Skane Akvavit

Skåne Akvavit (or Aquavit from Scania) is a Swedish spirit - from the Scania area. I haven't actually been to Sweden, but this was a gift from a colleague who was posted there regularly. And it's quite nice! 

It's a clear drink, with a clean, herbie / berry-like smell to it. There are various aquavits around Scandinavia and Northern Europe, with a base made from grain or potatoes, to which is added various spices for flavour / aroma. This particular brand has anise, fennel and caraway added, which would explain the fragrance. The drink is 40% proof, which will clear your sinuses! The flavour is strongly alcoholic to me (I'm a lightweight drinker, however) but you can taste the overtones of slight sweetness / anise. 

You should drink Akvavit chilled (this means from the freezer in tropical Singapore!) sipped from a shot glass. 

Anecdote: Strangely, a Japanese friend and I made our way through over half a bottle of this between us (with snacks, admittedly) and were happy but both mysteriously non-drunk, and non-hung-over as a result of it! It doesn't work on Asians? Is a sign of this drink's purity? Who knows! Anyway, it was a very pleasant experience. Probably even nicer if you get the chance to drink it in Sweden at one of their festivals :) 

 

 

Cellophane lanterns - it's Mid-Autumn Festival time again :)

Yep, the autumnal equinox is coming up again, and with it the paraphernalia of the Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival. Crucially, sweet moon-cakes and lanterns. In fact, across Chinese parts of Asia, you will find cities with amazing lantern rigs going up. But the lanterns I love are the old-style, coloured cellophane animals, which I remember from years back in Malaysia. They're so pretty it seems a terrible shame to burn them (which is ultimately the idea at the Mid-Autumn festival!) (Or at least we did that in Malaysia!) These lights are a basic wire frame, with colourful, painted cellophane stretched across it. The wire has a coil to fit a candle inside.

For whatever reason (possibly my own lack of observation?) it's been a while since I saw these for sale in Singapore. Anyway I saw some today. And here they are :)

And if you want to find out more about the Mid-Autumn Festival, you can here, on an inappropriately large link which Blogger won't let me format (it works, though!): 

The Mid Autumn Festival

To look at one of Singapore's municipal lantern displays, click here: 

Mid autumn lanterns at night