flipYayin mazug bidvash — wine mixed with water, date honey, and spices
Yayin mazug bidvash — wine mixed with water, date honey, and spices
Why this dish? Water and diluted wine are Jonah's daily drinks. Cutting wine with water was the rule of sobriety and hospitality in the Levant; sweetened with dvash and perfumed with spices brought by caravan routes, it welcomed guests and accompanied feast days at the Israelite table.
Red wine generously diluted with water, warmed with a spoonful of date syrup, a cinnamon stick, and a few coriander seeds. Sweet, lightly spiced, refreshing. (A non-alcoholic version is possible with grape juice.)
Sit down, no guest stays dry-throated under my roof. Pure wine we leave to fools: at my table we mix it with water, two or three parts to one, as befits a man who wants to keep a clear mind before the Lord. Pour in a tear of date honey, a shard of fragrant bark from the caravans, and drink to the health of the house. May your cup be sweet — but remember that true drunkenness is forgetting who gave it to you.
- •Red wine — one part (base)
- •Water — two to three parts (dilution (sobriety))
- •Dvash (date syrup) — a spoonful (signature sweetness)
- •Cinnamon / fragrant bark — a shard (caravan spice)
- •Coriander seeds — a few (flavour)
Yayin mazug bidvash — wine mixed with water, date honey, and spices
Red wine generously diluted with water, warmed with a spoonful of date syrup, a cinnamon stick, and a few coriander seeds. Sweet, lightly spiced, refreshing. (A non-alcoholic version is possible with grape juice.)
Why this dish? Water and diluted wine are Jonah's daily drinks. Cutting wine with water was the rule of sobriety and hospitality in the Levant; sweetened with dvash and perfumed with spices brought by caravan routes, it welcomed guests and accompanied feast days at the Israelite table.
Sit down, no guest stays dry-throated under my roof. Pure wine we leave to fools: at my table we mix it with water, two or three parts to one, as befits a man who wants to keep a clear mind before the Lord. Pour in a tear of date honey, a shard of fragrant bark from the caravans, and drink to the health of the house. May your cup be sweet — but remember that true drunkenness is forgetting who gave it to you.
Ingredients (period version)
- Red wine — one part (base)
- Water — two to three parts (dilution (sobriety))
- Dvash (date syrup) — a spoonful (signature sweetness)
- Cinnamon / fragrant bark — a shard (caravan spice)
- Coriander seeds — a few (flavour)
Ingredients
- Red wine (or grape juice for non-alcoholic version) — 250 ml (base)
- Water — 500–750 ml (dilution)
- Date syrup (silan) — 2 tbsp (sweetness)
- Cinnamon stick — 1 (spice)
- Coriander seeds — 1/2 tsp (flavour)
- Raisins (optional) — a handful (sweet roundness)
Method
- Pour the wine (or grape juice) and water into a saucepan.
- Add the date syrup, cinnamon, and coriander seeds (and raisins if using).
- Heat gently without boiling, 8–10 minutes, to infuse the spices.
- Strain and serve warm in clay cups, or let cool for a refreshing drink.
How it was made : In the ancient Near East, drinking wine neat was considered barbaric: it was systematically cut with water, often in a ratio of two or three parts water to one part wine. It was sweetened with honey or fruit syrup and perfumed with spices brought by trade routes. Wine was also used to purify sometimes dubious water — a both daily and hospitable drink.
The contemporary twist : Served over ice with orange slices and fresh mint, this "prophet's wine" becomes an ancient sangria perfect for a summer table — or in a sparkling grape juice version for children.
Sources : Carey Ellen Walsh, The Fruit of the Vine: Viticulture in Ancient Israel, Eisenbrauns, 2000 · Oded Borowski, Daily Life in Biblical Times, SBL, 2003 · Proverbs 9:2,5 (mixed wine); Greco-Levantine custom of dilution
Jonas · Charactorium