Myths and Folklore of  Foods and Beverages Known As Aphrodisia 

 Aphrodisia – Yep, it means what you think it means….  A recent edition of Wine Enthusiast had an article about what and why people say about food and beverages and the art of making love.  With apologies to the author, I’m gonna share some info here.

 Apple –  OK, so it didn’t start out with the best of reputations.  Remember, Adam and Eve and the Snake, Flaming Sword, chased out of Eden….   The Latin word for apple comes from malum or bad.  Something changed however.  And,  by the time Ancient Greece rolled around, the apple was a symbol of sex.  The beautiful, athletic Atalanta vowed to marry the man who could beat her is a foot race.  Hippomenes (I’m not making these names up!) fell in love with Atalanta and ask Aphrodite for help.  The Goddess of Love gave him three golden apples and instructed him to throw them onto the track.  Atalanta got distracted and lost the race. 

 Artichoke – Often depicted as a symbol of the female sex because those darn Greeks told the story of Cinara.  Cinara was a nymph who was turned into a thorny flower by her lover’s jealous wife so that he could never touch her again.  Ah, the course of true love never runs straight and easy.  Think of the tasty surprise waiting for you to peel the layers away. 

 Asparagus – Can you believe it?  Yep, they push their way up, up through the earth with their heads and grow and grow.  So, the man who eats many asparagus…well, nuff said.

 Basil – From India to Italy, basil is a bold ingredient in many foods.  The brilliant, sharp flavor is a stimulant said to promote passion in those who eat it.  In Sicily, a woman who places a pot of basil in her window is inviting her lover to visit. 

 Chile – Chile is the correct spelling – chili is the Tex-Mex dish of ground beef, onions and red chile powder.  Hot peppers release endorphins to block pain and cause a sensation of pleasure.  A chile’s spicy heat, bright color and suggestive shape make them a popular aphrodisiac.  Familiar side effects after you eat one – sweating, blushing and a racing heart – reinforce the lovemaking association.

 Chocolate – Delicious, dark and delectable.  Chocolate contains small amounts of serotonin, the soothing chemical released by the body when we fall in love.  The calming, comforting feeling serotonin induces is similar to a lover’s arms wrapped tight around you.

 Garlic – Not just for vampires any more.  One considered a cure for impotency.  Do you think they rubbed it on or tied it on whole or what?  Garlic does contain antioxidants and essential oils with antibiotic affects.

 Honey – Not just because you drizzle it on and lick it off. Bee stings were thought to be tiny wounds from Cupid’s love spiked arrows.  A dab of honey on the wound sealed it and honey’s own antibiotic properties promoted quick healing including reduced swelling.

 Lemons – It became a symbol of eternal love and faithfulness in marriage because it blooms many times during a year.  That’s what the article said.  No other explanation.  Do you think they just threw that in to screw with us?  I mean if they’d told a story about a sour lemon caused a young nymph to pucker up and be kissed by her lover Acidopholus I’d go for it.  But, blooming a couple of times a year?  I’m missing something there….

 Oysters – All seafood was once considered aphrodisiacs because seafood was associated with the birth of Venus, Goddess of Love.  Ok, now get this – the phallus of the heavens fell from the sky and landed in the sea (the womb of Mother Earth).  So, this big phallus is standing around heaven minding it’s own business when it trips (??) and falls from the heavens into sea.  Poof, thousands of species of fish are created and the ocean births a daughter, Venus, by willing it to be so.  Venus arises from the ocean scantily clad in strategic seaweed and popping out of clam shell.  What more do your need? 

 Mushrooms and Truffles – Some mushrooms have mystical powers.  Remember the Hippies of the 1960 chewed mushrooms and spread love, joy, peace and happiness.  I suddenly feel like singing Kumbahya and swaying hand in hand with my brothers and sisters all over this land.   Truffles, on the other hand, have a distinct, powerful pungent perfume making them delicate and irresistible at the same time.  And, you’ve all heard the stories about female pigs being used in France to sniff out the truffles.  But, did you know it’s because the truffles smell like male pigs.

 Nuts – And the same to you, buddy!  The hard, protective shells are a symbol of longevity and marriage.  The almond, in particular, is associated with fertility because almond trees are among the first to bloom in the Spring each year.  Chestnuts (from the word ‘chaste’) symbolize virginity and feminine virtue because a second shell and a spiky casing protect them.

 Pasta and Breads – Anything made from grains are associated with Ceres, Goddess of Agriculture and Fertility.  Apparently, Fertility was a big thing back in Ancient Greece and Rome so they would work at convoluted logic on anything which might help.

 Pomegranate – With Pomegranate juice selling so well, alone and in mixtures with other juices, you know this had to be included.  Known as the ‘apple of love’, the Greeks made a special wine and peddled it as an aphrodisiac.  It is often associated with unity, friendship and brotherly love since it carries so many seeds packed together in small chambers.

 Meat – Rabbit is suggestive because to the ease with which it reproduces. 

 Saffron – the Queen of female aphrodisiacs!  Associated with female homosexuality because it’s named after Sappho, the Greek Poetess who was born on the isle of Lesbos.  It was believed to strengthen the uterus as well as stimulating the libido.

 Wine – Of course.  The ultimate love potion.  Bacchanalian rites and hedonistic cults used wine as the basis for their orgies.  The word “Vino” come directly from Venus and we all know about HER!  Today, we associate this seductive inebriant with moderation, good company, good health and, yes, a way to break down barriers while establishing a romantic connection.  How is that for polite language?