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In The X Files Season 3, episode 13 "Syzygy" at approximately ~24:42, Fox Mulder is at a dingy motel and appears to be using a clumsy long metal spoon to attempt to put a thick yellow sticky substance from a dark brown cardboard canister into a mostly-empty bottle of vodka.

Fox Mulder's hands attempting to pour a yellow substance from a can into vodka bottle with a spoon that is too large for the neck of the bottle.

He then closes and shakes the bottle to mix the yellow substance with the vodka.

I presume this is some American product sold in hotels and, given that this episode contains a lot of references to odd behaviour which could be easily attributed to drug-taking, I hypothesized that it could possibly be an easily-obtainable substance with a known hallucinogenic side-effect when mixed with alcohol, but it seems odd that it would be in a can.

I also know that in parts of the American continent orange juice is sold in a can which is frozen, so he could be making a "Vodka Orange" but the consistency of the substance seems too thick and creamy and an extremely bright yellow.

What is this yellow sticky product they are depicting in this picture?

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    The frozen orange juice you mention is called "orange juice concentrate". I suspect that is what he's putting in with his vodka, but I will be interested to read other members' answers.
    – BrettFromLA
    Commented Nov 14, 2019 at 2:15
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    I'd assumed it was Advocaat
    – Mast
    Commented Nov 14, 2019 at 18:34
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    To your other concerns - juice concentrate is not sold in hotels and is normally only found in grocery stores in the frozen food section. The container is a cardboard tube (foil or wax lined on the inside) with a metal cap on each end. When used it is normally a slush, but will be fine if melted first (it will spoil if left out long term).
    – JPhi1618
    Commented Nov 14, 2019 at 19:23
  • This drink is more commonly known as a "screwdriver". en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Screwdriver_(cocktail)
    – computercarguy
    Commented Nov 14, 2019 at 20:37
  • @Mast, i'd assumed his intended end-product was advocaat.
    – Ivana
    Commented Nov 15, 2019 at 10:17

1 Answer 1

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As mentioned by BrettFromLA, this is indeed Orange Juice Concentrate and he is mixing it with vodka. There are several recipes for such a slush cocktail if you google "orange juice concentrate and vodka" including this one from an X-Files fan which is based on the drink from the episode.

It is worth noting that this episode (Season 3 episode 13 "Syzygy") is one which depicts both Mulder and Scully behaving recklessly as they are being affected by the alignment of the planets. The idea being that the gravitational pull is so strong from this alignment that it causes the entire town to behave strangely.

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    Obviously this is lighting, but the yellow does seem much lighter in the X Files episode, and there aren't those crunchy bits of ice in it, either, but I think there may be an inside joke from the director here about hotel fridges not keeping things frozen. :-p (I have lived in many hotels over the years, so I have much experience with the generally poor attitude to maintaining hotel machinery.)
    – tudor -Reinstate Monica-
    Commented Nov 14, 2019 at 4:47
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    I'm assuming in the episode its just been melted more down. If you leave that stuff out it turns into almost a gooey paste just like you see in the episode. The idea being that Mulder has opened it possibly hours ago and is still slowly mixing it in as needed.
    – sanpaco
    Commented Nov 14, 2019 at 4:52
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    @tu-ReinstateMonica-dorduh The less interesting answer is that it could just be prop stuff that they mixed up to look like concentrate, so that they didn't have to worry about it melting between takes. Maybe pudding. To be fair though, I have seen OJ concentrate in that bright shade.
    – thanby
    Commented Nov 15, 2019 at 16:12
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    Ah, orange slushies! Ah, the memories! Ah, the blackouts! Ah, the...I forget...
    – Bob Jarvis - Слава Україні
    Commented Nov 15, 2019 at 19:53

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