A Crazy Drink Called Virytas

Oh, Friends… Today’s post is a little challenging for me to share because the holidays haven’t been the same since we lost my sweet Mom-Mom four years ago. I keep expecting it to get easier every year, but I still can’t hear Nat King Cole without feeling the giant hole in my chest widening, to painfully vast to fake a smile long enough to make it out of the 1946 classic in one piece.

The Four of Us together on Christmas, 1995.

Mom-Mom was a tough cookie. A Navy wife and matriarch. She would pull pans right of the stove with her bare hands and when she was playfully angry, she would shake her fist at us with one knuckle raised, just as her mother had taught her. She was named after St. Joan of Arc and it was her strength that held us together as a family. No matter how hard things got, Mom-Mom was there to pull us all together. Her voice was the soundtrack to our lives. Her meals, and the stories shared around them, shaped my childhood. I am the woman I am today… because of her.

Every year around the holidays, she would make a Lithuanian Honey Liqueur that packed a serious punch. Mom-Mom swore that the drink had mystical healing powers and folklore claims it can ward off evil spirits – neither of which has been proven, obviously! What we do know is that Vititus (also spelled “virytas”) has been responsible for the vast majority of our hilarious holiday stories.

This recipe varies from family to family (often a guarded secret) and even our own Vititus recipe has changed slightly over the years. On Sunday, we made my grandmother’s recipe and today I’m sharing that with all of you.

Traditional Virytas: Mom-Mom’s Vititus Recipe

Ingredients:
– 1 Handle of Rye Whiskey (Mom-Mom used Pikesville Rye)
– 9 Cups Filtered Water
– 40 oz. Jar of Honey
– 2/3 Cup of Sugar
– 3 Whole Oranges
– 2 Whole Lemons
– 5 Cinnamon Sticks
– Estimated Seasonings: 1 or 2 tsp. cracked nutmeg, 3/4 jar of caraway seed and half a jar of crystallized ginger.
(I wish we knew exact amounts, but again… Mom-Mom never used an actual recipe!)

Directions:
1) Combine: water, cinnamon, oranges + lemons (juice & throw in spent halves), caraway seeds, nutmeg and ginger into a large pot.
2) Heat and Simmer for 20 minutes while stirring often to meld ingredients.
3) Remove from heat and strain spice water through a cheesecloth to remove all spices.
4) Add Honey (40 ounce jar) and 2/3 cup sugar to spice water.
5) In another pot, put 2 bottles of Rye Whiskey and heat up slowly.
6) Add spice water in slowly, while stirring until reaching desired taste.
7) Bottle, Serve, Enjoy!

“Everything is an approximate because you know Lithuanians do not use recipes.” – My Aunt Deb

It’s a family tradition and after toasting with it during the holidays – the bottle says in your cabinet on reserve for times when you’re sick. My grandmother always added a little Vititus to her tea when she was ill and swore it was the best way to heal a sore throat or cure a cold.

Last weekend, we decided to keep Mom-Mom’s memory alive by making Vititus together for the first time since her passing. There were a few tears, but a lot of laughter as my mom, sister, and I adapted her old recipe. I still miss her every time I hear “Chestnuts roasting on an open fire…” and I can’t help but get emotional when my grandfather still signs our cards from her… but I feel better knowing that her memory will live on through the stories, traditions, and recipes that we will carry on with each passing year.

It may be a crazy Lithuanian drink… but the smell of orange and cinnamon simmering on the stove immediately made me smile. And I can honestly say that it’s the first Christmas that felt “real” since the last one we all spent together!

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas!