flipHipocrás — Spiced Wine of the Lord
Hipocrás — Spiced Wine of the Lord
Why this dish? When the banquet in Valencia ends and the guests stay to converse, hipocrás is served: wine heated with honey and costly spices, a mark of wealth and courtliness. It is the drink with which a lord like Rodrigo honors his guests.
Red or claret wine, sweetened with honey, scented with cinnamon, ginger, clove, and a grain of long pepper, then strained through cloth. Served hot in winter, cool in summer. Comforting, sweet, deeply spiced.
Draw near your cups, my guests, for the night is cool and naked wine warms poorly. I heat it without boiling, I melt the honey and throw in cinnamon, ginger, and clove — spices worth their weight in silver and served only to honored friends. It is strained through cloth until it is clear as a ruby, and we drink to the king's health and the confusion of his enemies. Drink with measure, however: a drunken man holds neither his tongue nor his sword.
- •Red or claret wine — a pitcher (base)
- •Honey — by the spoonful (sweetness)
- •Cinnamon — one stick (master spice)
- •Ginger — a piece (warmth)
- •Clove — a few (fragrance)
- •Long pepper or grains of paradise — a few grains (noble pungency)
Hipocrás — Spiced Wine of the Lord
Red or claret wine, sweetened with honey, scented with cinnamon, ginger, clove, and a grain of long pepper, then strained through cloth. Served hot in winter, cool in summer. Comforting, sweet, deeply spiced.
Why this dish? When the banquet in Valencia ends and the guests stay to converse, hipocrás is served: wine heated with honey and costly spices, a mark of wealth and courtliness. It is the drink with which a lord like Rodrigo honors his guests.
Draw near your cups, my guests, for the night is cool and naked wine warms poorly. I heat it without boiling, I melt the honey and throw in cinnamon, ginger, and clove — spices worth their weight in silver and served only to honored friends. It is strained through cloth until it is clear as a ruby, and we drink to the king's health and the confusion of his enemies. Drink with measure, however: a drunken man holds neither his tongue nor his sword.
Ingredients (period version)
- Red or claret wine — a pitcher (base)
- Honey — by the spoonful (sweetness)
- Cinnamon — one stick (master spice)
- Ginger — a piece (warmth)
- Clove — a few (fragrance)
- Long pepper or grains of paradise — a few grains (noble pungency)
Ingredients
- Fruity red wine — 75 cl (base)
- Honey — 4 tbsp (sweetness)
- Cinnamon — 1 stick (spice)
- Fresh ginger — 3 thin slices (warmth)
- Cloves — 4 (fragrance)
- Long pepper or black pepper — 4 grains (pungency)
- Nutmeg — 1 pinch grated (roundness (optional))
Method
- Gently heat the wine with honey, never letting it boil.
- Add all the spices and infuse off the heat, covered, for 20 to 30 minutes.
- Strain carefully through a fine cloth (muslin) until the liquid is clear.
- Serve hot in winter, or chilled and diluted with water in summer.
- Taste and adjust honey according to the wine used.
How it was made : Hipocrás (named after Hippocrates, via the 'Hippocratic sleeve', the filtering cloth) was one of the most prized drinks of the European Middle Ages, from Spain to England. Spices came from the East via trade routes, so serving it was a conspicuous sign of wealth. It was filtered several times for clarity.
The contemporary twist : Non-alcoholic version: replace wine with hot red grape juice — same spice bouquet, for the family table.
El Cid · Charactorium
