HERB - Root Beer.

Kathleen Keeler kkeeler at unlserve.unl.edu
Wed Oct 25 05:40:46 PDT 2000


> Isrith inn Glothi wrote:
>
> > Anyone know anything about root beer being period? If it is (as someone
> > is trying to assure me) I'd like to know if it's the same concoction
> > that we have nowadays - a soda pop!
> >

Having read your other answers (so far) and without consulting suitable
references, I think the idea of a root beer is period, although the familiar
version is modern.  What is the product?  From the name,  taking roots and making
beer. A decoction that fermented would fit.  "Any sugar- or starch-containing
substance" has probably been turned into an alcohol by humans, says one of my
books.  They worked a lot with roots in period, some, like licorice root, make a
good-tasting decoction.  So if you just keep it too long because its so good, it
is likely to ferment.

I was very struck by a traditional Swedish cookbook's recipe for roast ptarmigan,
served with lingonberry sauce.  It was roast turkey and cranberry sauce, northern
Europe style.  (Lingonberries are endemic to Scandinavia (the countries quarrel
over harvesting details) and are a species of _Vaccinium_ with red berries
(cranberries are a very similar _Vaccinium_ species)).  Neither recipe is Period,
but, I'd be pretty comfortable serving roast bird and red (not blue, blue
_Vaccinium_  species include blueberrries) _Vaccinium_ sauce as Period.

My turkey example uses simple technologies, where substituting your local
products is easy.  Fermenting roots doesn't strike me as any more difficult.

Agnes

fyi since I haven't said much lately:   I'm currently Baroness of Mag Mor,
Calontir, and am a Laurel for herbalism.  But my herbalism is Period, not modern,
my interest is in thinking like a Medieval woman, not actually treating illness
like one.  Modernly I am a professor of biology (U. Nebraska. You know: the
Cornhuskers!) and teach and do research on prairie ecology.
kkeeler1 at unl.edu

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