SITIN SAM'S SPICE

Episode 24 – Father Knows Best

Podcast

Podcast Summary:

“Anyway, I’ll Drink to That” is a Boozn Sam’s production, exploring the fun, quirky, and fascinating tales of drinks that define culture, history and the world. Every drink has a story to tell, and I’m going to tell it…as true as I can. Hosted by Sam, from Boozn Sam’s. Saddle up with a good cocktail and give me a few minutes of your time for a mystery surrounding a drink that changed the world.

Episode 24 Notes:

He came from France with a calling, and endured the bitter cold of winter, leaving behind a legacy of families and places throughout the Midwest that have withstood the test of time. This endless adventure, filled with near death experiences, war, and adventure was inspired by my friends at Bayfield Winery and Blue Ox Cider. 

Transcript of Podcast:

*This is the entire podcast episode in written form. Do not read if you want the audio version to be spoiled.

Jacques and his companions anchored their canoes on the south side of Lake Superior and crawled up the shore, their bodies wind whipped and numb from the freezing winter temps and brutal winds. It was times like these, when it was so cold his face was frozen and he couldn’t speak, that he wondered why he’d left France in the first place.

He would have been set there. He had been set there. Jacques was the third of six kids, born to Rose and Nicolas. A son born into the empire of wealthy merchants. It was almost enough to make him regret his decision to leave. But, the call of adventure was too loud. 

He was 29 when he made the long journey across the ocean from France to Canada. Settling in North America was all the rage at that time. It was a land of possibility, and this possibility made Jacques travel south out of Quebec until he reached the upper peninsula of Michigan. He smiled as he remembered that time in that part of Michigan fondly. He’d become a father there. A pang of sadness went through him, as he thought of the family he’d left behind to start on this new journey. That time in Michigan had been good to him.  

He’d raised a family. Built a settlement. Planted crops. Built barns. Even helped build a chapel. He had made something worth making.  

Until the pull of adventure tugged at him once more. It was with mixed feelings, part sadness and part excitement, that he put his canoe in Lake Superior and set a course further south a few months ago in August. He was 31 now and his time with the indigenous people of the area had been fruitful. They taught him many things. Including how to survive the harsh winter conditions of the upper midwest. 

But, even this might be more than he could handle. The ice flows even close to the shoreline threatened to destroy his canoe, especially when the freezing waves washed across his canoe or bucked him wildly about.

The cold and the wind destroyed his spirit and Jacques felt like half the man he was when he left only a few months prior. It was January now. Winter was apexing and greeting him with a cold, numbing slap to the face. 

There was no turning back. But, forward didn’t seem all that promising either. He could always stop where he was, but the land between was barren and dangerous. Jacques knew he wouldn’t last long there. 

So, when he pulled his boat on to the southern shore of Lake Superior, bundled up under hard, frozen, ice laden furs, his heart sank a little further down into his body when he found himself unable to light a fire. He prayed to God for help. But, his prayers were met with silence.

It was too wet. Too snowy. The wind was too fierce. There was nothing to do. So, he found a spot along the shore where the wind came through a little less fierce. Amongst a pile of boulders, next to a forest. The trees and the boulders help cut the wind a little. But, negative ten degrees is still negative ten degrees without the wind. 

His body shook from the cold and he pulled the furs a little closer around him, tucking his head deeper into them and trying to conserve ever ounce of body heat possible. 

The night’s sleep was fitful, and he woke often with shivering spasms. Finally, the sky lightened once more and he began the slow, painful process of moving his body, which ached from the canoeing and sleeping on hard ground. 

When he could move again, Jacques found his way to the canoes and met the others who were wordlessly loading their packs once more into the boats and getting read to travel across the water once more. 

Over night the water had frozen to the hulls of their canoes and he kicked at it to break to free. Then, with a hard heave, he shoved his frozen canoe back into the water and hopped in. 

They were off once more, traveling through the grueling conditions that threatened to kill them all. The snow was thicker today than the day before. Heavy, wet flakes that worked there way through his furs and into his skin. The worst part, though, was his hands. They were numb from gripping the oar of his canoe and never seemed to warm.

The day after that the weather was the same. The day after that, the weather was the same. It went on and on like that for months. 

Until, one day, he woke and found the sun shining. 

The spring sun once again graced the tundra of the midwest with its presence. After months of gray skies and skin piercing wind, the sun was a welcome sight. He smiled and turned his face toward the sun, letting the heat warm him.

Five months later he reached the indigenous people 500 miles south from where he’d started.

His family was now a distant memory, because when the year is 1669, you answer the greater calling when it shouts. And the shout was for Jacques to explore. He was born for it. He was also born to procreate. So, he started another family and did what he’d done prior. He planted crops. Built barns and farms. Made a life for himself once more, and, the whole time, his prior life remained with him. His prior family. Yet, he’d gone too far to go back to them. He was also happy where he was. That all changed when he woke up one morning to the smell of smoke. 

Day by day the smoke got closer. Next came the Ottawas on horseback in full dress with their war paint, drums sounding as they made their way through town. The Hurons were with them too. Also dressed in war paint, carrying spears and bows and war axes. They were going to fight the Lakota. And Jacques knew this was no longer a safe place for his new family. On one side of him was the Ottawa and Huron people and on the other was the Lakota. Caught in the middle was Jacques and his family. 

Jacques felt certain that at some point the fighting would spill over to them and the Lakota would tear through his home, murdering people and burning everything to the ground. He pleaded with the men, who, being men, wanted to stay and fight and defend their homes. But they wouldn’t listen. 

Finally, knowing he had to do something, Jacques collected up all the men, women, children and dogs that would go, and started a canoe trip across Lake Huron to a safer area. They left in the Spring and said goodbye to the area that still bears his name today, a name that gave us many other things too, including fruit. 

Jacques had learned his lesson the last time around and, unlike the last time, they couldn’t cling to the shores of Lake Huron like they had to the shores of Lake Superior. This trip was across the lake. 

They would need optimal conditions. They would die if a late season snow storm caught them off guard or if the freezing wind that the upper midwest of the United States is known for showed up.

After months of travel they saw people waiting for them on the shore. Ottawas. They’d arrived on the small island, a protected island. Isolated and much safer than the open land along the Northern side of Lake Huron where they’d come from prior. 

While there there few people living here now, the island, hundreds of years later, would explode as a popular tourist destination. People would come from all over the Midwest to visit. The city now here banned pretty much all motor vehicles. Sailing clubs would pop up. An annual art festival. Snowmobile riding in the winter time. The island would make television and movie appearances. And even ice cream. 

But, this was long before any of those things and this island… Mackinac Island was nothing more than a few indigenous inhabitants and a priest looking to spread the word of God. So, when Jacques arrived with his family there was no way the island was prepared to feed an entire family the size of which Jacques had brought. Jacques knew they would starve if they stayed. 

So, tired and exhausted, with winter imminent, they returned to their canoes and traveled West through open water once more. Through the tidal waves and ocean like conditions until they reached the western shore of Lake Huron. And it was here that Jacques finally kept his family. They were safe here. They flourished. And Jacques had that familiar itch of adventure return. 

At this time, two years later, Father Jacques had contributed much to the spread of religion and establishment of French colonies throughout Southern Canada and the Northern UP, Upper Peninsula of Michigan. His request for leave was granted and he set out with another French explorer chasing another adventure.

He’d heard of a route that would take them further South, deep south, and he wanted to see where it led. The expedition with Father Jacques and Louis Jolliet left in May of 1673. They’d found a route into a river system called the Mississippi River that the indigenous people had been using for thousands of years. 

And they ventured out, traveling across over 600,000 square miles of the United States, making their way through Wisconsin, on to Arkansas, and Mississippi before stopping 435 miles from the Gulf of Mexico. 

Late summer was upon them and the risk of encountering Spaniards or hostile indigenous people was too great. Jacques didn’t like it.

So they turned the canoes around and came all the way back those same river ways until they reached the southern part of Lake Michigan. They spent some time in the small village there, but ultimately Jacques wants to continue North, which they did. And they reached Green Bay, Wisconsin in early fall. 

Jacques, having achieved what no other frenchman at the time had achieved provided vital information to those that had financed and supported his exploration. The years that followed brought an influx of frenchman traveling down that same route, traveling to such places as Lacrosse, Wisconsin, the southern part of Lake Michigan, what grew into Chicago today, and even down to New Orleans.

Being a pioneer in locating and settling these areas might have been enough. But, that wasn’t even the greatest contribution Father Jacques made. It might have been his trips to Mackinac Island, a popular tourist destination today and home to some very famous fudge and ice cream.

Or, it may have been the schools that bear his name in Wisconsin still today. It could have been the border crossing city he founded in the UP of Michigan that is actually split in half, with part of it being in Canada and part on the United States. 

Or, the city named after him. The journals of his explorations he provided that sat unread and forgotten for 200 years.

Or, the name of his mom and the wealthy merchant family he came from. A legacy just as long and bright as his legacy. A legacy under the name of De La Salle, which formed several high schools through out the U.S. and a private college in Chicago. 

But, there was one more thing Fr. Jacques gave us. That was a grape. Also named after his last name. Like the schools. And the cities. 

A very cold hardy grape that thrives in the Midwest and produces some delicious new world wines, including one blended Rose at Bayfield Winery called Row 25.

So, let’s raise a glass of that Rose to a human who embodied all the spirit and possibility that exists within humans.

To Fr. Jacques Marquette.

and the grape called simply

Marquette

A catholic, French priest who immigrated to Canada and found his way to the tundra of Michigan, Wisconsin, and Illinois to start colonies, families, throughout the upper Midwest before embarking on a journey across the entire North to South central part of the United States. 

Anyway… I’ll drink to that.

Episode 23 – A Witch, Some Druids, and a Special Lady

Podcast

Podcast Summary:

“Anyway, I’ll Drink to That” is a Boozn Sam’s production, exploring the fun, quirky, and fascinating tales of drinks that define culture, history and the world. Every drink has a story to tell, and I’m going to tell it…as true as I can. Hosted by Sam, from Boozn Sam’s. Saddle up with a good cocktail and give me a few minutes of your time for a mystery surrounding a drink that changed the world.

Episode 23 Notes:

There was a lady, that was praised by many, worshipped by others, and demonized by some. But, as is often the case, powerful women, create powerful responses.

This is the incredible story of how a very special lady gave so much to the world, including her offspring, but received little in return. 

Transcript for Podcast Episode:

*This is the entire podcast episode in written form. Do not read if you want the audio version to be spoiled.

The lady approved of those that had come to pay her homage. It was right and fitting that they should. They came wearing long, brown robes, with hoods pulled over their white hair and beards, curly and long, flowing on top of the folds of their clothes.

Then they knelt and tossed back their hoods before they folded their arms. Finally, came the chanting. A prayer to her. An ask of her with a promise of what they’d give in return.

She was a tall lady and towered over them, rising to almost six feet. And the men knew how to pay reverence in a way deserving of such a lady. So, she granted them their wish and answered their prayers. That, was only fitting for a woman like this.

This was the fourth century BC and, at a time like this, it was a right and fitting promise by the druids, these wise, Gaelic priests. Answering their pleas, she would give them her gems, white, clustered jewels that almost glowed in the sunlight. 

They would extend their humbled hands and take them until she had no more to give. Then she would give them clothes too. They would need her clothes for the ceremony to follow. It was only right and fitting.  

When they were satisfied, and she was satisfied with the way they praised her, the druids pulled back their hoods and left. But, she knew they would return. They always returned for what she had to offer. 

Many years later, this special lady would offer her gems to others. Her clothes too, for the pour souls that needed protection against the elements and couldn’t afford any other form of protection. She was a giving lady. And in return, they cared for her with a reverence that seemed fitting only for Goddesses.

Yet, she was no Goddess. She was only a lady. But, at a time in history when the divine feminine was not often praised, and when it was, for only the ability to carry life, it was fitting and right that she should be praised for all that she was as a woman. And not just because she could reproduce.  

So, when the witches came seeking solace from her, she gathered them in her arms and granted them a sanctuary. For, she was a kind and giving woman who appreciated being respected. 

Others came too. Some not as nice as these. They attacked the lady and threatened her. Hurled insults her direction and cursed her. They were scared of her. Because a woman this striking was not common. 

So, they were afraid. And, as is often the way with people when they are afraid, they lashed out with aggression at what they didn’t understand. But, even these people only went so far. They refused to kill her. They knew that would be crossing a line that they could never come back from.

For, as inviting and kind as the lady was, she was also capable of turning against those that sought to abuse her. Her ways of evil, matched her ways of strength. And those that had been so foolish as to cross her, endured her wrath in ways that would change, or destroy, their lives forever.  

It was this wrathful side, that some considered borderline demonic. That caused some of power to even draw edicts against her. They banned others from visiting her. Labeled her wicked. Labeled those that gathered within her arms wicked.

Yet, the lady knew that this was only a sign of the times, and humans were fickle. Given enough time the pendulum would swing back the other direction ideologically. She knew this. Because it always had. She’d seen enough of humanity to know that when ideas went too far one way, they came back the other direction.

And she wasn’t wrong. Later in her life, people would worship her like a goddess once more. They would want to have her next to them as a sign of protection and good luck. They’d want to be under her arms.

Yet, even then they would treat her with a healthy respect. A respect befitting someone as powerful as she was. Because she was powerful. The ways she could heal others, and the gems she could bestow on others, showering them in wealth, were endless. 

She was a powerful lady, and it’s only right and fitting that a powerful lady receive the sort of reverence and respect people gave her. 

Things changed for her years later when commerce became a main driver of the world. And, the human quest for wealth, drove men to make her reproduce so they could take from her offspring too. 

Gone were the days of Druid worshippers. Witches no longer gathered under her arms. The men came. And they keep forcing her to reproduce. And they took her offspring and locked them up behind walls so they could monitor and attend to their needs. 

But, then, when the time came, her offspring would be robbed. They’d steal their gems and carry them away in large buckets into their warehouses, where they’d use those jewels to multiply their wealth even further. 

They cared for nothing but the jewels. And the lore. The reputation that she’d built over centuries. And that made her sad. 

But, there was nothing this lady could do now, for she had grown too special. She had lived up to her reputation. 

The stories had grown beyond her. 

The ways she could heal whooping cough.

Ward off evil spirits. 

Or bring the devil himself.

The way her perfume could bring people to their knees with its powerful intoxicating scent.

Not only was she a magnificent lady, but she was also a healer.

Still, none of the men that came for her now praised her. They saw her as a means to an end. 

Although this bothered her she kept giving her gifts and hoping that those who took from her would respect her enough to do her great honor. 

And they did. 

In other ways that weren’t the same as how the Druids praised her.

They didn’t get down on their knees in front of her body and praise her. 

They didn’t ask for permission to take gems from her and her offspring.

But, they did honor her still.

They steeped her gems in clear liquid and they took the infused liquid and turned it into something else entirely. 

They imparted her essence into the world, so that others, when they were enjoying the company of friends and those they cared about, could enjoy her too.

They gave this special lady a reach she’d never had before.

And, while she had no way to turn back time and return to how things were before the men arrived and took what they wanted from her, she did now have the gift of having her essence all over the world.

And that was fitting, even if it wasn’t right. 

But, she knew the way of the world, and knew the world wasn’t always fair. 

This was one of those instances. 

But, in this unfairness, she sought to correct it via a slight circumvention. She took one of her most powerful traits, her smell and the way she tasted.

The way she could impart so much sensory load into such a small gem, and used that to tease the taste buds of so many with flavors of honeysuckle and pear.

And that was how this special lady went through the ages, at times praised for her body and her gems, her flowers, 

and other times, like during the Roman Empire, hated for her wood, which was believed to contain the devil’s essence itself.

Until she reached a time when she was planted over and over again in large groves, and her offspring were harvested by hand in the spring for their large bunches of white flowers.

Which were soaked in liquor and infused.

…

Today, each bottle takes up to 1,000 blossoms from her family. 

The finished product is clear with a light tinge that looks like the color of watered down honey

And it’s served in all sorts of drinks, adding a delicious floral hint.

This tree, the elder tree, has a long history, and many uses for the elderflowers produced.

In this use case, we’re talking about 

St. Germain

An Elderflower Liqueur. 

Although elderflower liqueur has been used by everyone from the Druids to Witches, 

It is St. Germain which has perfected the presentation and taste of Elderflower Liqueur in their St. Germain Elderflower Liqueur.

And the elder tree, also referred to as the special lady, has fulfilled it’s end of that  ancient Druid prayer:

“Lady Ellhorn, give me thy wood, and I will give thee some of mine when it grows in the forest”

Anyway… I’ll drink to that.