A winter solstice project: Gruit Ale

I've fallen a bit behind in my Celebrity Sun Sign Series the past month or so. I've stayed busy with alot of other pursuits- both practicing and discussing friends and coworkers' natal charts, and trying to study more myself (to avoid making any foot-in-mouth statements on here, I hope!). I've also studied more about the history of beer.



Did you know that beer wasn't always made with hops? Prior to 1400 AD or so, hops were relatively uncommon in beer, or if present were often part of a widely-varied herbal mixture known as Gruit.
Hops, in beer, provides three important components: Aroma (nice, but not necessary), Flavor (more important), and preservation (essential in the grimy, fridge-less middle ages). In modern, pasteurized beer, hops is really only essential for aroma and flavor. Back in the day, however (and in the present amongst home-brewers and unpasteurized beers), hops and the essential oils contained therein help preserve beer and protect it from contamination. Hops contain alpha acids, which help combat microbial development and deter wild yeast formation. Hops also have a sedative effect.

Brewers before 1400 desired these same 3 qualities that hops provide today. They sought this combination through a mixture of herbs, some of which are still quite common today (while some of which you'd have to drive to Quebec or Scotland to get a hold of). This mixture varied from area to area, but traditionally contained:

Bog Myrtle (aka Sweet Gale)- a bittering, antiseptic herb with a mild narcotic effect
Wild Rosemary - an aromatic, antiseptic herb with therapeutic aspects
Yarrow- a sweet, aromatic herb with stimulant and healing properties, used in traditional medicine globally

Other common additions:
Mugwort- a sweet, slightly bittering herb known for promoting restful sleep and intense dreams
Wormwood- a profoundly bitter, antiseptic herb best known as a component of Absinth
Heather- An herb used in ale by the Celts since antiquity
and whatever other astringent green things happened to be lying around (from spruce branches to bacteria)

(Keira Knightley as a Woad. As in "Woadude, what is she wearing?" The Picts (proto-scots) were known to paint themselves with woad, and use heather in their ale)

As my Belgian Dubbel nears completion of its bottling phase, I figure there's enough warm weather this week to squeeze in one last brew for the year- a Winter Solstice Ale made without hops, using a traditional gruit combination.

I thought about how to link it with astrology. Well, the winter solstice is on the 21st, the day before the sun enters Capricorn. This time is also the traditional week of celebration of the Greco-Roman Saturnalia. And what other planet/God happens to be the rule of Capricorn then- Saturn?
Saturn is associated with control, the lessons of time, ambition and karma. Interestingly enough, in ancient celebrations of Saturnalia, roman slaves and their masters were said to trade places temporarily (a very poignant twist of Saturn's theme of control...). Throughout the northern hemisphere, the shortest day of the year has social and spiritual importance in many areas of life. To celebrate, I decided to add one of the herbs ruled by Saturn to the gruit shopping list:
Henbane!


Just kidding. Henbane, though used to make a probably quite dangerously narcotic beer in the middle ages, is exceptionally poisonous and should not be ingested.
I'm gonna try Wintergreen. A small amount of this should just add a little excitement to the flavor of the gruit and pay a little homage to Saturn in the process.

Expect pictures and updates in the days ahead!