1935 Old Waldorf-Astoria Bar Book

174

OLD WALDORF-ASTORIA BAR BOOK

and flavored with absinthe. ORGEAT.:.__A syrup made in France from sugar, orange flower water and almonds. Deriv., French, from Latin, hordeum, barley. PARF.AIT D'AMOUR-A red cordial whose composi– tion was a proprietary secret, but whose name often assured those who had a slight acquaintance with French that it was a sort of love potion. RUM-Generally, the name of any alcoholic liquor. Used as an adjective, colloquial English for "queer" or "pe– culiar." Specifically, an alcoholic liquor distilled from fermented molasses, or. cane juice. Varieties usually named from country of origin-Jamaica, Swedish, St. Croix (West Indies), Cuban-better known as Bacardi or Santiago-and Japanese (usually called Sake and dis– tilled from fermented rice). Deriv., abbreviation of "rumbullion" or "rumbooze." The latter term is com– posed of the gypsy word rom or rum, meaning "good," and "booze," a corruption of the Dutch bouse, meaning to "guzzle," but now used as a good English word with a sinister meaning. The manufacture of rum was at one time an important New England industry, antedating that of cotton cloth. Voltage, 53.7. See "Jamaican Jolli– fiers." SHERRY-Originally meant the white wine of Jerez, Spain,J rom wh9~e name it was derived. Jerez was pro– nounced "Hareth," or "Berreth." The English corrup– tion may have been.due to excessive sibilance manifested by the original Britisher who drank a bottle and de– manded more: Voltage, I 9. SODA, SIPHON, PLAIN SODA, CARBONIC, SELT– ZER, VICHY-Water charged with gas and dis-