Samba! Santa! Sangria!

„Nice and loud and slow“

grinned Babe ‘Babe’ Babeson, breathing on a steeply rising upsweep pipe, giving it a quick polish, and giving Santa the “thumbs up.” He winked at her from under his bright red jet helmet with the white Christmas pinstriping and stepped on the gas: the ancient 1963 Harley golfcart, stealthily hopped up with a quantum-accelerating 1971 Ironhead Big Bore engine, lurched forward; the big green barrel in the flat bed swayed precariously... Santa jerked the steering handle and elegantly swerved the three-wheeled vehicle on two wheels, joining the convoy behind the marching band. Now he was officially part of the “All American New Year Harley Golf Cart and Topper Parade and Show,” which was his winding down routine every year to relax from his exhausting tripdelivering gifts into millions of chimneys and fireplaces with his trusty three-wheeler. Being an old hand at this show, he still felt the anticipation grow: the “Best of Show” jury‘s verdict regularly led to fights at the after-show party.

But this year, Santa had vowed that things would be different – and they were: 3rd place went to Easter Bunny “Knucks” Bunny and her Texas Stroker Knucklehead Topper scooter. Ho! Ho! Ho! Santa‘s “Iron Organ” golf cart with Ironhead Power went to 2nd place for the first time ever, first place going as usual to Elvis and his gleaming factory fresh NOS 1962 golf cart, because „originality of vehicle AND driver“. Before even a hint of unrest could spread about Elvis‘ eternal winning streak (well, he DID donate the prize every year after all), Santa and Babe had rolled the green barrel off the golf cart, opened the lid, and started ladling out what Santa had so painstakingly shaken, accelerated, sloshed around and protonized while criss-crossing the Northern Lights the night before:

Sangria Borealis

Mix 1 bottle of dry white wine, 150 ml white vermouth, 50 ml green melon liqueur, and 50ml light rum in a glass jug or bowl. Add Northern Lights-ad-jacent solids as desired: sliced lime, green pear slices, halved green grapes, etc. Leave to infuse in the fridge for half an hour - the longer, the punchier. Add 200 ml of ice-cold spicy ginger ale, pour Sangria Borealis into frosted glasses. Mix some peach juice with edible green glitter, pour a sip into each glass. Serve with a mini Xmas tree for stirring (if you don't have a bonsai tree handy, use a sprig of rosemary).

The barrel being no longer in the way, Santa took a seat behind the keyboard of his vehicle’s exhaust gas organ. His 900+42 cc iron-headed fire-breather had been connected to a a battery of upsweep exhaust pipes of varying lengths, lashed together on the loading area of his golf cart and started hammering the keyboard, which had been cobbled together from surplus Shovelhead rocker arms by crafty elves. The pipes rumbled melodiously, the air was shaking, Babe Babeson hit the samba maracas, the Sangria Borealis worked its magic, and so everyone roared, gulped, rattled, and shook peacefully, loudly into the early hours: HEAVY X-MAS AND A HARLEY NEW YEAR!