Milkshake Slake

Spring arrived late this year in my part of the world. Chilliness long outstayed its welcome. Something approaching summery weather at last has arrived, however: enough so that I treated myself to a milkshake the other day. (Vanilla, no apologies; I don’t dislike chocolate or more exotic flavors but in truth I prefer vanilla.) At one of my favorite diner haunts, it came garnished with whipped cream in a container that was fairly common (not typical, but fairly common) when I was a kid though infrequent today: still in the tall stainless steel mixing cup rather than a glass. It was a generous serving and a satisfying one.
 
Naturally it caused me to wonder (because why wouldn’t it?) just how long ago one could order a milkshake. After all, iced drinks date to ancient times. Runners in ancient Rome, China, and Mesoamerica would bring snow down from the mountains for sale in town; if they were fast enough, some wouldn’t melt. Milk has been drunk since prehistory. Ice cream in the modern sense dates to the 1600s. So all the ingredients have been in place for a long time. Yet, there is no mention of it in Samuel Johnson's Dictionary of the English Language (1785) or in 19th century recipe books. The current Oxford English Dictionary tells us that the word “milkshake” can be documented by 1885. If you ordered one in 1885, however, you would be in for a surprise. It was milk, egg, and whiskey – a sort of rough-and-ready eggnog. Ice cream was not an ingredient. There still are milk-based alcoholic beverages, of course, but they have other names such as White Russian (vodka, Kahlua, and milk or cream) and Cow Shot (Southern Comfort and milk). [Digression: de gustibus and all that, but IMO Southern Comfort is dreadful on its own (what was Janis Joplin thinking?) but makes an excellent mixer in lieu of bourbon.] Nonalcoholic (and non-egg) “milkshakes” appeared in soda shops by 1900, but they did not include ice cream either; the ingredients were milk, malt, and various favored syrups.
 
It turns out there is a precise answer as to when, where, and by whom the modern milkshake was created. In 1922 Ivar “Pop” Coulson was working the soda fountain counter at a Chicago Walgreens. Malted milk (milk, malt, and chocolate syrup) was already on the menu, but he decided to add two scoops of vanilla ice cream to the blend. The concoction was a hit and by 1930 this version of a milkshake was offered at soda fountains nationwide. The malt was optional and different flavors (primarily chocolate and strawberry) and garnishes appeared almost immediately. In the 1930s Fred Waring invented a dedicated blender to speed the making of milkshakes, and that is pretty much where things still stand today.

Love Finds Andy Hardy (1938)

Soda fountains and malt shops were once much more prevalent than today. Some were specialized shops but up until the mid-60s almost every drug store had a soda counter that offered milkshakes as well. My parents, who met in high school in the 1940s, got to know each other over milkshakes after movie dates. (He was a chocolate man, she usually ordered strawberry.) Dedicated malt shops have become rarer since then, but they have not entirely disappeared. Milkshakes are readily available elsewhere, of course, such as at fast food outlets and diners.
 
So, since this year happens to be the 100^th anniversary of the modern milkshake, on June 21, which is not only the solstice but National Vanilla Milkshake Day (really), I’ll drink a milky toast to Pop Coulson.

 

Jerry Lee Lewis - Milkshake Mademoiselle (1957)