Happy Advent (tures)

Tell us your traditions (especially if apples are involved) 🍎🍏

As a palate cleanser from all this black friday stuff - what’s your favourite Christmas tradition? Fancy making a new apple-esque one?

As it’s officially December, it’s time to take a look at vaguely appley Christmassy goings on…

In the Garden of Eden (the place, not the Guns N’ Roses song) a fir tree decorated with apples aka “paradise tree” represents the Tree of Knowledge. They do love an apple in the bible. 

In Germany, they used to recreate the paradise tree by decorating fir trees with apples. Eventually, the tradition got upgraded as people swapped the apples for biscuits and other sweet treats. Then eventually, glass baubles were invented. In the mid-1800s Queen Victoria posed for a selfie (well, an engraving) by a tree covered in baubles and the trend spread. #Influencer 🎄

There’s a relatively new tradition in China where people give each other “Peace Apples” on Christmas Eve. As we know, apples are associated with health, abundance, and delicious cider (😉) but that’s not why they’re given as pressies. It’s literally just because of a pun. We approve!

“Christmas Eve” translates into Mandarin as “ping’an ye”. Which sounds a bit like the word for apple, “ping guo”. Flimsy link at best, but a multi-million dollar market was born. 

Traditions take root quickly; Peace Apples only started in the early 2000s. You can create your own random family tradish out of pretty much anything. 

Have you got any weird ones? We’d love to know - hit reply, and if you include a photo we might feature you on our socials. 

And if you don’t have a slightly oddball winter tradition, why not start one? The ancient ritual “Wassail” involves drinking spiced warm cider and pouring cider onto the roots of apple trees to wake up the cider apple trees and scare away baddies. If you can’t make it to our Wassail - or even if you can - you can create your own Wassail cider tradition at home with our Cider Mulling Kit. 

Traditions don’t have to be as weird and ‘elf and safety’ risky as a torchlit pagan ritual, though. It can be as simple as a chili at your neighbours’ house on Boxing Day or having Calippos instead of Christmas pud.

Last orders!

The last ordering date for Christmas delivery is Thursday 18th December. So get organised early(ish). 

Cheers

BN&B