doesn't like >the stuff. Well, we here at the SKZBRBHAM [1] Department of the AES SAEDI [2] would be simply delighted to tackle this one for you: 1) He was referring to the behavior of drinking brandy without rinsing one's mouth out first. 2) He despises *Dragaeran* brandy, not Fenarian brandy. Or maybe he despises just the particular type of brandy that he had at that moment (sort of how I despise "beer" - *if* it's one of the mass-produced pisswater brands. But I delight in Real Beer that is properly brewed [4]). 3) Ever since he took a sorcerous hit that nearly killed him during his stint in the army that he wasn't in, nothing tastes quite the same as it did before. 4) Incidentally, right after that line, he mentions a drink called "Piarran Mist" (which I've also noted elsewhere, mostly in the earlier books). That's an in-joke reference to the RPG that predated Dragaera (Piarra). So now you know. [1] Steve Karl Zoltan Brust Retcon, Back-filling, and Handwaving [2] Adrilankha Eleemosynary Society, Silly-Ass Explanations DIvision [3] [3] What? [4] Recently discovered "Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout". Recommended!