Uncommon Folk 31 Days of Winter- Apple Cider Wassailing

Some ancient traditions can still bring warmth and cheer in the dead of winter. Let us take you on a journey to discover the captivating world of apple cider wassailing—a centuries-old ritual full of song, dance, and rich customs aimed at ensuring a fruitful harvest. From its origins in pre-Christian Britain to its modern-day celebrations, wassailing brings communities together with the jovial clamor of pots and pans, the aroma of mulled cider, and the lively chants meant to scare away evil spirits from orchards. 

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Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:07

Apple cider was sailing.

Speaker 1: 0:11

Now this is a very old, centuries-old tradition that involves us singing, dancing and drinking cider, but also pouring the cider over the apple trees to promote a sort of good health and a bountiful harvest. The tradition dates back to well before Christianity, when farmers in Britain in their apple growing regions would gather in the winter to ward off the evil spirits that congregated in orchards. I mean the word wassail comes from an old Norse salutation veshael, which means to be in good health. The procession would be led to the orchard and a group would gather around the oldest tree, and a group would gather around the oldest tree. Cider would be poured all over the roots and toast would be hung in the branches, which would attract robins, which are believed to be sort of guardians of the trees and the orchard in particular. To scare away the spirits, the evil spirits that congregated in orchards, people would bang pots and pans and sometimes fire guns into the air. Then there would be traditional songs and chants and dancing and then lots and lots of mulled cider and celebrations. Now this normally happens around January the 17th, which is called Old Twelvey Night, but it can be celebrated throughout the winter, not just Christmas time.

Speaker 1: 1:51

There are ways of doing it at home as well. If you can't find an orchard, just celebrate at home with an apple tree. Just an apple, a saucepan, a wooden spoon, toast cider and a song. You can make your own wassail by just drinking apple juice if you want. Apple, a saucepan, a wooden spoon, toast cider and a song. You know you can make your own wassail by just drinking apple juice if you want. But I think if you're going to do it properly, you've got to drink some proper cider. Some modern cideries, if that's what you call them, have adopted this tradition and they invite people to their orchards to celebrate. Now, these rites sometimes get very rowdy, as do many involving cider, and they involve face paint, masks and lots of other decorations to jazz up this traditional wassail.