What are ideologies?

Well, for the most part they could be defined as the principles and beliefs of a structured worldview. Generally, these abstractions remain primarily that, abstract, but in 1961 the world saw ideologies built into realities, and how the outcrop of dueling perspectives left us all holding our breath.

Today I present the Berlin Baller, a drink I have made based on one of the most imposing structures of the twentieth century: the Berlin Wall. It’s like a Long Island Iced Tea (the drink, not the Berlin Wall) with some historically motivated substitutions. The drink consists of rum, vodka, dry vermouth, Jägermeister, gin, a little sweet and sour mix, and last but not least, some Coca-Cola. I chose each of these ingredients because they are uniquely based on the events immediately following World War II.

Following the death of Adolf Hitler and the fall of the German Reich, Germany was split in two. East Germany, her people, and her resources were claimed by the Soviet Union while West Germany was temporarily occupied by the Allied Forces of the West, including the US, UK, and France. Even the capital city of Berlin was divided with both East Berlin and West Berlin, comprising just over a million inhabitants. But a crisis quickly arose in East Germany as the USSR-backed government watched many of its citizens move to the West through West Berlin.

Why were so many East Germans fleeing the country in the first place?

Despite conquering the pressing threat of Nazism, life behind the Iron Curtain wasn’t very free at all. Secret Police recorded your every move, every conversation, and every transaction. Known in Russia as the NKVD/KGB, in East Germany they were the Stasi—one of the most efficient and terrifying police surveillance forces in history. If you’re an American, imagine every time you spoke or did something “out of favor” with the government, the NSA/CIA would swoop down to arrest and possibly even torture you.

Think I’m exaggerating?

One woman named Heidi Brauer (not Bauer) broke the law by occasionally watching West Berlin television and the Stasi compile a 1,500-page file on her… a model citizen.

But with the ability to freely move between what was essentially two countries in one city, East German authorities were searching for ways to keep their populace in their nation and under their control. As more and more East Germans fled to West Germany, East Germany found itself coming to the brink of an economic catastrophe. By 1961, East Germany was losing as many as 100,000 inhabitants per year with 70% passing through West Berlin. Doctors fled faster than new ones could be trained. Reeling, Premier of the Soviet Union Nikita Khrushchev and leader of East Germany Walter Ulbricht decided the best option they had was to build an impassible wall, and as soon as possible. Overnight, the city was split in half, families were separated, and ideological boundaries were clearly defined. When asked about the construction of the Berlin Wall, former Stasi cartographer Hagen Koch would later state…

“The world ends here for capitalism, a better socialist society begins here.”

From 1961-1989 the Berlin Wall saw three renovations, each making the structure more and more impregnable. The East Germans were trapped. The wall, or rather walls as there would eventually be two, was made of pure concrete and had rounded edges, barbed wire, guard towers, guard dogs, and searchlights followed by a “no man’s land” in between the first wall and the second with 35 feet of sand outfitted with barriers, mines, tripwires firing weapons, and alarms. If, by some miracle, you were lucky enough to make it through this demented obstacle course, you would still have another 11-foot-high wall to scale before you reached freedom.

With concrete and barbed wire, USSR’s “Iron Curtain” became a physical reality. And for the East German government, it was a success. By nature of having no choice but to stay in the state, East Germans brought much to the country and eventually East Germany rose to become one of the most prosperous countries in the Soviet Union.

But, with the wall also came tragedy. At least 140 people lost their lives trying to pass over the Berlin Wall, whether by being shot by border guards or accidentally killing themselves in their attempts. The outrage this sparked from West Berliners spread across the world to western political authorities alike, including John F. Kennedy and Ronald Regan who famously said to Soviet Union Premier Mikhail Gorbachev…

“Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall.”

And so, in 1989, amid a crumbling economy and mounting resentment throughout much of the Soviet Union, Gorbachev relented, and the Berlin Wall fell. Two years later, so too did the Soviet Union and its infamous iron curtain.

Now that we know the story, let’s get back to the drink inspired by that crazy tale! Remember how I said each of these ingredients were chosen specifically? Well, each one represents one of the factions operating in Berlin at the time of the wall. So, the Berlin Baller is composed of equal parts English gin, French dry vermouth, Russian vodka, American rum (yes, Puerto Rico is a territory of America so I am 100% counting Bacardi as American), and German Jägermeister.

Much like the Long Island Ice Tea, this drink looks deceptively innocent, so we have to remind ourselves that it’s mainly liquor. If you’d like to add a fresh, flowery, dry finish to your drink, you can omit the Jägermeister and up the dry vermouth a bit and it will be just as splendidly refreshing.