Mulsum and Conditum Paradoxum (23823106286)

Mulsum was the ancient beverage used by

Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

, with the two main ingredients being

wine Wine is an alcoholic drink typically made from fermented grapes. Yeast consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Different varieties of grapes and strains of yeasts are m ...

and

honey Honey is a sweet and viscous substance made by several bees, the best-known of which are honey bees. Honey is made and stored to nourish bee colonies. Bees produce honey by gathering and then refining the sugary secretions of plants (primar ...

. The beverage was usually served before the main meal and is therefore an aperitif.

History

It was usually the drink offered at the beginning of the Roman dinner in conjunction with the "gustus", what we would call the course of appetizers. Also for mulsum there were different production methods and quality categories of the product. The best mulsum was obtained from the must resulting from the half-complete crushing of grapes coming from vines cultivated near trees and harvested in dry days. To 5-parts of must was added 1-part of honey; after careful shaking the mixture was put in a jar, which was closed and left to rest for at least one month in order to be filtered and put again to rest. Besides being used as a beverage, mulsum was also used as a "medicine", for example consumed against stomach pains.

Composition

Concerning its real composition, various hypotheses have been proposed. Thus, some authors maintain that mulsum was elaborated with the first pressing of the grape to which honey was added, once the must was fermented (it sometimes appears under the denomination "wine and honey" in numerous references) in proportion of four parts of wine for one of honey. Others still say that it is the new wine removed shortly after the first pressing, so that it is a young wine.

Uses

Mulsum is an alcoholic drink, with a sweet taste, very similar to

mead Mead () is an alcoholic beverage made by fermenting honey mixed with water, and sometimes with added ingredients such as fruits, spices, grains, or hops. The alcoholic content ranges from about 3.5% ABV to more than 20%. The defining character ...

(which is made by the fermentation of water and honey). It was customary, at the time, to offer this wine at the beginning of banquets. It is also known that, in spite of the presence of honey in its composition, mulsum was more affordable than pure honey, at the time of the Roman Empire.

Celebrations

The Fair of Honey is celebrated in November, by the people of

Llubí Llubí is a small municipality on Majorca, one of the Balearic Islands, Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(Eng ...

Mallorca Mallorca, or Majorca, is the largest island in the Balearic Islands, which are part of Spain and located in the Mediterranean. The capital of the island, Palma, is also the capital of the autonomous community of the Balearic Islands. The Bal ...

, the

Balearic Islands The Balearic Islands ( es, Islas Baleares ; or ca, Illes Balears ) are an archipelago in the Balearic Sea, near the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula. The archipelago is an autonomous community and a province of Spain; its capital is ...

, in Spain.

References

{{Reflist Historical alcoholic drinks