Daily drink of the people (posca)
Posca, the Soldier's and Slave's Vinegar Water
DrinkDocumented🍋facile5 min
Water, a dash of wine vinegar, a little honey to sweeten, and sometimes a few herbs: the thirst-quenching drink of the soldier, the slave, and the worker. Sour, sharp, refreshing — sobriety one drinks.
Why this dish? Born a slave, Epictetus knew the drink of the humble: posca, water mixed with vinegar. It is the antithesis of the pure wine of banquets — exactly the moderation he taught. He indeed recommended drinking water, and wine heavily diluted.
You want pure wine, thick, like the staggering guests? Drink this instead: water, a little vinegar, and if your throat craves sweetness, a drop of honey. This is the drink I knew when I was at my master's feet. It quenches without clouding judgment — for the drunken man no longer belongs to himself, and he who does not belong to himself is not free.
Ingredients
- •Spring water — a jug (base)
- •Wine vinegar — a dash (acidity, preservation)
- •Honey — to taste (sweetener)
- •Herbs (mint, coriander) — optional (flavor)
How it was made : Posca was the basic drink of Roman legionaries, slaves, and the lower classes: water mixed with vinegar (often turned wine), sometimes sweetened with honey or flavored with herbs. Cheap and mildly antiseptic, it made water safer to drink. This is the drink offered to the crucified in the Gospels.