All people familiar with old Slavonic history came across the name of an old drink. But what is Old Russian sbiten, probably few people know. Versions walk quite a lot. Assumptions fluctuate between a kind of kvass and an analogue of grog. As always, these hypotheses are far from the truth and do not give correct ideas about such a drink as Old Russian sbiten. What is this, we will discuss in our article. Perhaps, having understood the issue, people will decide to return to ancient traditions.
What is old Russian sbiten: historical background
The first written references to the drink are found in Russian chronicles dating back to the 12th century. Sbiten was widely used at festivities: in the winter - in the hot version, in the summer - in the cold, being popular along with kvass. Hot sbiten can be considered especially significant, since it included honey and decoctions of medicinal herbs, so it could be considered an excellent anti-cold prevention. The closest similarity to the drink can be considered mulled wine - with the difference that the sbiten did not contain alcohol and was given even to small children. However, there were also “adult” recipes into which the heating components were introduced.
The name came from the word “knock down,” which meant the connection of different parts into a single whole. Herbs were infused in one container, honey was prepared in another; the compounds were combined before immediate use. Note that this is not the only name that the old Russian sbiten had. Another name reflects the method of obtaining the herbal component: "digest" indicates that the components need to be boiled. A little later, the middle name changed to "blast"; sometimes the drink was called simply "var."
The consumption of food decreased somewhat after the forced introduction of tea and coffee by Peter the Great. However, people remembered what Old Russian sbiten was, and actively used it back in the early 20th century. The October Revolution put the final point in the history of the drink: further, tea and coffee came into wide use, completely displacing the old infusion.
Primordial Sbiten
Naturally, a beverage can be prepared in a variety of different ways. Each mistress had her own, individual Old Russian sbiten. The recipe, which has come down to us from the depths of centuries and was the most common, is as follows: a liter of water boils, a third of a glass of honey is poured into it - you can even sugared, most importantly, to be natural. Also, a spoon with a hill of hops, three of chopped mint leaves and a little fragrant pepper, ginger, cloves and cinnamon are poured into the sbiten. The full drink quietly boils for about half an hour. It is better to drink hot, but it does not lose either taste or benefit and when chilled.
Spicy sbiten
Again water boils; without removing the container from the fire, 150 grams of sugar and honey are placed in it. When they dissolve, spices are poured: two leaves of laurel, 0.5 teaspoon of cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, ginger. Boiling is carried out for another quarter of an hour, then the container is covered and wrapped for half an hour to insist. After filtering, the sbiten is heated and drunk hot.
Kumushkin Sbiten
This option is preferable to drink cool - sbiten refers to summer drinks. A kilogram of honey is bred in four liters of boiling water, flavored with your favorite spices (it is even recommended to fully show culinary creativity here), and always with a spoon of fresh hop cones. No fresh, you can take dried, only in half. You will have to boil the drink for two hours, after it is cured and cooled.
Beer House
Despite the fact that beer is the basis of this recipe , the drink can also be given to children: alcohol will evaporate during cooking. Half a liter of water is combined with an equal volume of light beer, half a glass of sugar and a spoonful of mint leaves are poured into the liquid (both fresh and dry will do). When the mixture boils, the fire is screwed to a minimum, a pound of honey is laid, and the sbiten is cooked for another ten minutes. After he is infused for an hour in a warm place and filtered. You can drink both cold and hot. Unlike most varieties of the drink, beer sbiten does not lose taste during storage - it will be tasty even after a week.
We are sure: people who have understood what the Old Russian sbiten is, will not deny themselves the pleasure to cook it at least once. And there, you see, the drink will begin to slowly revive and again become popular and widespread.