I have posted before a peach-rum preserve with a mango-lime-rum variation. You do see a lot of jams and preserves with spirits in them. A lot of spirits are below the 4.6 pH boundary for acidity anyway. One issue is over-doing the spirits. Too much will overwhelm the flavor of the fruit. Also, as with prunes in armagnac or other spirit-based recipes, some aging is helpful in mellowing the flavor. I do agree on the assessment of Jamlady. She is very careful about food safety in preserving. Her book on pickles is an interesting study of the issues. I was disappointed in Ziedrich's new "Joy of Jams, Jellies and Sweet Preserves," because unlike her pickling book, almost no information is provided about acidity with low-acid fruits like figs. The recipes themselves seem fine and I would feel confident using them, but inexperienced preservers don't get the tools they need to make informed decisions. I could easily see someone looking at her fig jam and deciding they don't want the lemon juice, not realizing it's there for acidity as much as flavor. Or deciding to sub mango for peach thinking they're essentially the same, when in canning terms they're not at all. Jamlady is definitely superior in that regard. You can learn tons from her book, even if you never make a single one of her recipes. Carol

That's me, GardenLad, a mere child. I am old enough to drink, just barely. LOL However, I figure control of the rumtopf will be passed down to my generation soon enough. Gourmet magazine, huh? Wow, the humble rumtopf has been elevated in stature. As for the history in my family, I am told that the very first rumtopf was the result of my Aunt LulaBelle marrying a man from Germany. He was her first husband (number 5 just died last year!) and it was a tradition for his family to have a rumtopf yearly. He taught Aunt Lulabelle and a family tradition was born. Being heathen Michiganders we have used everything from vodka to brandy to rum, but the basic construction of the rumtopf is the same: fruit, sugar, booze. As for the ingredients, we just add whatever is ripe and we can get our hands on that might be compatible with the rest of the "pot". Annie

You said "punch" not "cocktail"? Right? LOL! My favorite "fruit-ey" drink if Southern comfort and cranberry juice with lime. You can make it more like a cocktail or more like a punch by varying the ration of Southern Comfort to juice....If I am making a punch bowl of thes tuff for a woman's group I use 5 to one ratio...5 oz cranberry juice to 1 oz Southern comfort....and I add the juice of a lime to every Qt or so of cranberry juice and float some lime slices in the bowl....If I remember fountains, there is a pool that would look pretty with lime slices floating....and because they are floating they don't go into the pump. You can make up a punch with things like bottled Kiwi juice and frozen lemonade ( put through a strainer to remove any pulp and the booze of your choice...vodka or rum. Or a wine punch....I bottle of Reisling to 2 qts of strawberry Kiwi juice....or white grape if you really want it sweet....and float sliced strawberries in it. Linda C

This one is really good. I served it at a holiday gethering last year and everyone loved it! Glacier Punch Source BH&G Holiday Appetizers 1999 2 c citrus vodka (may sub raspberry or cherry flavored) 2/3 c orange liqueur 2 T kirsch 1/2 c peach schnapps-(my addition) 4 c ice cubes 1 750-ml bottle champagne, chilled 2 c carbonated water, chilled Sugar (optional) Ice Brittle Combine vodka, orange liqueur, kirsch, schnapps and ice cubes in punch bowl. Carefully add champagne and carbonated water. If desired, sweeten with a little sugar. Top with chunks of Ice Brittle. Ice Brittle: Pour 1 c water into a 15 x 10 x 1 inch pan. Sprinkle surface evenly with edible flowers such as marigold, calendula, viola, pansy or dianthus. Sprinkle surface evenly with 1 c fresh raspberries or other fresh fruit. Freeze 3 hours or overnight. Unmold and break into chunks. ~~I used mint leaves in place of flowers~~ Linda