h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Still a good and relevant entry, thanks - and "skål"!

Now: "remember to put it in the freezer at least a day before consumption as aquavit should be served chilled, not frozen"

Erm - if you put it in the freezer for a day, it will be frozen. Keep it in the freezer if you must, but then the important part becomes taking it *out* in time so that it is chilled rather than frozen when serving it.

Why? Because all the flavours that the creator has put together very carefully to make exactly this variety will be completely impossible to taste if it's frozen. Frozen, it tastes like cold alcohol only.

Personally, I serve aquavit between sligthly chilled and room temperature. But then, I'm a Dane and actually *likes* the stuff

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PS Dear editors - how did the original bits about Finns traditionally drinking copious amount and falling into lakes break the house rules? Would anybody take that for anything but a funny story?

Hi Santragenius,

I've also noticed this part - unfortunately the sentence on serving chilled/frozen is now quite misleading. Perhaps the editors will change it back.

As for the Finns falling into a lake on the way home, I have actually written evidence that this is tradition in Finland. I read it in a cookery book for scandinavian dishes. Couldn't post this though, as it would be moderated because of copyright violation.

Thanks for your kind comments,
SchEck Inc.

Should be better now

Thanks, but now there's another typo in the second but last paragraph:

(...) and, even more importantly, remember to put it in the freezer *at* before consumption as aquavit should be served chilled. (...)

Could you delete the 'at' please?

Yeah, about those Finns and falling into lakes ((here I absolutely must add that the Finns I know are absolutely the nicest people!):

My Dad who used to be head of the statistics dept (or whatever it translates into) at the "danish institute of social research" (again roughly translated) once read alouf to me from an *official* Finnish publication according to which a significant percentage of Finnish men who drowned actually did so in lakes with alcohol in their bloodstream. Now, it's hearsay so again it's probably no evidence.

And to me it tells more about the quality of the parties - and the aquavit! - than the nature of the Finns. But it's still a good laugh!

SG V

My apologies -

*now* it should be better

I don't agree with all that chilling at all!
A nice and mellow aquavite should be served at roomtemperature, only the crued, cheep ones gains anything on being "frozen".

*Chill in the freezer, indeed! Hmpf.*

That seems to be a matter of taste - I like to drink aquavit chilled (regardless of having a cheap or a quality one), while other researchers, mostly of scandinavian origin, prefer room temperature. I would recommend to try this out.

Anyways - in Denmark, aquavit is served with marinated herring; called 'sild' and nicknamed 'a dram' to make it sound smaller and thus permit even bigger amounts and larger numbers of small glasses.

But it yields one mother of a hangover! Don't ever drink it during the hot summer! Or whenever you're tired, ill or otherwise not your fittest!

The Kimoto is also a Dane...

Did you ever taste the stuff?

-KC

Ah yes, aquavit with the fish... I'd have to try this out. Don't know where to get Danish sild though. Perhaps a Swedish one will also do, which is available here in Germany at the next IKEA.

Marinated sild are definitely preserved well - what I'm trying to say is that, erh, I could mail you one? (Canned - not to worry!)

Anything to further the joy of 'sild & dram'.

Kimoto

Thanks KC, very nice of you. But how do you convert canned fish into an email attachment? (Only joking)

Friends of mine are going on holiday in Denmark next month and they agreed to bring some sild with them when they return - perhaps you could just tell me your preferred brand? So you needn't send it yourself.

KROSILD!!!

The best canned sild - and also a contender alltogether - is the flat, round cans of "Krosild" from... erh... it escapes me, but they are YUMMY! And they transport more easily than sild in glas jars, which also need to be more thorroughly refrigerated.

Krosild comes in three variants:
Green can: Dildsild - herring marinated with dill.
Pink can: Kryddersild - herring marinated in a spicy mixture, slightly resembling some of the flavours in red Martini.
White can: marinerede sild - the common kind.

I am a ****er for the dill-flavoured ones, but one cannot discuss taste.

Should you feel for revealing a snailmail adress, I WILL send you a can of Krosild! Then you can send me something German. I can be reached at [email protected] at (more or less) anytime. You decide.

Enjoy at any rate - Kimoto

OWAAH!

The pink cans are sild marinated in wine!
There is a light-blue can also, which is the one with spiced marinated sild, the one I claimed to be pink.

I am so embarrased now!

But there's a green can i my fridge, just waiting to be sent to Germany - or eaten if I can't wait!

-Kimoto

All of the danes I know drink snaps frozen. when it is poured, it has the consistency of maple syrup. This is the way I like to drink it too. As a matter of interest, Everyone I knew in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, also liked to drink Vodka frozen. It does seem to taste better that way.

Freezing stuff negates the taste.

Makes you think, doesn't it?

-Mia*uuu

Yep - well, I for one like the taste!

That's why I never - EVER - add ice to my whisky!

And - perhaps - that's why Russians eat pickled cucumbers with vodka, I don't know.

-KC still speculating