Dreaming of a White Christmas

Irving Berlin had the right idea--there's nothing like a white Christmas. A blanket of fresh, white snow blots out the year's accumulated grime and complements the hopeful holiday mood. Well, you can have yourself a white Christmas, even if the weatherman fails to cooperate. No, this isn't a sly promo for winter tours of the arctic; this is about pouring elegant white potions at your holiday gala. If the idea intrigues you (continued on page 348)White Christmas(continued from page 171) but seems a bit limiting, a mental ramble through the wealth of white or clear spirits and specialties available should erase any doubts.

Vodka, of course, is the premier white spirit. It seems to be everyone's first or second choice. That's one you have to have. Then there's gin--still the old stand-by to many bibbers--and the light, white rums from Puerto Rico and the other islands that are gaining advocates every day. Tequila is the other major white spirit.

You'll also want several imported gins and vodkas--from England, the U.S.S.R., Sweden, Holland, Poland, Finland, Turkey and points east and west--on your holiday bar. The gins make super martinis (the ones from Sweden and Holland should be chilled and taken neat) and the vodkas can also be iced and taken neat--perhaps with a pinch of pepper added or poured over rocks and sipped. Aquavit, from Scandinavia, is also a kind of vodka--to which flavor, usually caraway, has been added. The standard way to serve aquavit is to immure the bottle in a block of ice. It is an interesting way to handle the brisk imported gins and vodkas, too...and a clever switch on a classic theme.

Dry fruit brandies, the most enchanting of the white spirits, require no flavor additives, since they're naturally endowed. Each type reflects the scent and taste of the fruit from which it is distilled. Kirsch is very cherry, framboise is raspberry, poire is pear, mirabelle and quetsch are plum. Apricot brandy, as it happens, tends to be amber, but Zwack's Barack Palinka is clear and captivating. On the Continent, fruit brandies serve as after-dinner digestifs, but they're also refreshing change-of-pace sips, and delightful in mixed drinks.

Liqueur lovers needn't feel deprived at a white-Christmas bash--not with such options as triple sec, white creme de menthe and crème de cacao, kummel, peppermint schnapps, sambuca, anisette and pear liqueur. Sorry, no white coffee liqueur as yet, but a white Russian (vodka and white crème de cacao) should bridge that gap nicely. And don't overlook such proprietary labels as CocoRibe rum-coconut liqueur, Danziger Goldwasser--a clear liqueur flecked with gold leaf--and the relatively new Vaklova.

Those are the more familiar white spirits but by no means the gamut. We have yet to explore the pastis group--potent, anise-flavored liqueurs, popular in the Middle East and France: Ricard, Pernod, ouzo and raki, for example. Some have color in their original state, but all turn milky when mixed with water. The usual ratio is one part pastis to five of water. There's also marc, grappa and bagaceira, names for a type of brandy distilled from pressed grapes--or, more precisely, grape skins. And cachasa and aguardiente, South American native distillates (one brand, Antioqueño, from Colombia is an unusual and delicious 72-proof anise-flavored cordial), pisco brandy from Chile and Peru and, for those who like to live dangerously--Everclear, a 190-proof grain spirit. Try that in the punch bowl--cautiously.

The following drinks are not your usual holiday roundup, which is all to the good. And a colorful garnish against the white background wouldn't hurt a thing. Consider red and green maraschino cherries, strawberries, watermelon balls, honeydew balls, lime, cucumber peel, radish, mint or water cress.

[recipe_title]Vodka Ice House[/recipe_title]

You'll need a form in which to freeze the bottle--a 46-oz. juice can, a halfgallon milk carton or any container of similar size. Pour 1/2 in. water into container; freeze solid. Center bottle of imported vodka or gin on ice; add cold water to about shoulder of bottle. Return container to freezer and freeze hard--preferably overnight.

To serve, plunge container into hot water almost to rim for a moment. Your ice house, bottle encased, should slip out easily. Repeat hot-water bath, if necessary. Present on napkin-lined tray or platter, since ice will melt after a while. Good neat, on the rocks or to make frigid martinis.

White on White: Pour about 1 oz. premium vodka, from your ice house, into tall, thin liqueur glass. The spirit will have a thick, viscous body. Flick a bit of ground white pepper over glass--the fine grains will drift slowly down in the glass, like snow. In Poland and the U.S.S.R., small shots of this frigid pepper vodka are knocked back, accompanied by bites of herring or smoked fish, and elaborate toasts.

[recipe_title]North Pole[/recipe_title]

[drinkRecipe]3/4 oz. vodka[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]3/4 oz. sambuca[/drinkRecipe]

Red and green maraschino cherries

Pack round-bowled wineglass or saucer champagne with finely crushed or shaved ice, mounding top. Combine vodka and sambuca and pour slowly over ice. Spear cherries on pick and set on top of drink--planting your Christmas colors at the North Pole. Serve with short straws.

[recipe_title]Christmas Rickey[/recipe_title]

[drinkRecipe]1-1/2 ozs. vodka or gin[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1/2 oz. triple sec[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]Club soda, chilled[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1/2 small lime[/drinkRecipe]

Pour vodka and triple sec over ice in 8-oz. wineglass. Stir. Add soda to taste. Squeeze in juice of lime; add peel; stir.

[recipe_title]White Tornado[/recipe_title]

[drinkRecipe]1 oz. tequila[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1 oz. triple sec[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1 oz. grapefruit juice[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1/2 oz. lemon juice[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]Pinch salt[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]Canned lichee(optional)[/drinkRecipe]

Shake all ingredients but lichee briskly with ice. Strain into sour glass or pour unstrained into old fashioned glass. Top with lichee, if desired.

[recipe_title]Snowmobile[/recipe_title]

[drinkRecipe]1-1/2 ozs. white rum[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1/4 oz. anisette[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1/2 oz. orgeat syrup[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]3/4 oz. lemon juice[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]Watermelon ball[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]Honeydew ball[/drinkRecipe]

Shake rum, anisette, syrup and lemon juice vigorously with cracked ice. Strain into large cocktail glass. Spear melon balls with toothpick and lay across top.

[recipe_title]Coquito[/recipe_title]

(About 30 servings)

This is the traditional holiday-season drink of Puerto Rico. This recipe, from San Juan's venerable La Fonda Del Callejon restaurant, is like a super eggnog.

[drinkRecipe]1-1/2 ozs. triple sec or other orange liqueur[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1 large can (about 14 ozs.) evaporated milk (or 1-3/4 cups half-and-half)[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1 can (15 ozs.) cream of coconut (Coco Lopez, Coco Casa)[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]6 egg yolks[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, or to taste[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1 fifth white rum, chilled[/drinkRecipe]

Whirl all ingredients but rum in blender until completely mixed. Add rum, mix again. Pour into large bottle; cap and chill thoroughly. This is a rich drink; pour small portions--about 1-1/2 ozs. to 2 ozs. each.

[recipe_title]White Spider[/recipe_title]

[drinkRecipe]1-1/2 ozs. vodka[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]3/4 oz. white crème de menthe[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]Ripe strawberry[/drinkRecipe]

Shake vodka and crème de menthe with cracked ice. Strain into prechilled cocktail glass. Impale berry on toothpick and place in glass.

Note: Substitute peppermint schnapps for crème de menthe and you have a schnapps whizzer!

[recipe_title]Tenn Bar Special[/recipe_title]

[drinkRecipe]1-1/2 ozs. Baileys Irish Cream Liqueur[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1 oz. white rum or vodka[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1-1/2 ozs. milk or half-and-half[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1/2 cup crushed ice[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1/2 teaspoon sugar (optional)[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]Cinnamon[/drinkRecipe]

Place all ingredients in chilled blender container. Buzz until smooth. Pour into chilled tall glass; sprinkle lightly with cinnamon and serve.

[recipe_title]White Lady[/recipe_title]

(For two)

[drinkRecipe]3 ozs. gin[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1 oz. Cointreau[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1 oz. lemon juice[/drinkRecipe]

[drinkRecipe]1 egg white[/drinkRecipe]

Shake vigorously with cracked ice; you should work up light foam. Strain into chilled cocktail glasses.

If there's a recalcitrant Scotch drinker in the crowd, you won't deny him, of course. Just shake the whiskey with milk, a pinch of sugar and lots of ice; serve in a tumbler. It's certain to please, and it won't mar your holiday color scheme.