The Libations Librarian

The World as we know it…..has ended. Humanity has an opportunity to take a Great Pause, a time to reflect on how we treat Mother Earth and each other. A time, some say, to reevaluate life and how time is spent. To that I say a wholehearted “BULLSHIT”.

Let’s face reality. The US has a president who has NO idea what he is doing. One governor places more value on the economy than on children. Citizens run to the local grocers to find toilet paper – yes, TOILET PAPER. Not vegetables, not edibles at all – nope, TP. Parents finally realize the value teachers have on keeping EVERYONE on a routine (but really, do they want to pay???). To all of this reality I have but one thing to say…let’s drink!

This is not a blog dedicated to political commentary. That being said, this writer has a hard time refraining from opining. I choose to instead go to the research on plagues. Is a pandemic a true “plague”? I have trouble finding a more accurate definition since today’s (4/13/2020) news states the US has reached over 600,000 cases of CoVID-19. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines plague as this (see below), so I definitely see the US’s current situation as “plague-y”.

I subscribe to Atlas Obscura. If my readers have not yet found the gem, please take a look here. Subscribers are sent amazing places to visit, little known facts, and tasty treats! I had the fortune today to read about plague cures, one of which had an actual modern recipe! Who woulda thunk it?! Apparently, ancient peoples sought to cure unknown ailments by creating cocktails – these are truly MY PEOPLE. My spouse creature and I attempted to recreate the recipe “New England style” tonight!

I am NOT ordinarily a mixed-drink person (with the possible exception of an occasional margarita). Most of my posts in this blog center around breweries and tearooms. But in the interest of equality, I have decided to try the recipe below, as I have NO interest in contracting CoVID-19 and any way to combat it must be attempted!

Sooooo, yeaaaah…..yummy. Apparently, the ancients sought to find a “plague water” which would substitute as a cure-all for all disease. I’m here to tell ya – it might not cure disease, but it’ll cure what ails ya! I did substitute Fernet Branca for the Berchovka (ain’t none of that in New England!), but the fragrance does scream herbaceous-ness. This drink tastes like a medicine the drinker does NOT mind ingesting. The cocktail is rather mud (almost puce) colored, but tastes oddly like spring. We tried the drink as the recipe stated for the first iteration, but did alter the recipe for a full ounce of pineapple juice for the second. This resulted in a tempering of the herbal essence for a beautifully smooth, yet still potent, potable!

(A quick note – be VERY careful when making the Honey Sage Syrup. It can overheat quickly, resulting in a sweet sticky mess which must be cleaned off one’s stove. Not fun. Not even a little bit!)

Atlas Obscura referencing article may be found here.