Gentlemen, I much appreciate the thought out opinions and civil discussion.
That kit has travelled with on all kinds of hunts over the last 15 years. It has been well-used countless times, under roofs or dark skies, after the guns have been put to bed.
But to be truthful, it has also come out under blue skies and I can count those occasions on one hand. The right combination of a truly worthy occasion (not a mere excuse to drink) and the right kinds of moderate fellows for whom a small single ceremonial dose is enough, is a truly rare thing.
I'm taken back to a buck I shot 2 decades ago. The first to join me at the scene was the same Polish fellow who gave me that field bag. It was on that November morning that I experienced my first Old World twig ceremony, which was topped off with a single capful of cognac. My world could not have been more perfect.
