Hi Plumepoppy,

By the way, I use star anise whenever I have a stomach ache, and it works like a dream! If you add it to an herbal tea, like chamomille it makes you sleep like a baby, and calms your stomach as well!

Booklady,

Those cuba libres can be tasty, but for me the absolute best Cuban speciality is the mojito. I have had several delicious mojitos in Spain, one day I'll have to head to Calle 8 to see how well the Spaniards prepare Cuba's real liberating libation.

Cheers

I'm worried about the anís. I have some not too pleasant memories (actually, there is no memory) of drinking a small glass of ouzo, given to me by my best friend's Greek-American father. I don't remember a thing!! (Of course, I was in high school at the time.)

As for mojitos, the California Cafe in Palo Alto (near Stanford), makes a great one!! There's also a small restaurant/bar, Havana, in Walnut Creek where mojitos come in various flavors, an odd twist. So, for any of you northern Californians longing for a mojito, you have at least two choices.--CC

Bonjour Booklady! Well, as you can see, all I have to do is spit and polish my crystal ball, and voom, I see then hear it from you, that you are indeed an 'anis étoilé'. Now ... I'd love to know what are the proportions in the anis/chamomille elixir that takes you on a Turkish rug to the land of the Mille et une nuits?

Now a note for Carole Chiaro: It's not just about drinking anis, but how to drink it, and where to drink it. Menton, on the French border with Italy is one place to start, then you can work your way from one Mediterranean town to the next, trying each local variation until you reach Jérez, and then switch to Sherry. To be enjoyed very slowly.

I will, of course, be starting in Chinchon on this trip.