Message 25129 of 39188 in General Discussion

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Hi Mbanu,

I just got a reply from a guy called Barry Popik, who is senior consulting 
editor, Oxford Encyclopedia of Food and Drink in America (2004).

I saw his name on a couple of Pina Colada searchs on the internet, he sent me 
the following info:

From John Mariani's ENCYCLOPEDIA OF AMERICAN FOOD & DRINK:

_pina colada._  A cocktail made from light rum, coconut cream and pineapple
juice.  It is especially popular during warm weather with boating enthusiasts
and at southern resort areas.  The term was first printed in 1923.
     The pina colada (which in Spanish means "strained pineapple") originated
at the Caribe Hilton Hotel and Casino in San Juan, Puerto Rico.  Back in 1952
bartender Ramon Monchito Marrero Perez was introduced to a new product called
Coco Lopez cream of coconut (containing coconut, sugar, water, polysorbate
60, sorbitan monostearate, salt, propylene glycol alginate, mono- and
diglycerides, citric acid, guar gum, and locaust-bean gum).  On August 15,
1954, after three months of trying out various liquors with the product,
Marrero mixed pineapple juice and light rum with it, blended the mixture with
crushed ice, and came up with a sweet, creamy drink that did not really catch
on until 1954, when it was served to a group of government officials at a
convention there.
     Another Puerto Rican claimed to have invented the pina colada in 1963 at
the bar called La Barrachina in San Juan's Old City, where there still hangs
a plaque that announces "The House Where in 1963 THE PINA COLADA Was Created
by Don Ramon Portas Mingot."  But Mr. Marrero's 1952 claim seems clearly more
authoritative, and, therefore, here is the original recipe. (...)

     I'll probably go to the Library of Congress on Thursday, where I'll
check out QUE PASA IN PUERTO RICO.  This official tourist guide was published
in the 1950s, but the LOC doesn't list the dates of its holdings.  Don't
expect many holdings.
     "Pina colada" meaning "strained pineapple" may be from the 1920s, but
the drink doesn't show up in drink books until about 1970:

     TRADER VIC'S BOOK OF FOOD AND DRINK (1946) doesn't have it.
     CHICO PRESENTS RONRICO'S OFFICIAL MIXTRO'S GUIDE is not dated.  Ronrico
is a Puerto Rican rum.  "1942 Cocktail" is on page 52.    "49" is written on
the cover.  1949 seems a good date, or maybe the 1950s.  "Pina Colada" is NOT
here.  Pg. 82 has "Pina Rico," which contains the white of one egg, 1/2 oz.
fresh lemon juice, 1/2 oz. Passion Fruit, 1 1/2 oz. Ronrico Red Label, and
ice, served in a fresh pineapple with the center taken out.
     ESQUIRE'S HANDBOOK FOR HOSTS (1949) doesn't have it.
     Ted Saucier's BOTTOMS UP (1951) doesn't have it.
     The ESQUIRE DRINK BOOK (1956) doesn't have it.
     THE RUM COOKBOOK (1973), pg. 24:  Pina Colada, pronounced _peen_-ya
koe-_lah_-da, has long been a great favourite in many parts of the American
tropics, from South Florida and Cuba southwards.  Yet, it has never been
common here in Jamaice, where our lovely rums make it exceptional!
     TRADER VIC'S RUM COOKERY AND DRINKERY (1974) has it on page 138.
     PLAYBOY'S PARTY DRINKS (1974) doesn't have it.
     PLAYBOY'S NEW BAR GUIDE (1982) has it on page 289.

     I checked the Reader's Guide, and these articles on Puerto Rican tourism
didn't have Pina Colada:

HOLIDAY, February 1955--Pg. 59, col. 1--...drank the excellent daiquiris...
HOLIDAY, February 1959--Pg. 22, col. 4--Some frozen Daiquiris on the terrace
revived us...
     Pg. 23, col. 1--On the tables were small colorful brochures announcing a
_Fiesta de Bibidas_, which, I suppose, might best be translated as "Booze
Fest."  Featured were such startling drinks as (Col. 2; these are Caribe
Hilton drinks--ed.) the Hurricane Buster (Calvados, rum and Curacao served in
a hurricane lamp) and the Coucou Comber (vodka and Pernod, served in a
cucumber).  We passed up these and ordered two _Sol Y Sombras_ ($1.35 each).
This was no mistake.  To suck rum through a straw from a pineapple is about
as pleasant an occupation as any I know.
VOGUE, February 1, 1959
HOLIDAY, February 1961
ESQUIRE, November 1962
HOLIDAY, March 1968--Pg. 95, col. 2--Puerto Rican morality is one of her
favorite subjects.  "Have you heard of Social Fridays?" she asks.  "It's an
institution most wives take for granted.  A night out.
VOGUE, January 15, 1971

     From GOURMET, "Summer Drinks," July 1968, pg. 31, col. 1:

     _Pina Colada_
     In the container of a blender combine 1 cup canned pineapple cubes with
2 tablespoons coconut milk and 1 teaspoon each of lime juice and sugar.
Blend the mixture at high speed until it is a thick puree.  Strain the puree
through four thicknesses of cheesecloth, pressing the cloth to extract all
the juice, and discard the pineapple pulp.  Chill the juice and return it to
the blender, with 1 1/4 cups firmly packed finely crushed ice and 2 ounces
light rum.  Blend the mixture at high speed for about 30 seconds, or just
until it is the consistency of soft sherbet.  Pour the drink into a highball
glass and decorate it with a stick of fresh pineapple and a green maraschino
cherry.  Serve the drink with a straw.  The rum may be omitted, if desired.

     From GOURMET, "Gourmet Holidays," November 1968, pg. 56, col. 2:

     You will, in any case, arrive in time to swim in the DORADO HILTON's
pool and to bask in the late afternoon sun.  Then make your way to the
hotel's Bamboo Bar for a cooling _pina colada_ or a Daiquiri with Puerto
Rican rum (an extremely popular drink Stateside, too), and repair leisurely
to your room to change for a _comida puertorriquena_ (a complete Puerto Rican
dinner) in the delightfully air-conditioned main dining room.

PINA COLADA (continued)

     I could request three years at a time.  I looked through 1957-1958-1959,
1960-1961-1962, 1963-1964-1965, and 1966-1967-1968 of QUE PASA IN PUERTO RICO.
     I did NOT find "pina colada"!
     Perhaps I'll go back and check the 1970s.
     It's interesting to note that Trader Vic opened up in the Caribe Hilton
in the 1960s.
However, the Trader's own books and articles don't mention the "pina colada"
drink before the late 1960s-early 1970s.
     From QUE PASA IN PUERTO RICO, October 1957, pg. 25:

     _MIXOLOGIST JOE_
     Joe Scialom is a master bartender and world renowned mixologist.  The
former bar manager of Cairo's Shepheard's (sic) Hotel, Joe has been presiding
over the Caribar in San Juan's Caribe Hilton since early this year.
     Joe is more than just a manager--he is a creator with an almost
spiritual devotion to the spirits he dispenses.  Since he's been at the
Hilton, he has developed a number of new drinks, most of them using the
light, full flavored Puerto Rican rum as a base.
     The names Joe picks for his drinks are just as inviting as the mixtures
themselves--who can resist when the list includes such fanciful titles as the
"Tropical Itch" (served in a stylized hurricane lamp), the "Coucou Comber,"
(in a cucumber shell), or "Sol y Sombra" (sun and shade).
     Joe has found great inspiration for his fascinating drinks in Puerto
Rico.  He likes the climate, the people and the scenery.  And Puerto Rico
likes Joe.  Let's hope he stays around for a long time to come.

"SORTA" PINA COLADA

     John Mariani's ENCYCLOPEDIA OF AMERICAN FOOD & DRINK says that Ramon 
Monchito Marrero Perez may have served the pina colada at the Caribe Hilton, 
Puerto Rico, in 1954.  The earliest citation I've been able to find is 1966.
     This is from THE INTERNATIONAL STEWARD, November 1955, pg. 29, col. 1:

_Puerto Rico Welcome Drinks_
_Say "Hello" to Hotel Guests_
   IN THE LAST twelve months more visitors said "hello" (or Spanish "hola") to 
Puerto Rico than ever before in the island's 460 year history.  And for many 
of these 145,000 tourists, Puerto Rico's famous hotels returned the greeting 
in the form of a mellow nd memorable "Welcome Drink," served to new guests 
without cost.
   Best known of all is the swank Caribe Hilton's "Rum Welcome," the cool and 
exciting contents of a real coconut.  The prescription:

   2 oz. Puerto Rican Rum
   1 oz. Apricot Liqueur
   1 oz. Coconut Cream (or powder)
   1 dash lime
   Blend with coconut water; serve in coconut filled with ice.

   Only slightly less popular at the Caribe is the "Pina Sorpresa" which 
brings together two of Puerto Rico's best known products--mellow rum and tangy 
pineapple:

   1-1/2 oz. Puerto Rican Rum
   1/2 oz. Triple Sec
   2 oz. Pineapple Juice
   dash Lime
   1/2 Spoon Sugar
   Blend with ice in Waring Blender and pour in pineapple.

   At the Condado Beach Hotel, the welcome also features pineapple, but that's 
where the similarity ends.

   1 oz. White Puerto Rican Rum
   1 oz. Pineapple Juice
   1 dash each Grenadine and Simple Syrup
   Shake with ice and serve in 8 oz. glass.
   Garnish with fresh fruit.

   And Puerto Rico's thousands of new visitors have enough opportunity to 
follow up their welcome.  Not only the luxurious hotels, but the many clubs, 
casinos and restaurants of the island also pride themselves on no less than 
100 different rum drinks ranging from the 10-ingredient Zombie to the 
growingly popular Rum-on-the-Rocks.  Would you expect an Oriental drink served 
with Puerto Rican rum?  Well, just to show you the variety of unusual 
offerings served in the homeland of rum, this is the "Shanghai Lil" that is 
currently delighting patrons of Hing's Chinese (Col. 2--ed.) Restaurant in San 
Juan, Puerto Rico.

   2/3 of Orange, Pineapple or Lemon Juice
   1/2 jigger Grenadine
   Dash of Cherry Juice
(Col. 3--ed.)
   1 Jigger Dark Puerto Rican Rum
   1 Jigger White Puerto Rican Rum
   Garnish with sliced pineapple and cherry.  Serve in Zombie glass with 
shaved ice.

   And Puerto Rico's smaller but no less exclusive hotels also get into the 
act.

------------------------------------------------------
SMOOTHEE (1955)

   I left this off the last posting on "smoothie."

WARING BLENDER COOK BOOK
Waring Products Corporation, NY, 1955
Pg. 9, col. 1:

_Banana Smoothee_
1 large ripe banana, or
   2 medium-sized bananas
2 1/2 cups cold milk
Break banana into several pieces and put in glass container.  Add milk.  Cover 
and blend until contents are smooth and fluffy, about 15 seconds.  Serve at 
once.  _Gives 2 twelve-ounce servings._


PINA FRIA

   FWIW to "pina colada."
   From the NEW YORK HERALD-TRIBUNE, 22 March 1952, pg. 9, col. 7:

_Eating, Drinking in Puerto Rico_

Fish Dishes, Unusual Fruits and Cool-Blended
   Concoctions of Rum Are Bases of Hospitality

By Clementine Paddleford

   Along with the room key the incoming guest at the Caribe Hilton, San Juan, 
Puerto Rico, receives a card of welcome inviting him to a drink on the house.  
Unless the guest has had a due warning, he may suffer a stroke, for when the 
production arrives at the table he finds it gargantuan.  It's a whole coconut 
in husk, a slice off the top, the center filled with crushed ice and dynamite. 
 The ingredients for your welcome include two ounces of Puerto Rican rum, one 
ounce of apricot liqueur, one ounce of coconut cream and a dash of lime.
   In much the manner of Trader Vic of Oakland, Calif., the Caribe-Hilton has 
taken over the whole world of rums and the knowledge and understanding 
thereof.  Go into its sea-breeze cooled bar and they present you a menu titled 
"Bebidas Tropicals," listing eighteen rum drinks.  Pina Fria has music in its 
name: two fingers of cold fresh pineapple juice are blended with one and 
one-half ounces of white Puerto Rican rum and a half teaspoon of sugar.  Shake 
with fine ice; strain into a champagne glass.  San Geronimo  punch takes its 
name from Old Fort San Geronimo on the east grounds ofthe hotel.  This is a 
tough one.  The fort has stood as a Spanish bastion for 400 years and this 
drink is made to commemorate lasting bastions.  Here's the mixture: take two 
ounces of Puerto Rican rum, one and one-half ounces of orange juice, one and 
one-half ounces of pineapple juice, one-half ounce of lime juice, one teaspoon 
of sugar, shake well with crushed ice and pour into a Collins glass.  At!
 the Caribe Hilton the price is
70 cents.

I use www.bibliofind.com and www.bookfinder.com.  I just received this book in:

HERTZ GOURMET GUIDE
RESTAURANTS & RECIPES OF
NEW YORK
NEW JERSEY & CONNECTICUT
Edited by Leonce Picot
Research Unlimited, Inc., Ft. Lauderdale, FL
1964

   The back of the book has:

RESTAURANTS OF SAN FRANCISCO...
RESTAURANTS OF PUERTO RICO
   Our 80 page hard-cover edition is still available  $2.00
RESTAURANTS OF FLORIDA
GOURMET INTERNATIONAL
3599 North Federal Highway, Fort Lauderdale, Florida

   Obviously, RESTAURANTS OF PUERTO RICO would be wonderful for "pina colada." 
 How could I miss it?
   RESTAURANTS OF PUERTO RICO is not in the New York Public Library.  It's not 
in the Library of Congress.  It's not on Bibliofind.  It's not on Bookfinder.  
That's how I could miss it!
   Can anyone find out who has it and inter-library loan it right away, so 
it's there when I get back from vacation?
   I'll buy you a pina colada for this.

PINA FRIA

   From the same issue of the NYHT, 22 March 1952, pg. 9, col. 7:

_Eating, Drinking in Puerto Rico_
(...)
   In much the manner of Trader Vic of Oakland, Calif., the Caribe-Hilton has 
taken over the whole world of rums and the knowledge and understanding 
thereof.  Go into the sea-breeze cooled bar and they present you a menu 
titled"Bebidas Tropicals," listing eighteen rum drinks.  Pina Fria has music 
in its name; two fingers of cold fresh pineapple juice are blended with one 
and one-half ounces o white Puerto Rican rum and a half teaspoon of sugar.  
Shake with fine ice; strain into a champagne glass.

(No Pina Colada--ed.)

PINA COLADA (continued)

   Merriam-Webster has 1923.  What cite is that?  Is it from Cuba?
   The "pina colada" of the "pina colada song" is different, however.  That 
"pina colada" is believed to have been first mixed at the Caribe Hilton in San 
Juan, Puerto Rico.  I recently e-mailed the food service there about their 
historic menus; the man in charge said he'd look, but never responded again.
   From TRAVEL, December 1922, pg. 14, col. 1:

   Havana has learned the art of mixed drinks from her nothern (Col. 2--ed.) 
neighbor, and has contributed some original creations.  In Cuba the 
ingredients of every known drink are to be had--even those of the South Seas.  
At the end of almost every bar is a heap of ripe pineapples and green 
cocoanuts.  An excellent drink is made by mixing the milk of the latter with a 
little gin and a _panal_, a cake of sugar-foam.  But best of all is a _pina 
colada_, the juice of a perfectly ripe pineapple--a delicious drink in 
itself--rapidly shaken up with ice, sugar, lime and Bacardi rum in delicate 
proportions.  What could be more luscious, more mellow and more fragrant?

From NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE, September 1933, pg. 365, col. 1:
   For the thirsty there is the "pineapple refreshment," made of freshly 
crushed pineapple, sugar, and water.  Some order it _colada_, which means 
strained; others like food and drink together, and order it _sin colar_ 
(without straining), with the pieces of crushed pineapple in the glass, a real 
treat.

Pg. 380, col. 1:
   I have sat at a sidewalk cafe table, surrounded by well-dressed, well-fed 
people, sipping a pina colada (see text, page 365), and listening to an 
orchestra of flashing-eyed beauties play and sing their native music with its 
strange, yearning rhythm.


PINA COLADA
  
   OED is nearing this entry, and I don't think that I posted this.  It's 
more than just "strained pineapple" here.  I provided the Cuban 1922 citation 
that MERRIAM-WEBSTER now uses.
   I re-checked for the LOS ANGELES TIMES, but there's nothing there yet.
  
  
(PROQUEST HISTORICAL NEWSPAPERS)
    AT THE BAR
New York Times (1857-Current file). New York, N.Y.: Apr 16, 1950. p. XX3 (1 
page):
   Drinks in the West Indies range from Martinique's famous rum [unch to 
Cuba's _pina colada_ (rum, pineapple and coconut milk).  Key West has a 
variety of 
lime swizzles and punches, and Granadians use nutmeg in their rum drinks.  
Cubans and Puerto Ricans make a variety of tasty and exotic fruit beverages,  
These include guanabana (soursop juice), _fruta bomba_ (papaya), watermelon 
juice, muskmelon juice and a drink of almond blended with banana juice.


Cheers!

George S.

"You have your way. I have my way. As for the right way, the correct way, and 
the only way, it does not exist." - F. Nietzsche 

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