The Green Meadows Cocktail: A GDR Classic Returns
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The “Green Meadows” cocktail was an absolute hit in the 1980s. Especially in the GDR and West Berlin, this long drink was a hit at parties and in bars. Today, you might also know it by names like Green Widow, Green Frog, or Green Angel. Even today, some establishments, such as the Café am Schaugarten in Waren (Müritz), still serve it as the “Müritzwelle.”
What makes the Green Meadows special?
The Green Meadows is a simple long drink. It gets its characteristic green color from a mixture of blue curaçao liqueur and orange juice. Traditionally, the cocktail is topped off with sparkling wine. It is often garnished with a fruit skewer or a slice of orange and served with a straw.
Ingredients and Preparation
To make the base of the Green Meadows, mix Blue Curaçao—a blue-colored orange liqueur—with orange juice. The exact proportions vary. A common version combines 4 cl of Blue Curaçao with 12 cl of orange juice over ice cubes. Another option is to mix 2 cl each of Blue Curaçao and orange juice and then top it off with 6 cl of sparkling wine. In the GDR, people often used dry sparkling wine from the Rotkäppchen brand for this.
The green color results from mixing the blue and orange liquids. A special effect occurs if you carefully add the Blue Curaçao to the glass at the very end. It then sinks to the bottom, creating a beautiful color gradient from yellow through green to blue. In addition to the basic version, there are also variations, for example with banana liqueur, banana juice, or vodka.
Its Significance in the GDR
The Green Meadows became one of the most famous GDR cocktails. Initially, however, there was a peculiarity: in the GDR, blue liquids were typically labeled as toxic. This led to initial difficulties with the introduction of blue Curaçao liqueur.
Curaçao liqueur was a so-called “licensed production” in the GDR. This means it was manufactured under license. It was only available in specialty stores such as Intershops or delicatessens. A well-known product was the “Zahnaer Edellikör” Blue Curaçao with 30% alcohol content, produced by the VEB Likörfabrik Zahna. At 28 marks, it was quite expensive and is said not to have produced the desired green color as well as the products from the Intershop.
