99 Bottles of Mystaran Beer on the Wall
by JTR
Here's a fun game for everyone to play: create a Mystaran beverage (alcoholic or non) or a food item. Give a name, where it's produced, quality, and scarcity.
I'll start:
McKutchin Whiskey
From: Glenmoorloch, Glantri
Quality: Excellent
Scarcity: Very Rare
Loupmont
From: Wine from farms outside Vyonnes, Glantri
Quality: from Good to Excellent, depending on how many years old. Generally from 1 to 20
Scarcity: from Common to Very Rare. Depending on the age. The older the rarer
Toldo's Old Peculiar
From: Beer from Toldo's hopyard, in the Five Shires.
Quality: Mediocre - brewed for quantity over quality, this is definitely a weak ale for quaffing rather than sipping.
Scarcity: Found all over the Known World, it has popularity as a cheap tipple and as a reasonable (if unexciting) fallback option when facing strange looking and expensive foreign brews.
by Cab Davidson
Seaweed Spirits
From: Countless backstreet manufacturers in Ierendi.
Quality: Rough. This blue (occasionally green) spirit has often been compared to a mugging.
Scarcity: Common enough in Ierendi, and while there is no formalised export bottles do turn up wherever Ierendian and Minrothaddan ships call in.
Forestholmes Metheglin
From: Forestholme communities of elves, the forests of Southern Norwold
Quality: Usually excellent, being manufactured from the finest honey and wild herbs (known to include, among others, meadowsweet, marjoram, hogweed, sweet cicely, and thyme) available in the dense, fertile woodlands of the region.
Availability: Easily available locally, now also exported through Oceansend to Sundsvall, Helskir, Freiberg, even to Thyatis. Very likely to increase in popularity and cost in years to come; the Elves of Norwold cannot increase production without harming both their hives and some of the rare herbs they gather.
Athenos Amber:
From: the Linton Brewery, Athenos, Darokin
Quality: Mediocre - The discerning fan of local products will likely find this barely more than passable, but they're not the target. Dockworkers, longshoremen, and sailors in Athenos drink it, for it flows freely in the taverns throughout the quarter.
Scarcity: Common in Athenos, semi-common anywhere House Linton has a presence (and enough traders to push it), rare elsewhere
(It has a sister product, Linton's Lager, from the same brewery. The more cynical suggest that this is simply an upscale re-branding of Athenos Amber...)
by Cab Davidson
Munseys Bugger Strength
From: Freiberg, brewed by Ulf Munsey
Quality: Very strong dark ale of the highest standard
Scarcity: Easily obtained in Freiberg and often the beer of choice on Heldannic Warbirds, so occasionally found anywhere on Mystara and beyond.
Amburian Dark
From: Laszlo's Brewery, Ambur
Quality: Strong Stout Ale of good quality
Scarcity: Common in Ambur, Uncommon in other Alphatian areas, virtually unknown outside
Dragon Breath
From: Many distilleries in Norwold
Quality: Very strong spirit colourless, usually drunk with small sips due its strength.
Frequency: popular among lower classes throughout the NW and also in many areas of the KW
Vanya's Kiss
From: Heldannic Brewery in Freiburg, Heldannic Territories
Quality: Lager beer with low alcoholic gradation. Usually given to Heldannic warriors
Scarcity: Common in Heldannic Territories and in Hattias and in lands controlled by them.
Blood of Kagyar
From: Distilleries owned by Syrklist Clan, Rockhome
Quality: Strong red spirit usually drunk by dwarves on ritual feasts. Non dwarves drinking it must roll a SW against Poison, or go unconscious for 2d4rounds+1
Scarcity: Common in Rockhome, unknown elsewhere
by Geoff Gander
Dr. Astegin’s Sheep Tonic No. 6
From: Elstrich, Darokin
Quality: Reminiscent of blackberries, but sears the tongue and throat as it goes down.
Scarcity: Originally found only in Elstrich and environs, where it was used as animal medicine (“Gets yer flock wild an’ woolly!” – the originator, Kareth Astegin), but was discovered to be a cheap substitute for liquor. Now also found in Darokin City, Corunglain, and Athenos, where it sells for two coppers per bottle.
(There were earlier brews - Nos. 1 through 5 - but they tended to kill the sheep. There is absolutely no truth to the rumour that Kareth is selling leftovers of these toxic vintages as No. 6.)
Favaro’s Pride
From: Favaro, Darokin
Quality: A tasty white beer spiced with cinnamon and apple. Holds its own against cheeses and fruit, but gets overpowered by hearty stews.
Scarcity: Very common in and around Favaro, rare in northern Darokin, unknown elsewhere.
by Cab Davidson
The Sundsvall Waffle
From: The Sundsvall Waffle Company, Teleport Pad A, Public Aerodrome, Sundsvall.
Quality: Superb; a team of crack culinary mages are employed alongside top chefs to produce any flavour of waffle required by their clientele.
Scarcity: Unique to the Wafflery.
Old St. Kruskiev's
From: Specularum, several small breweries in the Old Quarter and South End. Originally brewed by the monks of St. Kruskiev's monastery for their own use.
Quality: a strong, dark ale, this brew varies in quality with the producer, as the guilds of Specularum have not yet been able to agree on a single regulation.
Frequency: common in Specularum, especially the southern lower-class wards.
Radshaefer Hefe-Weissbier
From: Radshaefer Brauerei, Graz, Principality of Aalban.
Quality: A mass-produced beer made with wheat instead of malt.
Frequency: the quintessential white beer, it is a staple of Aalbanese diet. It is hugely popular in the Principality, and exported to neighbouring fiefs, Glantri City, and even Darokin.
Aalbanische Magierbier
From: Radshaefer Brauerei, Graz, Principality of Aalban.
Quality: a pale beer produced with a low-temperature fermentation process controlled with the help of Alchemical magic.
Frequency: uncommon; this beer is an experimental product, currently reserved to the arcaners of Aalban and their guests. However, the mages at Radshaefer Brauerei are constantly improving the process to allow mass production.
by Geoff Gander
Dannondale Dry Gin
From: A valley in the region of Dannon, Darokin
Quality: A passable gin with an aftertaste of aniseed.
Scarcity: Readily available in Athenos, Port Tenobar, Darokin City, and the Five Shires; rare in Minrothad and Thyatis.
(The distiller, Aronos Penrith, purchased some Bellaynish gin from a Minrothaddan trader, and decided to make one of his own that would undercut the expensive competition. A bottle can be had for as little as five copper pieces; although it is more expensive outside of Darokin.)
Sortfeld Stout
From: Sortfeld, Soderfjord Jarldoms
Quality: It is better than mixing dirt with blood and drinking that. If you get a good batch. The alcohol content is high, and that's what anyone who drinks this cares about.
Scarcity: Plentiful and cheap in the Soderfjord Jarldoms and available in Vestland and Rockhome. Very rare beyond that except among masochists
MD 20/20
18% or 13% alc. by vol.
As majestic as the cascading waters of a drain pipe, MD 20/20 is bottled by the 20/20 wine company in Glantri City, Glantri. This is a good place to start for the street wine rookie, but beware; this dog has a bite to back up its bark. MD Stands for Mikail Derchovski, legendary Boldavian drunkard, and is affectionately called "Mad Dog 20/20". You'll find this beverage as often in Glantri City's West End as in the gaming houses where the Great School dropouts run off to drink. This beverage is likely the most consumed by non-bums, but that doesn't stop any bums from drinking it! Our research indicates that MD 20/20 is the best of the bum wines at making you feel warm inside. Some test subjects report a slight numbing agent in MD 20/20, similar to the banana paste that the dentist puts in your mouth before injecting it with novocaine. Anyone that can afford a dentist should steer clear of this disaster. Available in various nauseating tropical flavours that coat your whole system like bathtub scum, but only the full "Red Grape Wine" flavour packs the 18% whollop.
Cisco
18% alc. by vol.
Cisco is bottled by Karameikos' infamous, Barglesbane brewery in Ft. Doom
Known as "liquid crack," for its reputation for wreaking more mental havoc than the cheapest Belcadizan tequila. Something in this syrupy hooch seems to have a synapse-blasting effect not unlike low-grade cocaine. The label insists that the ingredients are merely "citrus wine & grape wine with artificial flavour & artificial colour," but anyone who has tried it knows better. Tales of Cisco-induced semi-psychotic fits are common. Often, people on a Cisco binge end up curled into a foetal ball, shuddering and muttering paranoid rants. Nudity and violence may well be involved too. Everyone who drinks this feels great at first, and claims, "It's not bad at all, I like it." But, you really do not want to mess around with this one, because they all sing a different tune a few minutes later. And by tune, I mean the psychotic ramblings of a raging naked bum. A favourite of humanoids.. especially goblins.
Night Wagon Express
17.5% alc. by vol.
Bottled in Mirros. Don't let the 0.5% less alcohol by volume fool you, the Night Wagon is all business when it pulls into the station. All aboard to nowhere - woo wooo! The night wagon runs only one route: sober to stupid with no roundtrip tickets available, and a strong likelihood of a wagon wreck along the way. Some suspect that Night Wagon is really just Glantrian Thunderbird with some Kool-Aid-like substance added to try to mask the Clorox flavour. Some of our researchers indicated that it gave them a NyQuil-like drowsiness, and perhaps this is why they put "night" in the name. The picture (below) shows that the subject that drank Night Wagon is down for the count, while the Cisco guzzling subject is ready to rock. Guaranteed to tickle your innards.
Thunderbird
17.5% alc. by vol.
Look for the pigeon faeces and you'll find this old bird. As soon as you taste this swill, it will be obvious that its makers cut every corner possible in its production to make it cheap. Self-proclaimed as "The Alphatian Classic," Thunderbird is Vinted and bottled by E&J Gallo Winery, in Eriadna Glantri. Disguised like Night Wagon, the label says that it is made by "Thunderbird, Ltd." If your taste buds are shot, and you need to get trashed with a quickness, then "T-bird" is the drink for you. Or, if you like to smell your hand after pumping gas, look no further than Thunderbird. As you drink on, the bird soars higher while you sink lower. The undisputed leader in foulness of flavour, we highly discourage drinking this ghastly mixture of unknown chemicals unless you really are a bum. Available in 750 mL and a devastating 50 oz jug.
The history of Thunderbird is as interesting as the drunken effects the one experiences from the wine. When Prohibition ended in Glantri in 912, Ernest Gallo and his brothers Julio and Joe wanted to corner the young wine market. Earnest wanted the company to become "the Campbell Soup company of the wine industry" so he started selling Thunderbird in the ghettos around the Principality. It can be heard sung in slums and dives throughout the south of Glantri, "What's the word? / Thunderbird / How's it sold? / Good and cold / What's the jive? / Bird's alive / What's the price? / Thirty twice." It is said that Ernest once drove through the tough, hood of Glantri City and pulled over his palanquin hahah when he saw a bum. When Gallo rolled down his window and called out, "What's the word?" the immediate answer from the bum was, "Thunderbird."
Wild Hattian Rose
18% alc. by vol.
The thorn in your hangover is a wild rose from Hattias. Bottled by Von Schiess in the city of Vinton Hattias, "Wild H" definitely has some secret additives that go straight to the cranium. An ad in the Poor Wizard Almanac claims that this foul beverage is a good way to kill the homeless or other non-Hattian undesirables. Bums ask a liquor store clerk for Wild Hattian Rose by saying, "gimme a pint of Hattie with a skirt," a skirt being a paper bag. Some don't want it cold either. It's called "wild" for a good reason, and bystanders should beware. Wild Hattian Rose is sure to light a fire of drunken rage in your soul. A guy named " Von Richards" is mentioned on the label.
The "White Label" variety of this beverage is definitely a hard wine to come to terms with. "White Label" smells like rubbing alcohol, and has no added flavouring to mask its pungent taste and noxious odours. Available in 375 mL, 750 mL, and a 50 oz jug.
Bluenose Bitter
From: Bluenose in Arogansa, Alphatia
Quality: Excellent and exotic. This wine is considered similar to port wine, but is sweeter in nature and thus allows those who enjoy it imbibe it in greater quantities before feeling its effects.
Scarcity: This wine is restricted to the city of Bluenose in Arogansa and is reserved exclusively for aristocrats in that city, be they inhabitants or tourists. Export is prohibited, and attempts at smuggling have been dealt with very severely in the past. Rumour has it that the wine's creation has a semi-magical nature, which is one reason for its status as illegal export. Other rumours speculate that it is prohibited because it can have lethal effects on commoners that aristocrats are immune to due to their magical nature. It is also said that consuming Bluenose Bitter can cause powerful hallucinations, which some have interpreted to be omens of their future. Either way, the wine seems to have no lasting effects on aristocrats and does not cause addiction beyond an appreciation for its taste and effects by those who experience it.
by Geoff Gander
Balsams
From: Littonia
Quality: Those who use it for medicinal purposes say it works wonders. Those who imbibe it after a battle claim it has restorative powers. Those who drink it casually say it treats the palate to a complicated mix of linden blossoms, birch buds, raspberry, ginger, nutmeg, and black peppercorn. Heavy drinkers claim it then bundles those flavours together, wraps them around the brain, and throttles it.
Scarcity: Ubiquitous in Littonia, common in Kaarjala, and occasionally seen in Alpha and Oceansend. Minrothaddan merchants will soon expose the Known World to this exotic treat.
by Ville Lähde
Stronghold Seashine
From: Minrothad Dwarven region
Quality: An alcoholic derivation of the Norse delicacy "surstromming" or fermented herring, this beverage is brewed from
leftover fish and fermented in buried barrels. Opening a casket of Seashine is a endurance competition in itself: a few
pints of the stuff can really stink up the place.
Scarcity: Very rare. Most of it is used locally or sold to dwarves and some Norse aficionados.
Milk of the Traveller
From: Ylaruam
Quality: Camel's milk with added some herbs fermented. Very low alcoholic but refreshing. Generally used and first developed by caravan members.
Scarcity: Common in Ylaruam
by Geoff Gander
Solarios Retsina
From: Kastelios
Quality: This dry white wine is made by adding pine resin during the fermentation process, which the locals believe prolongs its life in the barrel or amphora. The taste is much stronger and sharper than regular whites, but not unpleasant. Goes well with fish and strong-tasting foods.
Scarcity: Common in Kastelios, Garganin, and the Hinterlands. Uncommon in Thyatis, Minrothad, and Athenos. Unknown elsewhere.
by Jamie Baty
Mulsum
From: Thyatis
Description: Wine mixed with honey
Quality: Quality varies greatly depending on base wine and type/quantity of honey used. Generally, the best mulsa are made from dry red wines from the central region of Thyatis and 1 teaspoon clover honey per goblet of wine. Mulsa made from white or red dessert wines are almost always too sweet.
Scarcity: Common in Thyatis and Imperial-controlled areas. Uncommon in Karameikos and Ylaruam. Rare to non-existent elsewhere. Poor to good quality mulsa are easy to find. Several Thyatian vinters have special mulsa that use special honey (accomplished by controlling what flowers the bees have access too) as well as specially cultivated varieties of grapes. These special blends are notoriously expensive, and difficult to acquire- they usually are found at aristocratic and Imperial banquets/parties or at very high-end inns and taverns.
Calda
From: Thyatis
Description: Wine mixed with warm water and laced with spices. This drink is traditionally a winter drink.
Quality: Quality varies greatly depending on base wine and type/quantity of water and spices used. There is no one "right" recipe for caldae, with different ideal versions from person to person and tavern to tavern. It is most common to use sweet wines mixed half and half with warm water. Popular spices include cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, lavender, thyme and jasmine. The best caldae match the spices to suit the taste and bloom of the base wine.
Scarcity: Common in Thyatis and Imperial-controlled areas.
Posca
From: Thyatis
Description: Sour wine (akin to vinegar) mixed with enough water to make it drinkable. This drink is the typical drink of the Thyatian legionary.
Quality: Horrid to most palettes. It serves two purposes- first it is very cheap, and secondly the Thyatian high command believes it helps toughen the men and keeps them from growing soft.
Scarcity: Ubiquitous in the Thyatis military. Common in poor-quality taverns. No-one who can afford better will drink it outside of a dare or to prove their mettle.
Notable Thyatian Wines:
Aecuban: A deep red (almost black) wine. It is very dry, with a hint of smokiness and spice. High alcoholic content, and aged for 10+ years.
Selian: A sweet red wine, with a strong cherry aftertaste.
Fasernian: A sweet, full-bodied amber wine aged 10 years. This is a very strong wine with a high alcoholic content, and is often cut with water for a better drinking experience. Easily the most popular wine in the Empire.
Mallic: A crisp, dry white, with a hint of apricot
Turriculian: A strong yellow colour, with notes of almonds and nuts.
Catenum: Amber-coloured and fruity , it is made by fermenting very mature grapes with quince. It has a sweet, peachy aroma.
All of these wines are produced in the region surrounding Thyatis City, and are in high demand throughout the Empire.
Nethlinn's Desolation
From: Nethilton, Darokin, a small mining town nestled in the Nethlinn Hills west of Elstrich (see the 2.7 mile per hex map being developed elsewhere)
Description: This harsh and potent local whiskey is the perfect end to a day of risking one's life in the mines. Distilled in the town, it is usually something of an acquired taste, and many a visitor has felt the "desolation" of imbibing too freely of the offering... (Given the daily dangers faced by the townsfolk, the gallows humour of naming their beverage after one of the most traumatic events of the reason should not be a surprise.)
Quality: With this potency, does it really matter?
Scarcity: This local distillation is easily obtained in Nethilton, rare in Elstrich and Darokin city, practically unheard of anywhere else. Soldiers who were recruited from Nethilton, stationed in the forts, may have their own, personal stash.
by Geoff Gander
Kumis
From: Ethengar
Description: Fermented mare's milk (made possible due to the higher sugar concentration, which means that it is technically closer to wine than beer).
Quality: Made over the course of several days, during which the milk is frequently stirred, this mildly alcoholic beverage is touted among the Ethengarians as a cure-all. The taste is slightly sour, with a bite once swallowed.
Scarcity: Common in Ethengar, rare in Makistan (Ylaruam), parts of Glantri (where it is called "Milk Champagne"), Rockhome, and Corunglain. Unknown elsewhere.
by Cab Davidson
Blaand
From: Qeodhar, Frisland, and the Yannifey Islands
Description: Lightly fermented, sparkling buttermilk and whey.
Scarcity: Only really found in the far North of mainland Alphatia and the outlying Northern islands. Not a pleasant drink, but where life is hard its a way of using a waste product to produce alcohol.
Old Mr. Macaddams Vskebath
From: Southern Norwold, County of Landfall, Mr. Macaddams Distillery
Description: Thrice distilled spirits flavoured with herbs such as draggons, fennel, cloves, heartese, yarrow... and many other secret ingredients to produce a famous 'health tonic'
Scarcity: Common enough from the main cities of the Northern Reaches, across the North of the Isle of Dawn and up as far as Oceansend. Originally sold as 'fine remedie to the marthambles, the colic, the gripes, gout and all maladie of the spleen', now enjoyed somewhat less medicinally.
Old Pearl Rum
Description: Dark, strong, rough rum often enjoyed watered down 1 in 2 or 1 in 3, with a little sugar and lemon juice added to stave off scurvy.
From: The Pearl Islands, where it is produced from spent sugar cane.
Scarcity: Frighteningly common, found wherever Thyatian merchant or naval vessels travel to, and the inebriant of choice in the Imperial Thyatian Navy.
Maganshire Scrumpy
Description: Take apples, mash them up, and back off to a safe distance.
From: The low lying areas of Southern Norwold, particularly Maganshire. Normally brewed by individual farmers to use up apples, and to keep in store for refreshment throughout the year. The quality of working at a farm (for itinerant, seasonal labourers employed at lambing, harvest, etc.) is often judged on the quality of cider on offer. The 'better' stuff often finds its way on to the market.
Scarcity: Commonly found from Landfall to Alpha; similar ciders are produced wherever there are apples, but none are quite so rough and distinctive as this.
Dunvegan Brown Ale
From: Dunvegan, Glantri
Quality: Dunvegan is known is one of the most drinkable beers around. It is not without some complexity, however. Reddish-brown in colour, soft to the palate, and just enough elegant Kaelic hops to offset the delicate caramel maltiness. Brewed with pale and dark caramel malt, Dunvegan Brown is actually a blend of two separate beers. If you can't enjoy this one, you simply don't like beer.
Scarcity: not seen outside of Glantri. In Dunvegan, the ale is often called 'Dog' (or simply 'Broon'). The 'Dog' name comes from the euphemism "I'm going to walk the dog" - meaning "I'm going to the pub". The ‘Broon’ is a favourite of the Marquis and of lovers of Kaelic ale across Glantri.
by John Calvin
Altan Tepes Pale Ale
From: Selenica, Darokin
Quality: Altan Tepes Pale Ale is a delightful interpretation of a classic style. It has a deep amber colour and an exceptionally full-bodied, complex character. Generous quantities of premium Cascade hops give the Pale Ale its fragrant bouquet and spicy flavour.
Scarcity: A favourite of students at the University of Selenica, Altan Tepes Pale is quickly making its way across Darokin, and throughout portions of Thyatis and Karameikos. So much demand has been placed for Altan Tepes, that the humble brewery has had to expand several times over the past decade in order to keep up.
by Ashtagon
Eikken: A bitter-sweet non-alcoholic brew made from oranges. It is brewed on Ierendi island, and gets exported to the Shires. It can sometimes be found in Darokin, Minrothad, or Ochalea.
Cervogia
Common in Northern Reaches. It is a red beer with high gradation. Brewed with a variety of malt only available in the Reaches it has a strong taste.
Red Deer with onions and potatoes and sausages
The Red Deer is common in Klantyre, Glantri, and virtually unknown elsewhere. It's usually stewed with onions and potatoes with sauces of sausages. It's eaten during holydays
by Sean Meaney
Stuffed Bread
Common amongst the Oltec of the Hollow World, The flour and goat milk is mixed to form a yeastless dough ball in which a mix of fruits, nuts, deer eyes, and meat are stuffed and the hole swisted sealed. then it is baked in the coals of a fire.
by Cab Davidson
Salt Mackerel
Description: Un-gutted mackerel packed into barrels with layers of salt in between layers of fish. Unpleasant, oily, salty, but utterly indestructible and able to last for months, even years, without spoiling, and a cheap way of preserving an annual glut. The juice running out from taps in the bottom of the barrels is bottled for export, being sold to Thyatians on the Isle of Dawn and on mainland Thyatis as equivalent to their own liquamen and garum fish sauces.
From: Southern Norwold, the only known area where human palates will tolerate this.
Scarcity: Common in Norwold, rarely found further South than Landfall or North of Alpha.
Garum and Liquamen
From: Thyatis and all places touched by Thyatian cuisine - note that many 'native' peoples of the Thyatian Empire eschew Imperial cooking in favour of their own traditional dishes.
Description: Fermented, salted fish sauce produced from whole fish and guts, not only popular but necessary in Thyatian cuisine. Garum is a grade made with a higher fish content and is slightly less salty than Liquamen, which is often the strongly flavoured exudate from fish salting process correctly matured and seasoned. Garum is used as a table condiment, whereas liquamen is used extensively in cooking and food preparation.
Scarcity: Various low value grades of these sauces are found even in the hovels of the lowliest slave labourers, whereas quality sauces are found at every table up to and including that of the Emperor. You can't have Thyatian food without garum.
Spiced Turnips
From: Villages the length and breadth of Norwold
Description: Turnips are a staple crop of peasant farmers in Norwold. They grow prolifically there, often to surprising sizes. For most of the year they're eaten simply boiled, with the greens wilted alongside, but at times of special celebration they are cooked in a reduction of honey and expensive imported spices (cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, mace and ginger), becoming sweet, sticky and almost delicious.
Scarcity: Common in Norwold, and one of the few native foodstuffs actually enjoyed by travellers.
Whale head cheese
From: Qeodhar, possibly also Yannifey Islands
Description: Whaling is a way of life in Qeodhar, and while whale meat and blubber are enjoyed in various forms, nothing quite prepares the traveller for whale head cheese.
The heads from certain species of whale (fin, humpback and grey) are salted in vast rocky dug-outs for days, prior to processing. The women from an entire village (of if there are several heads multiple villages) will set to work cutting, butchering and sorting cuts of whale head, which are each neatly boiled until the meat is falling apart. The meat (blubber, eyes, eyelids, brains, everything edible) is then strained, mixed, and the cooking water reduced until it will form a thick jelly. The meat is packed into barrel like cheese presses, formed into cheeses, and the jelly poured on top and allowed to cool. Amazingly, in the cold climate of Qeodhar this 'head cheese' will last for several months before spoiling, and is a favourite amongst locals.
Scarcity: Only found on Qeodhar and on ships originating from there.
Man Bone Bread
From: Frosthaven
Description: An unimaginable (to most sentient palettes) concoction brewed up by the Frost Giants. They take the bones of men (humans), and grind them to make bread; more correctly, they make a rich bone meal which is mixed with seal blubber, water, salt, and a kind of lichen which initiates a fast, foamy fermentation. The mixture then hardens in the cold arctic winds, and this is bone bread. It is highly esteemed by frost giants.
Scarcity: Restricted to Frosthaven, although found wherever the frost giants wander. Occasionally enjoyed by white dragons, who import this 'bread' to the Wyrmsteeth.
Glantrian Soup
From: Glantri
Description: Any one of a multitude of complex, subtle, clever recipes for soup in Glantri. The great Glantrian chef Careme, whose basic sauces form the backbone of quality cuisine in Glantri and whose methods still hold out against the ever present spread of Darokinian culture (service a la Darokinienne is still laughed at in Glantri, who still eat a la Glantrienne), was really the father of the Glantrian soup culture. He argued that whereas any oaf or country cook can make a good roast or a decent pie, only a true artiste can produce a soup of quality, something that will satisfy and sate a discerning customer. And his soup house became the most celebrated restaurant in Glantri City, sparking a craze that swept towns across the nation. Whereas in Traldara or Darokin a soup house is a place for the destitute, in Glantri it is the fare of Princes.
Scarcity: Caremes recipes have spread far outside of Glantri, and his influence as a chef is important in Darokin, Traldara, the Shires and even in Sind and far away Alphatia. Whether any others have really emulated his genius... il droit rester un mystere.
Akesoli Ham
Location: Villages and farms on the shores of lake Akesoli
Description: The fertile farm fields of Darokin produce some fine, fatty pork, and the farmers of the Akesoli area turn the legs of this pork into delicious air dried hams. The quality of these hams is second to none, and it is hard to imagine any of the great Darokinian dishes without it.
Scarcity: Commonly produced at countless farms around the lake, and exported (through Darokin) across the Known World, occasionally appearing in markets as far afield as Slagovich, Leeha and East Portage.
by Jamie Baty
Globuli
From: Thyatis
Description: Globuli are dumplings made from a mixture of curd cheese and semolina. The dumplings are fried in olive oil and then rolled in honey.
Scarcity: Common in Thyatis and Imperial areas. They are a frequent part of the starter courses at large meals.
Lucinian Sausage
From: Thyatis, particularly from Port Lucinus
Description: A popular sausage made from a mixture of wild boar and domesticated pork. The meat mixture is seasoned with garum, peppercorns, cumin, allspice, and parsley, placed into a thin casing and smoked.
Scarcity: Common in Thyatis and Imperial areas. Uncommon in the Savage Coast.
In Ovis Apalis (Boiled Eggs with Pine Nut Sauce)
From: Thyatis
Description: A very popular appetiser. The boiled eggs are served with a fine sauce made from vinegar, honey, peppercorns, celery leaf and pine nuts.
Scarcity: Common in Thyatis and Imperial areas.
Patina De Piris (Pear Patina)
From: Thyatis
Description: An interesting dish made by first boiling pears in a white wine. The boiled pears are then ground up and mixed with pepper, cumin, honey, sweet white wine, garum, and a bit of oil. Finally, eggs are added into the mixed. The resulting paste is shaped like a pear, sprinkled with ground pepper and baked to form a light dessert.
Scarcity: Common in Thyatis and Imperial areas. Foreigners are often dubious of this dish at first, but usually find it quite enjoyable.
Vitellina Fricta (Fried Veal)
From: Thyatis
Description: A veal steak fired in olive oil and covered in a sauce made from raisins, wine, vinegar, honey, Liquamen, pepper, celery seeds, cumin, oregano, and dried onion.
Scarcity: Common among the wealthy in Thyatis and Imperial areas. Rare among the poor and low-end establishments.
Sarda Ita Fit (Spiced Tuna)
From: Thyatis (mainly coastal areas)
Description: A dish made with cooked tuna broken into chunks. The tuna chunks are mixed with dates, honey, wine, marmalade, vinegar and olive oil. Served in a bowl and garnished with boiled egg quarters.
Scarcity: Common in Thyatis and Imperial areas. While common among the poor and low-end establishments, the quantity of tuna in a serving tends to be rather low.
Aliter Dulcia
From: Thyatis
Description: A dessert made from a small thick cake made from a dough of pepper, pine kernels, honey, rue and sweet wine with milk and eggs. The dough is boiled and the cake is topped with honey and ground pepper.
Scarcity: Common in Thyatis and Imperial areas.
Dulcia Domestica
From: Thyatis
Description: A dessert made from dates stuffed with nuts (usually pine nuts) and stewed in mulsum.
Scarcity: Common in Thyatis and Imperial areas.
Dormouse
From: Thyatis
Description: Small rodent eaten by the Thyatians as a snack or as part of the first course of the Thyatian main meal. Dormice are typically sprinkled with poppy-seed and honey and are served with hot sausages on a silver gridiron, underneath which are damson plums and pomegranate seeds. As a side note, dormice farmers in Thyatis make quite a good living if they can provide both quality and quantity.
Scarcity: Common in Thyatis and Imperial areas, particularly with the wealthy. Thankfully, very rare elsewhere.
Reddelton Red (also known locally as Blood Wine)
From: Reddelton, Darokin (a village near what was once the border between Irum and Nethlinn)
Description: This locally produced, slightly sweet red wine has a small amount of red colouring added before bottling. The effect is to make it redder, tying it into the bogeyman stories about the Red Duke. (Reddelton was founded within the last century, so culturally treats the historical figure as a fictional monster might be -- like Dracula or Frankenstein at Halloween, he's almost celebrated.) Bottles for export are usually missing the additional colour (unless a special order is placed).
Scarcity: As blood wine, available only in Reddelton and sophisticated parties in large cities such as Darokin. As Reddelton Red, a modest export trade has seen it spread to the towns and cities of Darokin.
The Duke's Last Meal
From: Reddelton, Darokin (a village near what was once the border between Irum and Nethlinn)
Description: This feast consists of meat and seasonal vegetables, arranged to mimic one or more bodies (not particularly realistically), stemming from local folklore saying the evil Duke of Irum fed on his enemies. The quality of presentation depends on the cook that night, and the size and scope will depend on the dining party. Even the smallest version feeds two healthy appetites, and it can easily be scaled to larger groups. The locals sometimes order this as a particular celebration, in which case they eat with much theatricality.
Scarcity: This is the signature dish of the Reddelton tavern The Red Duke's Tap, and has not yet been reproduced elsewhere.
Logger's Lager:
From: Bert's Place, Hellwych, Darokin
Quality: Decent, but not spectacular (Bert's Place); variable (any of the clones)
Scarcity: Common in Athenos, semi-common anywhere House Linton has a presence (and enough traders to push it), rare elsewhere
Originally brewed by the owner of Bert's Place, a retired traveling bard named (not surprisingly) Bert (no known surname, or at least none he'll claim), the name of this brew has since been put on most lagers local to the Hellwych/Woodhaven/Marstrich Moor area. (Bert enjoys wordplay, word games, and stories -- most of his menu consists of names which tickle his verbal fancy. He's the sort of guy who would serve brown sausages in a bed of fine grits and call it 'logs and sawdust'.)
Glen Marstrich: (5-year, 10-year, 15-year)
From: Woodhaven, Marstrich Moor region, Darokin
Quality: Excellent
Scarcity: Uncommon everywhere except Marstrich Moor, although the distillery (MacDavies and Son) is hoping to set up distribution rights to Darokin City and Athenos soon.
Calum MacDavies was instructed in traditional Klantyre distillation of whiskey, although he himself is first-generation native to Darokin. He and his son, Rory, relocated to Marstrich Moor to set up their own distillery. Although he's been producing 5-year scotch (Klantsh?) for a few years (after a few years of tests), and 10-year bottles only recently, he has just bottled his first production of 15-year whiskey. Early taste tests are that it is an excellent beverage, and it will almost certainly prove popular once it becomes more widely known.
There are almost certainly longer maturation products on their way as well.