Rosemary Ginger Beer

This is a totally simple refreshing non-alcohol beverage. Ginger beer seems to have been first brewed in England in the 1700s and it became a popular drink in all of the British Isles and in numerous (then) British colonies and possessions like Canada, Jamaica, Australia and South Africa. It is my understanding that the original fermentation process produced both an alcohol content, as well as the sparkling fizz of the drink, which was made with yeast; but that later, the process was altered to make an alcohol free brew, and later still, the carbonation process (injecting carbon dioxide under pressure) was used to give the drink its fizz. The brewing process for ginger beer typically includes using real ginger; thus, the soft drink has a bit spicier taste than ginger ale, as ginger ale is typically carbonated water with ginger flavored syrup. For rosemary syrup, here is the link, it's simple:  https://pontificating-randy.blogspot.com/2020/03/herbal-syrup-rosemary.html  

 

Ingredients (per drink):

 

tall glass (10 to 12 ounces)

ice

5 or 6 ounces ginger beer (according to glass size and amount of ice)

2 teaspoons to 3 teaspoons (that makes 1 tablespoon) rosemary syrup (your preference to taste)

rosemary for garnish

lemon slice for garnish

 

Add a little bit of ice to the glass (a small amount of ice makes it initially easier to mix), add some ginger beer and 2 teaspoons rosemary syrup, stir to mix, add more ice, and more ginger beer (to near the top of the glass), stir and taste; add another teaspoon (or more) of rosemary syrup, to suit your taste preference. Garnish with some fresh rosemary and a slice of lemon.

 

WORD HISTORY:

Beverage-The main part of this word is related to "potable," "potion" and "poison," all Latin-derived words borrowed by English from French, and to "imbibe," another Latin-derived word, either borrowed from Latin, but with French influence, or perhaps the other way around. "Beverage" goes back to Indo European "po/poi," which meant "to drink." This gave Latin "bibere," with the same meaning, and this passed to Latin-based Old French as "boivre/beivre," and it produced the noun "bevrage" (no 'e' between v and r), meaning "a drink," with the suffix "-age," often indicating "the act or process of the main word to which it was attached), tracing back through Latin "aticum/aticus" to Indo European "at." "Old French "bevrage" was "beverage" in the Anglo-Norman dialect that developed among the Norman descendants of England, and this was borrowed by English in the mid 1200s, and meaning "a drink." 

Watermelon Cocktail (With Alcohol or Without)

Watermelon is a fruit that is about 90% water and with lots of vitamins and minerals, including vitamins A and C, plus lycopene, which is found in many red colored fruits and vegetables, like tomatoes. It also has a good deal of fiber. This refreshing drink is easily non alcohol or you can give it an alcohol content with some vodka, or watermelon vodka or watermelon schnapps, both available at a number of liquor outlets. If the watermelon is not all that sweet, you can add some honey or some blue agave. As you can see in the photos below, I used a large glass (with ice) for the non alcohol type, and a smaller cocktail glass (with ice) for the alcoholic cocktail. 

Ingredients (about 3 to 5 servings, depending upon glass type and amount of ice used):

2 1/2 cups seedless watermelon chunks (pieces of a size to be easily fed into your blender)
3 to 4 inch piece of cucumber, peeled and the seeds scraped out
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
(optional) 2 tablespoons honey OR 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon blue agave
ice cubes
(optional) garnish each serving with a piece of lime 

To a blender, gradually add the watermelon and then the cucumber, then the lime juice and sweetener, if using. Blend until smooth. Add ice cubes to a glass and fill with the watermelon mixture. 


Non alcohol watermelon cocktail ....

Watermelon with watermelon vodka ...

WORD HISTORY:
Glad-This word is related to "glee" and to "glisten," both words from the Germanic roots of English. It goes back to Indo European "ghel," which had the notion "to shine, to cause or to bring light." This gave Old Germanic "gladaz," meaning, "bright, shiny, glossy;" thus also figuratively, "brightly cheerful and happy, joyous," and the further figurative meaning, "smooth, flat" (that which provides a basis to be bright, glossy and shiny). This gave Old English "glæd," meaning, "cheerful, pleasant" as an adjective, but it was also used with this same spelling as a noun (later as "gladness") meaning, "joy." "Glæd" later became "glad," but also "gled" to some (seems northern England and southern Scotland?), with "glad" eventually prevailing as standard. Relatives in the other Germanic languages: German has "glatt," meaning, "smooth," from the notion of "shiny and glossy" often coming from smooth objects; "slippery," although typically used most often about ice and not about greasy objects; and German also uses the word as English uses "smooth," in the figurative sense, "no problems;" as in, "We had a smooth trip to the beach and everything was wonderful" (one way to say this in German: "Wir hatten einen glatten Ausflug zum Strand und alles war wunderbar"); Low German is interesting, because it has "glatt," the primary meaning of which is "smooth," but I have a strong suspicion that this form has worked its way into Low German from standard German, as its comparative form is "gladder" (smoother), and Low German once had "glad" and the compound noun "gladmod," literally "glad mood;" that is, "cheerfulness;" West Frisian has "glêd," meaning, "smooth, shiny;" Dutch has "glad," meaning, "smooth, slick, slippery;" Danish has "glad," meaning, "cheerful," and it also has "glat," meaning, "smooth, slippery," but this is a borrowing from German (with likely reinforcement by Low German), Icelandic has "glaður" (=glathur), meaning, "happy, cheerful;" Norwegian has "glad," meaning "cheerful, happy;" Swedish has "glad," meaning, "happy, cheerful, merry."