Across Words

Re: last Sunday’s Puzzler clue “drinks with dim sum” (84 across):

Sake is a drink with dim sum? To drink Japanese wine, or any wine for that matter, with dim sum in a Chinese restaurant, although not absolutely impossible, is as unheard of and as disagreeable as having oolong with kidney pie in a pub. How about Edo ale as the answer?

TED WU

Los Angeles

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What the hell is “spiff” (5 across, Jan. 3)? It’s not in any of our dictionaries or anywhere we could find on the Internet!

GARY SJOGREN

Brea

It’s “a bonus or other form of remuneration given to retail salespeople for promoting the products of a particular manufacturer,” according to the Random House Dictionary of the English Language (2nd edition, unabridged).