Milk wine with brandy

Brandy was one of the spirits used in English clarified milk punch, the drink that milk wine descends from, and it was widely available in colonial Ceylon. Some families' recipes have used brandy since they were first written down.

For some households, brandy was also a mark of a special occasion. It was imported and more expensive than arrack, and using it for the Christmas milk wine showed generosity.

Today, Sri Lankan-made brandies are available alongside imported ones, and families choose based on taste, tradition and budget.

Family recipe notebooks often record the choice plainly, with a line such as one bottle of brandy, or arrack if brandy is dear. That flexibility reflects how the drink was made in practice: with whatever good spirit the household could afford in a particular year, rather than to a strict rule.

Brandy is distilled from wine and usually aged in oak, which gives it notes of dried fruit, raisin, vanilla and wood. In milk wine, these flavours combine with the citrus and spices to give a richer, rounder drink.

Compared with arrack milk wine, a brandy version tastes more like a fruit liqueur and less like a tropical spirit. It pairs especially well with Christmas cake, which shares the dried fruit notes.

Brandy milk wine is often a little darker in colour, from the oak-aged spirit, even with the same amount of caramel.

Brandy also reacts slightly differently with the milk. Its oak-derived tannins bind with the curds, so a brandy milk wine can feel a little softer and drier on the finish than its colour suggests. Some cooks add a touch more citrus to brandy batches to keep the drink lively.

Many families split the spirit between arrack and brandy. The arrack provides the mellow, coconut and woody base that gives milk wine its island character, and the brandy adds depth and fruitiness.

Proportions vary. Some use equal amounts; others use mostly arrack with a splash of brandy. A common approach is to make the batch with arrack and add a little brandy at bottling.

The mix is a good choice for anyone unsure which spirit they prefer, and it is how many people first taste the difference.

There is no need for an expensive cognac. A decent everyday brandy works well, since the subtleties of a fine brandy are covered by sugar and spice, as with premium arrack.

In Sri Lanka, locally made brandies are widely available in wine stores and are a sensible choice. Imported brandies cost more because of import duties.

Abroad, a supermarket brandy works well. Some families abroad add a little rum for depth.

The method is exactly the same as with arrack. Steep citrus peel and spices in the brandy for a day or two. Dissolve the sugar and caramel, add citrus juice, pour in boiling milk, rest, then strain slowly and bottle.

Some cooks find brandy milk wine clarifies slightly faster, but the difference is small. Resting for several weeks still improves it.

Quantities are the same: one 750 ml bottle of brandy, 500 to 750 ml milk, 400 to 500 g sugar, four to six limes and spices.

Visitors who are invited to several homes at Christmas may taste both arrack and brandy milk wine without knowing it. Asking which spirit was used is a good conversation starter.

Lankan Stays & Trails can help December travellers find Christmas markets and home bakers in Colombo and Negombo, where both styles may be on sale.

Hosts who make both styles sometimes set out two bottles side by side, and the contrast is striking: the arrack version tastes of the tropics, the brandy version of a European winter. Many guests end up preferring whichever one they tasted first.