The 12 ways of Christmas – The Festive Drinks
One of the things that I remember from Christmas was the abundance of things. The seasonal drinks cupboard got topped up.
There were 4 standout things that were brought into the house only for the Christmas period.
Babycham
A sparkling Perry (fermented pear) drink. In packs of 4 little bottles, and aimed fair square at a female audience. Loved by my mother.
Warninks Advocaat
What is Christmas without a “Snowball”, made with Advocaat,and lemonade, Lime and ice if you’re a bit fancy. A fluffy yellow treat for the teens.
Port
“Port and Lemon”. Another post-war favourite, relying on the memory and traditions carried forward. If you couldn’t talk your way into a Port and Lemon you would fall back on the Snowball
Watneys Party Seven
Also available as a Party Four. Contained 7 or 4 pints of beer. Could only have been 3.9% ABV of English Bitter. Came with a can opener. Usually resulted in half the contents spraying over the guests as it had not settled or had just arrived. Needless to say the last “offering” was only available to the adults and only after bedtime for the children. The adults would congregate in the back room, and smoke and drink, play cards.
A life just as ordinary 