Punch is the ideal beverage to serve at large gather­ings and many are the kinds from which to choose when you are preparing to entertain in a big way.

The Punch Bowl, or Bowl O'Punch, as our English cousins call it, has long been a feature of Christmas and holiday festivities. The word punch comes from India, and is derived from the Hindu panch, mean­ing five, the original beverage being composed of five ingredients, viz.: spirits, water or milk, lemon, sugar, spice or cordial. The punch field is covered by ar­rack, brandy, claret, gin, milk, rum, tea, whiskey, wine, and fruit punch. The drink is usually qualified by the name of the principal ingredient, as, for ex­ample, whiskey punch.

St. Charles Punch

1 teaspoon sugar

1 lemon—juice only

1 jigger port wine

1 pony cognac brandy 1/3 teaspoon curacao

Dissolve the sugar with a little water in a mixing glass. Add the lemon juice, the port wine, the cognac, and last the cura-jao. Fill the glass with fine ice and jiggle with the barspoon. Pour into a long thin glass, garnish with fruit, and serve with a straw.

Years ago this was a famed punch very much in demand at the celebrated St. Charles Hotel bar. Don't omit the straw; this drink demands long and delib­erate sipping for consummate enjoyment.

Orgeat Punch

½ jigger orgeat sirup

1 lemon—juice only

½lime—juice only

1 jigger rye whiskey

1 dash orange bitters

1 pony port wine

Mix all but the port in the order named in a tall 12-ounce glass. Fill with cracked ice to a finger-width of the top. Jiggle with a spoon until well frapped. Then float on top the pony of port wine ... do not stir.

Says Sam Guarino, chief bartender at the Hotel Roosevelt bar, who originated this drink delight,

"The Orgeat Punch has two distinct flavors which register separately when trickling down your throat. First you taste the Oporto, then you get the second rich taste of the orgeat-flavored whiskey mixture."

Orgeat sirup, or sirop d'orgewt, is made from the milk of almonds and has long been a favorite flavor­ing and sweetening liqueur among the Creoles of New Orleans. It is not used as much today as in the past, but drink-mixers who like something different should cultivate its acquaintance again.

Arrack Punch

1 jigger date arrack

2 teaspoons bar sugar

2 dashes lemon juice

Dissolve the sugar in a little water, add the lemon juice, then the arrack; fill the glass nearly full with shaved ice, and shake well. Strain into a glass and serve with a straw.

Arrack is the fermented juice of the date palm, and is a name that was applied in Eastern countries to any spirituous liquor of native manufacture, espe­cially ones distilled from the fermented sap of the coco-palm, or from rice and sugar fermented with cocoanut juice. Later the arrack imported from Ba-tavia and Japan was considered superior in concoct­ing the punch, at which time the name arrack was shortened to "Rack."

Arrack punch was a favorite tipple in the New Or­leans of the splendid idle 4O's when flourished W. J. Logan's "Pelican" coffee-house "at Gravier and Union in the rear of Clapp's Church," as he always advertised his place. The Pelican's specialties were Arrack Punch and Pineapple Julep, both mixed in huge bowls and prepared fresh every day. As a punch it bears no resemblance to the mixtures we now call by that name, and the Pineapple Julep of Host Logan came nearer being a punch than the drinJf designated today as julep.

Pineapple Julep

1 quart sparkling Moselle wine

2 jiggers dry gin

2 jiggers maraschino sirup

2 jiggers raspberry sirup

2 oranges—juice only sugar to taste slices pineapple

This punch, for it is not really a julep according to our mod­ern acceptation of the term julep, should be prepared bj placing a large piece of ice in a punch bowl and pouring on the mixture then ladling it over the ice long enough to melt some of the ice and chill the whole. The pineapple should b« the fresh fruit, if possible, and sliced over the bowl. Cher ries from the maraschino bottle, strawberries, and othei fruits in season can be added. This recipe makes enough for six servings.

In the days of old, the days of gold, and the days of '49, when embryonic miners flocked through New Orleans on their way to the newly-discovered California gold fields, these same would-be miners found many places in the Crescent City to wet their whistles. One popular oasis was Logan's "Pelican Coffee­house," told of in the foregoing page, where the Ar­rack Punch and Pineapple Julep were counted the best in town.

Louisiana Party Punch

1 quart rum

1 pint lemon juice

1 pint strong tea

2 pints carbonated water

½ pound granulated sugar

This recipe makes one gallon of punch—sufficient for 12 guests, depending upon capacity. Make the tea quite strong and allow it to cool. Mix the ingre­dients and pour into a gallon jug the day before serv­ing as this will promote blending and enhance the flavor and bouquet of the punch. Have it well chilled by placing the jug in the ice box.

When party time arrives put a large piece of ice in the punch bowl with slices of orange and lemon and other fruits in season. Serve to your guests in regulation 5-ounce punch cups.

"When the steward cometh in at the hall doore with the wassell, he must crie three tymes, Wassell, Wassell, Wassell." UU.

Are You Ready To Move Onto The Next Lesson? Click Here...