1939 The Gentleman's Companion volume II Beeing an Exotic Drinking Book

THE EXOTIC DRINKING BOOK

a highly toxic beverage based on wormwood elixirs, with a very odd and intriguing taste. It is an absolute essential for every well-stocked bar– mainly as a flavouring agent. ANIS . . . A potent Spanish liqueur made of aniseed and other simples. Anis del Mono is the old favourite. Needed oftener than the average mixer believes. A fine morning eye-opener indeed. ANISETTE ... A French aniseed cordial. Not only good as a liqueur, for the various tummy aches which beset humanity, but often com– manded in cocktails. Sweeter and milder than Spanish. APPLE BRANDY, or APPLEJACK . . . Needed these days for several excellent cocktails and taller drinks, but not necessary for the small bar except on special occasions. . . . Don't get Jersey Lightning that some friend has put down in the wood since last fall, get it at least four or five years old. It is a very deceiving fluid, and when not watched will induce a happy state from the waist down, closely approaching voluntary paraly– sis. We speak feelingly. APRICOT BRANDY ... Jnvaluable both as a cordial and for certain cocktails such as the Grande Bretagne. . . . The best imported dry type is indicated, as over! -sweet attempts spoil the drink entirely, unless used as a straight cordial. Eschew American brands. AQUAVIT ... A clear potent spirit from the Scandinavian countries, and drunk in tiny thimblefuls, with a toss of the head. Aside from being a kind gesture to visiting Danes, and so on, it is practically uncalled-for in mixing. The general flavour i~ reminiscent of caraway. Say skol. AROMATIC SPIRITS of AMMONIA . . . No bar should be without this morning after saviour, as well as such itinerant feminine emergen– cies such as faintings, swoonings-either real or assumed. . . . Chemi– cally it is NH 8 , distilled from a pungent gas, which in its former state is of scant interest to mixers. ARRACK or RACK . . . A distilled, variable, and erratic spirit found throughout the Far East; without enough flavour to attract western palates. It may be made from fermented palm toddyi ifrom muohwa

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