Milk-O-Punch Sunday

3rd May

Try the magic potion offered to you in pubs and clubs across the Island.

Milk-O-Punch Sunday - Every year on the first Sunday in May, Alderney publicans prepare their own special version of the famous Alderney drink, Milk-O-Punch. Every establishment offers a free glass of the homemade milky cocktail which contains a secret ingredient that they add to the recipe making every version taste slightly different depending on the quantities of the ingredients added; which are milk, eggs (one or two), sugar, a pinch of nutmeg and rum, plus other undisclosed ingredients. Residents and visitors alike make the most of the day by visiting various establishments, on a quest to find the best Milk-O-Punch on the island. Alderney is the only Channel Island to celebrate this occasion, and to this day the spirit of Milk-O-Punch is alive, well and guaranteed to be particularly tasty.

So how did it all start?
Over the years people seem to have had difficulty in remembering the exact origin of this amusing tradition and so, there are various accounts of how this custom originated. Some say that farmers used to take a bottle of rum with them when they went out to milk the cows, which in those days meant milking by hand, others advise that it all started as a celebration of islanders taking the cows out to their summer pastures. Perhaps the most popular belief is that on the first Sunday in May everyone was allowed to go and milk their neighbour's cows and take their eggs. Possibly the answer is a mixture of all three explanations!

For more information contact tel. 0044 1481 823737