A Fun Valentine Date for the History Buff

Phrygian Bronze Pots (Photo credit: voyageAnatolia.blogspot.com)

 I'll admit it....I'm a bit of a history nerd. Always have been one, always will be one.

The costume box at my childhood home was in constant use...my favorite thing to do as a child was to dress up as a famous person and attempt to re-live their lives. I often found interesting people while flipping through our Encyclopedia. Remember those?

If you are a bit of a history nerd too....then I have the perfect cheap date night.

How about drinking some beer from a 9,000 year-old recipe? Dogfish Head has been brewing beer from some seriously old recipes for over a decade now. Their first foray into the world of "Ancient Ales" began when the company teamed up with a molecular archeologist to recreate what was drank at the funeral of King Midas.

When that proved to be a success, they moved onto ancient China (that's where the 9,000 year-old recipe comes into play).

My husband is the beer drinker in the family but even I got excited when I read about Theobroma. Chocolate???? Yes, please. (Check out the man behind the science).

So, what has that got to do with a "cheap Valentine date night?" My idea is to spend an evening preparing and eating a meal around whatever historic brew catches your eye.

How fun would it be to do a little research and pair an ancient ale with an ancient meal? Seriously fun.

Last Valentine's Day... Papa Bear and I drank Midas Touch while devouring a lamb and lentil stew (supposedly that was the meal consumed by all the mourners at King Mida's tomb). We ate the stew and some naan (also believed to have been eaten at the funeral feast).

The meal was a success! The beer was good (I'm not even a beer drinker) and the meal went perfectly with our beverage of choice.

We had such a blast, we'll planning on doing it again this Valentine's Day. This time we are thinking of going Italian with "Dogfish's latest Ancient Ale " Birra Etrusca Bronze Ale. Italy isn't just about the wines. I'll have a sip or two and tell you what I think.

Here are some of my ideas of excellent beer and meal combos...

Theobroma would work well with turkey and mole verde (and a honeyed yucca dessert).


Sah'tea would be nice with some pea soup, some Finnish meatballs and rye bread (and pancakes with jam for dessert).


Chateau Jiahu could be paired with any of these recipes.


The possibilities are endless. It's also a fun family night (no need to let adults have all the fun... although, obviously, the adults would be the ones partaking in the inspiration behind the meal). Find some music and games to play (maybe even a costume or two, if your kids enjoy dressing up) and you are good to go...

Do any of those meals sound good to you?