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Local dad, Paul “Bushfire” Longley, has today put his alleged reputation as a connoisseur of fine foods on the line.
Friends and family know Bushfire as the type of bloke to insist that his kids know the difference between champagne and sparkling white yada yada yada.
He’s also never one to shy away from a couple slices of Jarlsberg with some sun dried tomatoes, camembert, pesto, capsicum dip and water crackers in the same megastack of salty entree goodness.
It’s for this reason that his loved ones are surprised that the big fella gives Sarsaparilla his seal of approval.
Sarsaparilla is a soft drink, originally made from the Smilax ornata or other plants, but now sometimes made with artificial ingredients. In most Southeast Asian countries, it is known as sarsi, and there is a Sarsi brand. It is similar to root beer.
Despite it’s harsh flavour, sarsaparilla or ‘double sars’ is wildly popular with Australian boomers – in the same way that liquorice flavoured ice cream and corned beef is.
While Bushy’s kids write off his obsession with Sars as something that he picked up as a post-war kid in rural Australia.
However, Bushy insists this is not the case. He says he likes the drink because it’s good.
“Get real!” he shouts, as he take a giant gulp from a stein glass of dark, fizzy plant matter.
“This is delicious”
“Sorry it’s not a fucken pineapple Cruiser”
Bushy goes on to explain that this particular soft drink isn’t just for special occassions, it’s also good for a night out”
“Even better with a splash of Jagearmeister” he says with a wink.
“Couple Sarsmeisters and a box prawns. Mmmmm”
