LCBO Food & Drink Holiday 2023

MULL IT OVER

Wassailing Away Although mulled wine rules London at Christmas, in the Southwest of England, aka “orchard country,” you’re more likely to run into Wassail, a spiced mulled cider tradition established roughly 1,000 years ago. Every year, on Twelfth Night, townsfolk used to visit the local orchards, where they would sing and drink toasts to the trees, all the while banging pots and pans to ward off any evil spirits that might threaten next year’s crop. Although scaring away malevolent forces with a noisy “hullabaloo” has taken a backseat to general well-wishing, it’s still quite common to celebrate the end of the year and bring good tidings to friends and neighbours over a cup of Wassail.

WASSAIL Find this recipe at LCBO.com/fdholiday23

DID YOU KNOW? You can mull almost anything: cocktails, beer and even sake! In Japan, many families drink Toso, an herb-forward sake steeped with sansho pepper, ginger and rhubarb, on the first day of the New Year. It’s supposed to usher in good fortune for the remaining 364 days of the year.

PHOTOGRAPHY BY MAYA VISNYEI; FOOD STYLING BY CHRISTOPHER ST. ONGE; PROP STYLING BY ANDREA McCRINDLE

66 FOOD & DRINK HOLIDAY 2023