Dapple Grey
Tartan of the Day
Jul 11
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Wassailing Days and Christmas Carolers!
"🎶 Here we come a-wassailing
Among the leaves so green;
Here we come a-wand'ring
So fair to be seen.
REFRAIN:
Love and joy come to you,
And to you your wassail too;
And God bless you and send you a Happy New Year
And God send you a Happy New Year.
~ Traditional
For those who like their tartans dark and toasty with the colours of nature, this deep, warmly spiced design takes its inspiration from a comforting bowl of apple-and-herb wassail. It feels perfectly suited to braving frosty air and joining a jubilant chorus of carols, its rich hues echoing warmth, spice, and good cheer in the heart of winter.
Wassailing itself is steeped in ancient tradition. Originally celebrated on Twelfth Night, it involved songs and toasts offered to cider apple trees, with the hopeful aim of ensuring a plentiful harvest in the coming season. Over time, the custom broadened, becoming associated with carolers who traveled from door to door, spreading festive melodies and seasonal goodwill in the weeks leading up to Christmas.
By Victorian times, wassailing had taken on an even more communal character. Bands of beggars and orphans would brave snowy streets, offering songs of cheer and fortunes foretold in exchange for a ladle from the communal wassail bowl, a penny, a pork pie, or simply a few moments by a welcoming hearth.
The wassail bowl itself was a convivial concoction—hot ale or beer infused with apples, fragrant spices, and sweet mead—robust enough to thaw frozen fingers and warm the throats of singers mid-song. So raise a cup and toast the season of Christmases past, present, and future. Fa la la la la, and Cheers! 🤎 ❤️ 💚 💙 💛 🥃 🍎 🍊 🍋 🎄
"Wassail! wassail! all over the town,
Our toast it is white and our ale it is brown;
Our bowl it is made of the white maple tree;
With the wassailing bowl, we'll drink unto thee."
Wassail is a spiced ale or mulled wine punch often associated with Yuletide and drunk from a 'wassailing bowl' on Christmas or Twelfth Night celebrations. The earliest versions were warmed mead – ale brewed with honey – into which roasted crab apples were dropped and burst to create a drink called 'lambswool'.
The drink later evolved into a mulled cider made with sugar, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg, topped with slices of toast as sops and drunk from a large communal bowl. Wassail bowls with highly decorated lids were made from wood, pottery or tin and often had many handles for shared drinking.
Modern recipes for Christmas wassail begin with a base of wine, fruit juice or mulled ale, sometimes with brandy or sherry, apples or oranges, and possibly call for beaten eggs to be tempered into the drink.
By designer Carol A.L. Martin, this tartan suggests yuletide decorations and the colors of a spicy Christmas punch.
For a rich and spicy lambswool wassail recipe made with Madeira, click the punch bowl!