Eating Like Shakespeare

Curious about what Shakespeare had on his plate?

In a background article by the BBC, the role of food in Shakespeare’s time is described. The writer died four hundred years ago, and 2016 was declared ‘Shakespeare’s year’.

In the time Shakespeare lived, meat eaters were considered healthy people, unlike vegetarians. Bacon was only for people who performed heavy labour, because that way they could digest the meat properly. You mainly ate chicken if you were ill and wealthy, as this poultry was rather expensive. The government also introduced ‘fish days’ to encourage the consumption of fish and lower the price of meat. But these days were not popular in Protestant England; they reminded people of the Catholic past.

Biblical beer

Herzl Beer, a brewery in Jerusalem, brewed twenty litres of beer with a type of wheat that already existed two thousand years ago. Researchers from Tel Aviv University confirmed the origin of the wheat. What did the beer taste like? According to the brewers, you can taste a hint of honey and berries in the light beer with three per cent alcohol. Biblical stories say that Jesus mainly drank wine, but according to the Jewish Museum in Munich, he occasionally chose beer as well.

Cola bottles get a makeover

Worldwide, all Coca-Cola bottles and cans are getting a major makeover. The goal? The soft drink brand wants to create more unity by switching to the iconic red packaging. In this way, Coca-Cola hopes to boost sales, as they have fallen significantly due to the ‘healthy food trend’.

Sources: Munchies, Fox News, BBC
Image: Shutterstock