Let Us Make Several Things Perfectly Clear

Bearing in mind the success of the transparent “New Age” soft drinks, Miller is test-marketing a “clear beer,” with all color removed by ultra-filtration. If they really want to be New Age, of course, they’ll also have to make Clear Beer Lite and Clear Near Beer.

Fly Alouette

Find a vacation costing more than $250 that can be booked through a travel agent (a cruise, or a trip including air fare and hotel); then book it through RMC Travel ((800)245-7538), mail RMC a travel voucher from a package of Alouette spreadable cheese, and you’ll get $50 off. For more expensive trips you can even combine Alouette vouchers for up to $200 off. If your supermarket has run out of the special Alouette packages with vouchers, you can send in the front panel of a regular package with a cash register receipt.

The $1.43-a-Day Diet

The U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates that it takes at least $75 to feed a family of four for one week, but author Pat Edwards says you can do it for around $30. We’re talking very strict economy here, with next to no room for convenience foods or impulse purchases, and the publisher’s use of the word gourmet is a little reckless, but it clearly can be done. “Cheap Eating: How to Feed Your Family Well and Spend Less” (204 pp.: $9.95), which should be in bookstores this month, can also be ordered direct from Upper Access Books, (800) 356- 9315.

Aster Green Lovers, Rejoice

On April 12, the U.S. Department of Agriculture will decide whether to drop import bans on certain fruits and vegetables because they are scarcely grown here and do not pose a risk to U.S. agricultural interests. They include aster and youngia greens from South Korea, fenugreek herb from Jamaica, yam beans from Costa Rica, burdock from Taiwan and pumpkins from Tonga.

A Literary Trifle

“A Trifle, a Coddle, a Fry” (Moyer Bell: 192 pp., $18.95), by Veronica Jane O’Mara and Fionnuala O’Reilly, gives 80 recipes inspired by the works of 12 Irish 19th- and 20th-Century literary figures from James Joyce (roast goose) to Kate O’Brien (trout with fennel sauce). Published on St. Patrick’s Day, of course.

Top of the Food Chain, Ma!

Every day squid eat up to 14% of their body weight in crustaceans, fish and--what the heck--even other squid. Think about this: The largest squid ever weighed was about two tons. It was taken November 2, 1978, at Thimble Tickle Bay, Newfoundland.