Sbiten

Sbiten is an old East Slavic hot drink of water and honey simmered with warming spices and, historically, medicinal herbs, served steaming in the cold months. Dark amber to purple-brown, sweet and aromatic with ginger, cinnamon, cloves and mint, it was the everyday winter beverage of Russia, Ukraine and Belarus for centuries before tea and coffee took its place. It is normally non-alcoholic, though some versions replace the water with red wine to make a mulled, alcoholic drink. Once sold piping hot on the street by vendors called sbitenshchiks, it is enjoying a modern revival.