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Kyivan Rus Revival · Medovukha

Medovukha (Kyivan Honey Mead)

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Medieval brides and grooms in Kyivan Rus' were expected to keep drinking weak medovukha together for a full month after their wedding — a custom some trace the origin of the word 'honeymoon' back to.

Medovukha is a lightly fizzy, low-alcohol mead made by fermenting honey and water, sometimes with added hops, cloves, or cinnamon. In Kyiv it's served warm from mugs at winter markets, or lightly chilled in summer, with a smooth sweetness and a gentle kick.

Why it's made this way: Mead predates distilled spirits in this part of the world by centuries, and Kyiv — capital of the medieval Kyivan Rus' state where the drink flourished at every feast — remains its most historically resonant home.
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