Coimbatore [India], Sept. 19 : Heralding the oncoming of Christmas, excited residents of Coimbatore city on Saturday participated in a cake-mixing ceremony as they mixed 500 kilograms of dry fruits with 120 bottles of the finest spirits.

In a unique move, the ceremony was organised at The Residency Towers Hotel, three months ahead of Christmas.

Executive chef of The Residency Towers, Ashok Kumar, said they have been observing the tradition since 20 years.

"This year we are mixing 500 kilos of dry fruits with 26 varieties of dry fruits and nuts. In this we are adding 70 bottles of brandy and 50 bottles of rum. Ceremony started today and we are going to keep fermentation for two months. November first week we are going to start baking the cake, then again we are going to keep for fermentation. From December 1 st onwards it will come for a sale in Baker's Corner, the Residency Tower, Coimbatore," said Kumar.

Visitors enthusiastically arranged and mixed the colourful dry fruit with rum, vodka, brandy and other spirits.

"Beauty of this thing is you can store the cake in room temperature for more than a year. It is very good for ladies and kids," Kumar added.

The centuries old cake-mixing ceremony is a ritual religiously followed all over the world and regarded as a harbinger of good times.(ANI)