flipThe spiced wine of El's drunkenness
The spiced wine of El's drunkenness
Why this dish? Tablet KTU 1.114 tells of a banquet where El drinks wine to the point of drunkenness, collapsing in his own excrement — a rare text where the supreme god himself indulges in drink. The wine cup is among his typical attributes.
Hot spiced red wine with honey, cinnamon, and resin, as wine was aromatized in the jars of the ancient Levant — a sweet-spiced drink served warm in a cup.
Pour, cupbearer, and let the cup never be empty! When my children held a feast under my tent, I drank wine as one drinks rain after drought, cup after cup, until the sky spun above my head. It is sweetened with honey, warmed, and scented bark thrown in to please the throat. Drink of it too — but know that even a god may stagger, and there is no shame in letting the vine carry you.
- •Red wine — a jar (fermented base)
- •Honey — to taste (sweetness)
- •Cinnamon (bark) — one stick (spice)
- •Terebinth or pine resin — a drop (flavor and preservation (optional))
- •Water — as needed (wine was often diluted with water)
The spiced wine of El's drunkenness
Hot spiced red wine with honey, cinnamon, and resin, as wine was aromatized in the jars of the ancient Levant — a sweet-spiced drink served warm in a cup.
Why this dish? Tablet KTU 1.114 tells of a banquet where El drinks wine to the point of drunkenness, collapsing in his own excrement — a rare text where the supreme god himself indulges in drink. The wine cup is among his typical attributes.
Pour, cupbearer, and let the cup never be empty! When my children held a feast under my tent, I drank wine as one drinks rain after drought, cup after cup, until the sky spun above my head. It is sweetened with honey, warmed, and scented bark thrown in to please the throat. Drink of it too — but know that even a god may stagger, and there is no shame in letting the vine carry you.
Ingredients (period version)
- Red wine — a jar (fermented base)
- Honey — to taste (sweetness)
- Cinnamon (bark) — one stick (spice)
- Terebinth or pine resin — a drop (flavor and preservation (optional))
- Water — as needed (wine was often diluted with water)
Ingredients
- Full-bodied red wine — 75 cl (base)
- Honey — 3 tbsp (sweetness)
- Cinnamon stick — 1 (spice)
- Coriander seeds — 1/2 tsp (flavor)
- Water — 15 cl (to dilute (optional))
Method
- Pour the wine into a saucepan with the honey, cinnamon, and coriander.
- Heat gently without ever boiling, stirring to dissolve the honey.
- Let infuse for 15 minutes at a very low simmer.
- Add a little water if you prefer a weaker drink, in the ancient manner.
- Strain and serve warm in low cups.
How it was made : Wine was central to Canaanite and Ugaritic life: it was stored in large jars, often with honey, spices, or resin (which perfumes and protects against souring). It was frequently drunk diluted with water. The marzeaḥ institutions were explicitly linked to communal wine consumption.
The contemporary twist : Serve in glazed terracotta cups with a thread of honey on the rim: "El's cup," to be sipped with wisdom… or not.
Sources : KTU 1.114 ("El and the Banquet," Ugaritic text of the divine drinking bout) · P. McGovern, Ancient Wine: The Search for the Origins of Viniculture, Princeton, 2003
El · Charactorium
