Ralvado Cider

"Let us all, rich and poor, masculine and feminine, old and young, well-read and illiterate, fill our bellies with the sweet nectar of the Ralvado apple." - The Unknown Orator, Carmen Agricolae

Ralvado cider (sometimes referred to simply as "Ralva" was a type of alcoholic drink popular in the Western Commons, especially among the Trebai.

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The cider was made using the sweet Ralvado apple, which made it unique from other ciders that generally used more bitter fruits. The Ralvado apple created a unique flavor when fermented into the final product.   The drink superceded virtually every other type of alcohol in the Western Commons, even beating out imported Daphnea wine as the favorite drink of the Trebai. Ralvado cider was so popular that several lords attempted to ban it at various points because of the drunkenness it would incur.   Nobility and commoners alike drank Ralvado cider. The drink could be found at virtually every tavern across the Western Commons, and was available at locations across Beurum. Wealthier individuals often enjoyed Ralvado cider garnished with various fruits and greenery. Arqu and Daphnea individuals often mixed the drink with water or white wine before consuming. Makovai, Red Makovai, and Sverden manufacturers were known to quadruple-distill the drink, often resulting in an alcohol content around forty or forty-five percent. Both of these techniques were generally frowned upon by the Trebai.   Manufacturers of the drink were located most heavily among the Trebai. In the First and Second Era, the task was delegated chiefly to monasteries dedicated to local deities of festivity. These monasteries often became extremely wealthy, ceasing to partake in most religious activity and focusing on brewing. As the power of the Order of the Wanderers declined in later years, Ralvado cider production began to fall into the hands of private companies more and more often. By the Fifth Era, very few monasteries continued to produce the drink, though it was said that monks made the highest quality Ralvado cider.   In the First and Fourth Eras, cults dedicated to Ralvado Primus, a supposed God of Ralvado Cider, briefly arose. In both cases, the cult members died of alcohol poisoning.