"Sorta" Pina Colada (November 1955); Smoothee (1955)

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"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.

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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._