I was giddy about dusting off and donning my tux, last time I had done so was at the BBA grand finale! Admittedly, I wasn't too giddy about the whiskey though. I'm not a seasoned whiskey drinker for two reasons, my wallet considers drinks like whiskey and cognac to be slimming pills.
My other reason being, I consider Whiskey a man's drink. I want to earn it, so to speak.
Just to give you an idea, the invited guests ranged from Ashish J. Thakkar, CEO Maara Foundation and Africa's youngest millionaire (according to Forbes magazine his net worth is $500 million, equal to Jay Z) to Charles Mbire, CEO Simba Telecom and Robert Kabushenga, CEO Vision Group. Real men. Real whiskey. So how did little old Denzel, yet to be CEO, end up sharing a table with the big boys?
Well, it was a black tie event, and I was looking rather pristine in my tuxedo, that on arrival, instead of being shown to the press table, the ushers took one look at me, presumed I was on an official invited and quickly ushered me to a seat in the main dining area, next to some other CEO's.
Second confession! I have never really indulged in a six course dinner, with matching cutlery! I was glad to have watched Pretty Woman on M-Net Movies, remembering Julia Roberts being hastily schooled on six course dinner cutlery etiquette; use the utensils from the outside going inside!
I was also left worried about one thing. Alot of the food looked very alien to me and I didn’t want to end up messing up like Shrek at the royal dinner in Shrek 2, tasting the water in the finger bowl and exclaiming how exceptional it was! So I slowed down and watched the finer gentlemen around me go about tearing down items like Foie Gras and King Prawns wrapped in red snapper. I followed suit and munched away like this was an everyday thing. Far from!
In-between the food, we were schooled on whiskey and given an opportunity to sample various blends in neat and cocktail form, under the mentorship of James Pennefeather, a South African whiskey mentor who travels around the world mentoring consumers on best ways to enjoy various blends.
I prepared myself for some blends that I had never tasted, cleansing my mouth with ice cold water as directed, and moving onto finer labels, starting with Blue Label (rather burning hot), Gold Reserve (subtle burn) and then finally for the Pièce de résistance, Platinum Label which did burn, but with a sweet tingle and after taste. I also got to hang out with a limited edition bottle.
That wrapped up a pristine event, by far the finest I have graced. And as I walked away, I made mental note of one important life lesson I had picked up.
The way you dress and carry yourself in public will ultimately decide how people treat you. It might seem far-fetched but human beings do indeed judge a book by the cover - a lot. Take my word for it, the next time you grace a social event, dress to the nines and you will notice how people treat you different. Thank me later!
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