The first Sunday of the month brings us the regular geographically themed puzzle. Find it to solve online or download and print at ft.com/crossword or via the smartphone app.
The usual preamble:
A cryptic puzzle themed on one particular country. The name of the country should be inserted at 14 across. Work out the name of the country by solving the *asterisked clues, all undefined. Their solutions have some relevance to the country, such as its places, famous people, culture and language
I find Gozo tends to focus on fun rather than difficulty in his puzzles and this was very typical, being an enjoyably breezy Sunday morning romp. I particularly liked the anagram for 7/32 WIENER SCHNITZEL, which is a great find.
Thanks, Gozo!
| ACROSS | ||
| 9 | CARVED OUT |
Plotted his career, as a sculptor did? (6,3)
|
| Cryptic definition | ||
| 10 | LOIRE |
River terrain owls regularly turned over (5)
|
| Alternate letters (regularly) of tErRaIn OwLs reversed (turned over) | ||
| 11 | SACHERTORTE |
* Orchestrate variation (11)
|
| Anagram (variation) of ORCHESTRATE
A rich chocolate cake invented by Austrian confectioner Franz Sacher in the 1830s |
||
| 12 | NAG |
Badger and horse (3)
|
| Two definitions, the first being a verb | ||
| 13 | BONANZA |
Stroke of luck at the Ponderosa? (7)
|
| Cryptic definition
The Ponderosa Ranch was the setting for Bonanza, a US TV series from the 60s, which had a memorable theme tune (at least, that’s what I remember most about it). |
||
| 14 | AUSTRIA |
* [See setter’s notes] (7)
|
| The theme identified by all other asterisked solutions | ||
| 17 | TYROL |
* It’s time the parrot returned! (5)
|
| T (time) + LORY (parrot) reversed (returned)
A region of the Alps that lies partly within Austria |
||
| 19 | PEA |
Vegetable and fruit cut, and another cut twice (3)
|
| PEA[r] (fruit, cut) or PEA[ch] (another fruit, cut twice) | ||
| 21 | MOTET |
Choral work The First Word in Champagne includes tenor (5)
|
| MOET (the first word in “Moet et Chandon” champagne) including T (tenor) | ||
| 23 | HIDEOUT |
Criminals’ lair with almost ghastly sort of bar (7)
|
| HIDEOU[s] (ghastly, almost) + T (sort of bar) | ||
| 26 | SAFFRON |
Colour that causes singular unending insult (7)
|
| S (singular) + AFFRON[t] (insult, unending) | ||
| 28 | GIN |
It’s twice mixed in a Singapore sling (3)
|
| An anagram of GIN appears twice within sINGapore slING and gin is an ingredient in a Singapore Sling cocktail | ||
| 29 | BRENNER PASS |
* Geek almost filling in gun permit (7,4)
|
| NER[d] (geek, almost) inserted in BREN (gun) + PASS (permit)_
A pass in the Alps that forms the border between Austria and Italy |
||
| 31/8 | ALBAN BERG |
* Rabble involved with 12 (5,4)
|
| Anagram of RABBLE and NAG (solution to 12)
Alban Berg, 1885-1935, Austrian composer of the Second Viennese School, one of the most influential composers of the 20th century |
||
| 32 |
See 7 Down
|
|
| DOWN | ||
| 1 | ACTS |
Retracts half the book (4)
|
| Half of retrACTS and a book of the Bible | ||
| 2 |
See 16 Down
|
|
| 3 | WEBERN |
* Composer’s name (6)
|
| WEBER (composer) + N (name)
Anton Webern, 1883-1945, Austrian composer, a colleague of ALBAN BERG. Carl Maria von Weber was a German composer of the early 19th century |
||
| 4 | VON TRAPP |
* Vicar’s first travelling by horse and cart with pastor (3,5)
|
| V (vicar’s first) + ON TRAP (travelling by horse and cart) + P (pastor)
Austrian naval officer Georg von Trapp, whose seven children formed the Trapp Family Singers, the real life inspiration for the family in The Sound of Music |
||
| 5 | STYRIA |
* Pig-pen with foul air (6)
|
| STY (pig-pen) + anagram (foul) of AIR
The second largest province of Austria |
||
| 6/24 | BLUE DANUBE |
* Benaud is awfully sad at the start (4,6)
|
| BLUE (sad) + anagram (awfully) of BENAUD
English name of a waltz by Austrian composer Johann Strauss II, named after the major European river that flows through Austria |
||
| 7/32 | WIENER SCHNITZEL |
* Lenin and Schweitzer in difficulty (6,9)
|
| Anagram of LENIN and SCHWEITZER
A thin, breaded and fried veal cutlet – a Viennese speciality since the 1830s and a national dish of Austria |
||
| 8 |
See 31 Across
|
|
| 13 | BATCH |
Collection at church by bishop (5)
|
| B (bishop) + AT + CH (church) | ||
| 15 | SUM |
I am Caesar’s dim follower. Problem? (3)
|
| Three definitions
Sum is Latin (Caesar’s) for “I am”, and dim sum are Cantonese small dishes usually served for lunch |
||
| 16/2 | ANTON BRUCKNER |
* Poor Ken burnt acorn (5,8)
|
| Anagram (poor) of KEN BURNT ACORN
Anton Bruckner, 1824-1896, Austrian composer whose works included a number of MOTETS |
||
| 18 | LOO |
John’s game (3)
|
| Two definitions, the second being a card game | ||
| 20 | ABSINTHE |
Sailor is in the drink (8)
|
| AB’S (sailor is) + IN THE | ||
| 22 | TERRAZZO |
Mosaic floor covering on Italian balcony (8)
|
| Two definitions | ||
| 24 |
See 6
|
|
| 25 | TSETSE |
Set out twice and fly (6)
|
| Anagram (out) of SET twice | ||
| 27 | FORBID |
Veto in favour of offer (6)
|
| FOR (in favour of) + BID (offer) | ||
| 28 | GRAZ |
* Eat snacks during the day, mostly (4)
|
| GRAZ[e]
Second largest city in Austria, and capital of the STYRIA province |
||
| 29 | BENT |
Dishonest disposition (4)
|
| Two definitions | ||
| 30 | SOLE |
Could be Dover — or not! (4)
|
| Cryptic definition – Dover sole is a fish, but it isn’t the only (sole) type of sole Edit: I have it on good authority (from the setter himself) that the intention was to refer to the Dover and Sole shipping areas. Which seems obvious with hindsight. |
Agree with Widdersbel . It was an enjoyable romp with some wonderful anagrams:SACHERTORTE ,ALBAN BERG, BLUE DANUBE ,ANTON BRUCKNER , WIENER SCHNITZEL and TSETSE( my favourite).
The app lacked the setter’s instructions but we know the form.
Thanks Gozo and Widdersbel.
I too agree with Widdersbel’s summing up of Gozo’s style and it’s exactly why I like his puzzles so much. This was indeed typical and I particularly liked the anagram for SACHER TORTE.
Thanks for the fun, Gozo, and your excellent blog, Widdersbel.
Solid puzzle. Beaten by GRAZ which is my own fault, entirely. Not a city that looms large in my personal experience but I have certainly heard of it. nho Ponderosa in the BONANZA context – never watched the show – and, when I eventually turned to Google, there are many Ponderosas so that was a fail. Same highlights as SM. Despite the blogger’s note, I still don’t really get SOLE.
Thanks Gozo and Widdersbel
[I would just add, Widdersbel, that if you wait until lunchtime for dim sum in the most popular places here, you’re often too late! Better to be in position around 11 am to avoid long queues!]
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PM @3 – Dover both is and isn’t sole – ie it’s a type of sole, but it isn’t the sole type.
Diane @4 – fair point. Used to love dim sum at the New World in Chinatown for Sunday brunch when I lived in London – not been for years, alas, but I do remember the long queues starting early!
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Online solving also lacked the instructions, but I reckoned it had to be the world version, rapidly confirmed by the country clue and a few asterisks.
Postmark @3 – I looked up Ponderosa too, because we didn’t have a TV when I was a child, so there are a lot of gaps in that section of my general knowledge, looked at the options in Wikipedia and the one I clicked on gave me the answer. But GRAZ is in my sphere of knowledge.
Thank you to Widdersbel and Gozo.
Not much to add, as Widdersbel, SM@1 and Diane@2 summed it up for me. Additionally, like PM@3, GRAZ was tough & my LOI, and I too have never watched Bonanza.
Thanks Gozo and Widdersbel for a fun puzzle and a great blog
PS I hope I am allowed to do this publicly, but I wonder what the admin intervention was about….
@10
It’s a fair enough question.
Looking at point 5 here: https://www.fifteensquared.net/site-policy/
might give you a clue.