Whenever the summer heat is unbearable, I can't help but have a cold drink. I was reborn in an instant with a mouthful, and I couldn't help but sigh that life was too good.
But have you ever wondered how people living in ancient times faced the scorching summer?
After taking a closer look at this doubt, we found that we underestimated the wisdom of the ancients.
Their lives were far more nourishing than everyone thought, and in those days there were not only drinks, but even sodas!
Qing Dynasty people's "fat house happy water"
Many people may think that soda is a modern product, but in fact, as early as the 19th century in England, there was such a thing as fat house happy water.
By chance, scientists discovered that the water infused with carbon dioxide was so delicious that it had a subtle taste just after it was put in the mouth.
This can be rare for the British, many people have given a thumbs up after drinking, and since then it has become a popular drink that sells very well, and even spread to China across the ocean, and is called "Dutch water" by us.
Many people may wonder why this was named after the Netherlands, when it was discovered in England?
This happened during the reign of the Qing Dynasty, and the Netherlands was one of the leading maritime trading countries at the same time.
Many of the "foreign gadgets" in our country are shipped through Dutch cargo ships, and soda is no exception.
At that time, everyone only knew that this novel and delicious water was brought to China by the Dutch, and they did not know where the source was, so it was generally called "Dutch water".
Ge Yuanxu, a literati of the late Qing Dynasty, wrote in "Miscellaneous Notes on Travels in Shanghai": "It is a machine that fills water and gas into a bottle. When it opens, its plug bursts out, beware of the face of the bullet. Pour and drink as you go, it can dissipate the heat. ”
Later, "Dutch water" was sought after by many people in our country, so the British found a business opportunity and immediately went to Shanghai to build a factory specializing in the production of soda.
The landing of this factory has benefited many foodies, both rich and common, can enjoy this novel drink, and even at the wedding banquet of Puyi, the last emperor of the Qing Dynasty, there is a soda figure.
Of course, with the exception of the popular "Dutch water" in the Qing Dynasty, each dynasty had its own drink culture.
From the Tang Dynasty's "drinking" culture
When it comes to the favorite drink of the Tang Dynasty, tea is a very important option. However, at that time, people did not only drink tea, but also a drink called "sashiko" was also very popular.
"Yuzi" is actually a kind of herbal decoction drink, although the taste is a little bitter, but it has extremely high medicinal value.
The wisdom of the ancients was not inferior to that of modern people, and they made herbs such as chrysanthemum, licorice, and peppermint. Different "drinks" also have different effects, such as some can refresh the mind, some can relieve fatigue, and some can treat colds.
At that time, it was believed that "yuko" could regulate the body and prevent diseases, and this was also recorded in ancient books.
"Taiping Guangji" volume 219 quotes the five generations of Fan Zi "Yutang Gossip": "On the heyday of Chang'an, there is a family that sells drinks in the West Market, using ordinary medicines, but not a few flavors. ”
However, some picky people will feel that although the "drink" is very nutritious, the taste is too bad, so they add a little honey to it.
Unexpectedly, the door to the new continent was opened, and the sweetness of honey neutralized the bitterness of the herbs, and everyone who drank it said that it was good, and everyone gave this drink a new name called "nectar", which was quite popular for a while.
In fact, this "drink" is a bit like herbal tea or herbal tea, and the improved "nectar" is similar to the lemon tea and mint water that everyone drinks in the beverage store.
Even in the Song Dynasty, this "drink" was very popular with everyone. We can clearly see the shops with "Drink" signboards in "Qingming Riverside Map".
Tea culture reached its peak in the Song Dynasty
Although tea flourished from the Tang Dynasty, it did not reach its peak until the Song Dynasty.
In the Song Dynasty, whether it was the production of tea or the way it was cited, it was a university question, and in that era, tea was mainly in the form of residual tea and piece tea.
Song Huizong and Daguan Tea Theory
Loose tea needs to be "steamed" in the form of bars or ends.
This loose tea is more suitable for ordinary people to eat daily. The slice tea, also known as group tea or cake tea, is patted in a "roll mold" after being "steamed".
The tea of the Song Dynasty was a high-end product that was hard to find, and generally only the aristocratic class such as court nobles, bureaucrats, and doctors could afford to consume it.
When drinking sliced tea, people need to roast, crush, grind and other processes before brewing and drinking.
This series of tedious processes not only increases the rarity of tea, but also makes tea drinking a kind of enjoyment and cultural embodiment.
As the name suggests, sencha is made by putting the ground tea leaves into boiling water to decoction, and the resulting tea soup is very clear and loved by the people of the Song Dynasty.
Tea is also ordered by putting the tea leaves into the tea set and brewing it with boiling water, while also stirring it with a teaspoon.
It includes several steps such as boiling tea, grinding tea, Luo tea, Hou soup, boiling tea, and ordering tea.
This method of ordering tea was very popular in the Song Dynasty, and people were also very particular about the procedure of ordering tea, and each step had its own uniqueness.
The people of the Song Dynasty also liked to drink very much, and if you had the opportunity to walk on the streets of the Song Dynasty, in addition to seeing large and small restaurants, you could even see many mobile stalls.
According to the "Qingbo Magazine" written by Zhou Hui of the Song Dynasty, it is recorded: "Today's sacrifices, feasts, and gifts are not good for wine." ”
"Selling Pulp" Northern Song Dynasty Su Hanchen (biography)
At that time, there were many types of sake, such as rice wine, fruit wine, and honey wine, and the taste and flavor were different, and people chose the right sake according to their preferences.
The picture of the market on the river map during the Qingming Festival
In addition to tea and wine, there was another outrageous-sounding drink during the Song Dynasty - cooked water.
Just looking at these two words, I believe many netizens will wonder: It won't be the boiled water I think.
That's right, it's really like this, and everyone's pursuit of this "cooked water" is somewhat of a "star effect".
"Cardamom and the tips are fried in water, and you can't divide the tea. Li Qingzhao "Spread the Huanxi Sha, Sick Xiao Xiao and Two Sideburns".
At the beginning, Li Qingzhao was ill, and every summer she was prone to feel heat dampness and weakness of the spleen and stomach, in order to alleviate this symptom, she found that the effect of boiling water with white cardamom was very significant.
In the middle and late Song Dynasty, this drink created by Li Qingzhao actually spread from the people to the court, and even the emperor liked it very much. However, later the emperor also made an improvement on this "cooked water" and tried to use perilla to boil water.
It tastes refreshing, and even relieves stagnation in the chest, making people feel refreshed.
The drinks of the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties are complex and diverse
After the Yuan Dynasty, because of the regime established by the Mongols, dairy products occupied an important position in the drinks of the Yuan Dynasty.
After Kublai Khan unified the Central Plains, he underwent cultural reforms, but the drink culture of this period was still heavily influenced by Mongolian traditions.
In Mongolian tradition, dairy products are an important food, not only for food, but also for making various beverages such as milk tea, milk wine, etc.
In addition to dairy products, the Yuan Dynasty also had some other specialty drinks, such as "Araki wine", "Harahu wine" and so on. These wines were also precious for the Yuan court and the upper class to drink.
Compared with the Mongolians with a rough temperament, the drinks of the Ming and Qing dynasties were suddenly much more refined.
The people of this dynasty loved to make fruit juices, jams, and fruit teas.
The famous "Compendium of Materia Medica" in the Ming Dynasty recorded the production methods of a variety of fruit drinks, such as "orange peel decoction", "hawthorn honey", "persimmon frost tea" and so on.
Fruit tea not only has a good taste, but also has good medicinal value, and is believed to be able to clear away heat and detoxify, quench thirst, strengthen the stomach and eliminate appetite.
Foodies are not divided into dynasties, at this time someone had an idea, since the fruit can be made into juice, then the fresh melon and fruit can also be used, so the vegetable juice will shine on the stage.
In the Ming Dynasty's "Materia Medica", it was recorded that drinks were made with vegetables such as radish, winter melon, and cucumber.
These drinks have good effects such as clearing heat and detoxifying, diuresis and swelling, and vegetable drinks are even widely used to treat diseases.
It turns out that people's love for "little sweet water" is engraved in the genes, and fruit and vegetable juice alone is not enough, all kinds of artificial drinks have sprung up like mushrooms after a rain, and when it comes to this, I have to admire the imagination of the ancients.
Classic drinks such as "mung bean soup", "tofu brain" and "soy milk" are the products of the Ming and Qing dynasties.
These drinks are innovative in both the production process and the taste, so the life of the ancients is not as "miserable" as we imagined.
Their various drinks have the characteristics and flavors of their respective dynasties, and all of them also reflect the cultural characteristics and lifestyles of different historical periods.
Source: Fat Boy Entertainment said
Editor: Wang Na
Editor in charge: Niu Dong