Donay Apple

Apple of My Eye

Summer at Berkeley Series, Prerequisite Material

The Donay Apple by John Berkeley

Last summer I spent a puzzling “sabbatical” teaching classes at the University of Berkeley. The course didn’t take place in sunny California, however; rather, it was located in the English Midlands county of Leicestershire, where master turner John Berkeley resides. John’s legacy to both the puzzle and wood turning world is his canon of Victorian era treen puzzles, based on those found in Professor Hoffman’s classic index, which he faithfully reproduced in exotic hardwoods under the Donay label around the turn of this century.

Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics

The “course” began by highlighting the fruits of John’s labors, quite literally, with the Donay Pear, a truly beautiful work of art featuring three distinct puzzle mechanisms and chambers which hide vintage English coins. The pear is perhaps John’s masterpiece, as it includes a mechanism that he and Donald Goddard invented (which is also found in their “Mk 2” New, New Castle Money Box), and one other that John brilliantly modified and improved upon from the Hoffman era version. The pears were also all hand carved in addition to being lathe turned, to produce the perfect shape. Each one of the few produced is therefore unique.

getting to the bottom of things

But before the pear, and really at the start of all great stories, should be the apple, wouldn’t you agree? John collaborated with Donald Goddard, purveyor of the Donay puzzle and antique games shop, for many years, initially making replacement crib pegs and chess pieces, before Donald had the inspired idea to recreate the Hoffman puzzles. John was so skilled and successful in reproducing these old puzzles, and creating what are undoubtedly the finest versions that exists, that when he had exhausted the Hoffman catalogue, he and Donald set out to invent a set of new puzzles to add to the canon. The first of these, the Donay Apple, coincided with the very first International Puzzle Design Competition, where it won an honorable mention award.

core values

From John: The Apple idea was Donald's. He sent me a photo of a Victorian Treen  Apple box. Quite common then, but not so these days. He allowed me to see what puzzle internals I could incorporate. You have the result. He was pleased enough to enter it into the International puzzle competition, which I guess you know more about than me, and sanctioned me to enter it into the annual turning competition, held annually by the AWGB where it also won a prize. It's one of the most complex puzzles I made, being 3 in one. The Apple includes mechanisms found in Hoffman’s New Castle Money Box and Invisible Gift, and also incorporates a classic reverse thread. The puzzle beautifully combines three separate puzzles and even has a separately removable box inside one half. This feat was revisited in the Pear, which due to its shape and smaller space, ultimately utilized three different mechanisms and became an even more complex creation. The Apple, however, started a new chapter in the history of turned wood puzzles and cemented John Berkeley’s legend.

Garden Variety by Brandon Choate and Alejandro Medina

To toast the Apple I’m heading back home to highlight a surprising apple cocktail from Houston bartenders Brandon Choate and Alejandro Medina. They created it for the Anvil Bar and Refuge Spring 2021 menu. The drink will play with your expectations of what a seasonal cocktail can be. Ubiquitous on autumn drink menus, apple and particularly apple cider cocktails go hand in hand with the cool weather and crisp seasonal change in the air. Apples are not a spring or summer fruit, which is what makes this drink so interesting and notable.

I’m a fan of this one

Brandon Choate explained the origins of the idea for this simply delicious drink. For the Garden Variety, “we wanted to make something that was light and refreshing with an ingredient that isn’t always associated with spring. You often see apples featured on cocktail menus in the fall with lots of warm baking or mulling spices and we wanted to turn that idea on its head.” Alejandro Medina adds, “This drink was actually a continuation of a drink we were working on about a year and a half before … it started as a low abv swizzle with calvados and sage …. When the time came to work on the spring menu of this year I started thinking of salted apple caramel from carnivals and started playing with the idea.” They had received an interesting new vermouth at the bar, La Madre, that has apples added during the fermentation process, a perfect vehicle to bring the candy apple flavor theme into focus for the final drink. Again from Alejandro: “Whenever I work with fruit that most people are familiar with I really like blending the fresh and artificial flavor. It is comforting to have a little of both in a drink and adds a really neat depth.” The drink is perfectly refreshing, surprisingly delightful, and certainly not your garden variety cocktail. Cheers!

Teacher’s pets

Garden Variety by Brandon Choate and Alejandro Medina

1 ½ oz gin

½ oz blanc vermouth (e.g. La Madre White)

1 ¼ oz salted apple syrup (add a little green dye if you like just for fun)

¾ oz lime

¼ oz falernum

Shake ingredients together and strain into a glass full of crushed ice. Garnish with an apple fan.

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