Today’s Saturday Stumper

Today’s Newsday  Saturday Stumper, by Ben Zimmer, looked nearly impossible to me at first. And thirty-four minutes later, I had it all. Very puzzling. (I apologize.) It’s the kind of crossword in which even a fifteen-letter answer — 4-D, fifteen letters, “Emulates McCain in 2017” — might yield little, because crossing that answer are eleven-, fifteen-, and eleven-letter answers (31-, 35-, and 37-A.)

Some clue-and-answer pairs of note:

8-D, fifteen letters, “Words to encourage slowdowns.” WORKTOCONTRACT doesn’t fit.

12-A, nine letters, “What you’d expect a giving type to keep.” I was thinking of receipts for tax purposes.

20-A, five letters, “‘Milk’s Marketing Miracle’ for ninety years.” And ageless, still.

26-D, nine letters, “The potable Follow the Sun.” The answer can be had via crosses, but cluing with an obscure brand name (limited, it appears, to California) is pretty ridic.

30-D, nine letters, “Got progressively hopeful?” New to me, but I know the feeling.

31-A, eleven letters, “Where to find one’s footing.” FLORSHEIM doesn’t fit.

35-A, fifteen letters, “They often arrive with wings.” See also 3-A, six letters, “How wings often arrive.”

37-A, eleven letters, “Love to!” The clue and answer are an awkward fit.

38-A, three letters, “Shortening in sweet candies.” I was not fooled.

49-A, five letters, “Vietnamese formalwear.” Another answer that can be had via crosses. For me, only via crosses.

My favorite in this puzzle: 36-D, eight letters, “How soaps are made.” An answer that I didn’t understand until I did.

And while I have soaps on my mind, I want to recommend Herbaria, maker of plant-based soaps. They’re on The Hill in St. Louis, so you can buy soap and walk down the street to eat great pizza at Pizzeria da Gloria. But leave Herbaria’s products and their incredible fragrances in the car, or eat first.

No spoilers; the answers are in the comments.