flipMid — Honor Mead Served in a Drinking Horn
Mid — Honor Mead Served in a Drinking Horn
Why this dish? At the banquet of Emain Macha, it is mead (mid) that seals honor and warrior brotherhood. It was drunk from a horn, and drink flowed freely in the tales of the Ulster Cycle where Cúchulainn feasts alongside King Conchobar. The drink of gods and heroes.
A golden mead obtained by fermenting honey in water, scented with wild herbs. Sweet, slightly sparkling and intoxicating—the noble drink par excellence.
Hold out your horn, and let it be filled to the brim! Mead is honey turned to gentle fire by time and spring water. It is left to work alone, moon after moon, until it sings when poured. At Conchobar's feast, I have drunk full horns with my brothers-in-arms—for a hero who does not know how to feast does not know how to fight either. To your health, and long glory!
- •Wild honey — one third of the water volume (fermentable sugar)
- •Spring water — the rest (base)
- •Wild herbs (heather, elderflower) — a handful (flavor)
Mid — Honor Mead Served in a Drinking Horn
A golden mead obtained by fermenting honey in water, scented with wild herbs. Sweet, slightly sparkling and intoxicating—the noble drink par excellence.
Why this dish? At the banquet of Emain Macha, it is mead (mid) that seals honor and warrior brotherhood. It was drunk from a horn, and drink flowed freely in the tales of the Ulster Cycle where Cúchulainn feasts alongside King Conchobar. The drink of gods and heroes.
Hold out your horn, and let it be filled to the brim! Mead is honey turned to gentle fire by time and spring water. It is left to work alone, moon after moon, until it sings when poured. At Conchobar's feast, I have drunk full horns with my brothers-in-arms—for a hero who does not know how to feast does not know how to fight either. To your health, and long glory!
Ingredients (period version)
- Wild honey — one third of the water volume (fermentable sugar)
- Spring water — the rest (base)
- Wild herbs (heather, elderflower) — a handful (flavor)
Ingredients
- Honey — 1 kg (sugar to ferment)
- Spring water — 3 litres (base)
- Yeast (mead yeast or baker's yeast if unavailable) — 1 packet (triggers fermentation)
- Dried elderflowers or heather — 1 small handful (aroma)
Method
- Warm the water (not boiling) and dissolve the honey completely in it.
- Let cool to room temperature, add the herbs and yeast.
- Pour into a demijohn fitted with an airlock (or a jar covered with cloth).
- Let ferment for 3 to 6 weeks away from light, until bubbling stops.
- Filter, bottle and let mature for a few weeks before serving chilled, in a drinking horn if you have one.
How it was made : Mead (mid in Old Irish) is the oldest known fermented drink, ubiquitous in Celtic societies where the feasting hall was sometimes named after it. Alongside, barley beer (cuirm) was also brewed. People drank from horns or wooden cups, and the serving order marked each person's rank.
The contemporary twist : Non-alcoholic version for the family table: sparkling water, honey and cold elderflower infusion, served in a modern drinking horn.
Sources : Fled Bricrenn (Bricriu's Feast), Ulster Cycle · Regina Sexton, A Little History of Irish Food, 1998
Cúchulainn · Charactorium
