Tomorrow being St. Patrick's Day, I'll naturally pause for a shot to toast the old souls of the old sod. It likely will be the usual Jameson or Bushmills, long favored by the clans Dunne and Drew. I'm tempted to try a new Irish whiskey that has come to my attention, Michael Collins, but I question the propriety of a product that so blatantly and commercially exploits a historic figure.

Michael Collins was a patriot instrumental in the guerrilla war for Ireland's independence early in the last century. He was still at it when he was assassinated in 1922. I have no idea whether he even was a whiskey drinker. One biography says that just minutes before he was killed he'd stopped at a pub to treat his family and escort to the local brew, Clonakilty Wrastler, a porter. Don't know if it's still being brewed, but "wrastler," reputedly the local pronunciation of "wrestler," at least evokes the image of Collins, recognized for his love of and skill at wrestling.