Anime, mixed drinks, and Internet archaeology

(Disclaimer: I don't drink. I was just ... very distracted.)

So a few of you may know that there are, in most mixed-drinks databases, entries entitled Sailor Moon, Sailor Mercury, and Sailor Venus. Yes, this includes those handheld electronic drink databases. (Those of you who didn't know this, well, now you can possibly win a sucker bet or two.) These are also the only widely accepted anime-based mixed drinks I've ever heard of; every so often you see people inventing them, but these have never caught on. (Incidentally, I'm particularly fond of the Ranma one there: a Whisky and a Brandy in seperate[sic] glasses, alternate between them.)

Those of you who have even a passing familiarity with the show or the manga might ask: where are Sailors Mars and Jupiter? Why are they not represented in the lineup, in any database?

In order: here, and because Dita isn't generally known outside Japan. (Although see below.) This is almost certainly the original site, despite not being properly credited anywhere: Wayback confirms its existence at least since 1999, which I think predates these databases by three or four years. (The page source also claims a 1998 origin.)

I reproduce the recipes here for completeness' sake.

Sailor Mars (original):

• Red wine (120 mL)
• Dita (20 mL)
• Peachtree (20 mL)
• Cranberry juice (30 mL)

Shake well; serve in a red-wine glass, garnished with a fresh strawberry.

This is the original version, dating from 1998-09-13, superseded only a year or so ago (between 2006-09-25 and 2007-06-02). The use of Dita, which most drinks databases don't seem to recognize, doubtless prevented its inclusion.

Sailor Mars (updated):

• Akvavit (40 mL)
• Cointreau (20 mL)
• Lemon juice (15 mL)
• Cranberry juice (60 mL)

Shake well; serve in a cocktail glass, garnished with a red rose.

This one, on the other hand, contains only commonly known ingredients, and might make it into the databases yet. (What on earth is that "rose" supposed to be? An actual rosebud?)

Sailor Jupiter:

• Green Tea Liqueur (45 mL)
• Vodka (30 mL)
• Dita (15 mL)

Shake well; serve in a cocktail glass, garnished with a mint leaf.

This one has been unchanged since its introduction, although with the relatively recent release (2005) of Dita Starburst (which is labeled in green), I wonder...

But anyway. Dita is a lychee liqueur made by Pernod, and also sold under the name Soho in France (its country of origin): as of 2006 September, it is also sold on this side of the pond, so you may be able to try out a Sailor Mars (new or old version) without special-ordering anything. (Now all you have to do is find green tea liqueur somewhere: although Suntory makes both Zen and the variety depicted in the photograph on the original page, it seems Zen is notably sweeter, so you may or may not want to substitute.)

(Happy new year, everyone; and may you remember this year fondly and well when it, too, has become auld lang syne.)