I thought we were done with the east coast last time! Looks like I was mistaken. Again.

Turns out the powers that be in the state of Virginia were having some issues within themselves while the country as a whole was in a bit of an uproar. The idea that Virginia was going to secede from the Union didn’t sit too well with some folks in the western counties so they decided they’d just take themselves out of it and create their own rival state government (which was happily acknowledged by the Federal powers that be). On June 20, 1863, (after a 60-day waiting period), West Virginia became our 35th state and the only one to be formed by seceding from a Confederate state.

Coal is the name of the game in the Mountain State, so named because, well, it’s all mountains–Appalachian Mountains to be specific. A few other facts stood out for me as I was doing my research:

• July 1, 1921: The first state sales tax in the US went into effect in West Virginia.
• 1926: The first US federal prison for women opened in West Virginia.

Now, does anyone think those two facts might be related? I mean, you ask a woman to pay even MORE for her purchases and, well, sure… laws might get broken.

That’s probably not true, but it was the first thing to pop into my mind. (Admit it, yours too!)

Anyway, with all those mountains, agriculture isn’t any sort of main share of the state’s output. Do you know one thing that does grow in West ‘By God’ Virginia? Golden Delicious apples. Those yellow-skinned, buttery-tasting glorious apples were first discovered in 1775 near Wellsburg, in Clay County. They are my favorite type of apple, and sometimes hard to find, so that’s what this week’s cocktail is dedicated to.

Gold and Delicious

1 oz Apple Juice
1/2 oz Vanilla Vodka
1/4 oz Butterscotch Schnapps

Combine over ice and shake like a freight train full of coal. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

It may not be quite the same as biting into a crisp Golden Delicious apple, but it’s the next best thing in my book.