Oktoberfest Celebrated with German Foods and Treats for All

“Feast is a special time in Selviergard in which the nobles sit at the same table as the workers of the field and enjoy time together.”  From The Chronicles of Selviergard

Barony of Selviergard, Oertha--An Autumn festival, popular in the lands of Germany, was celebrated by Selviergardians towards the end of October.  People from all over the Principality of Oertha were invited to share a feast to celebrate Fall with food, friendship, and celebration.  The event was a spectacular way to spend time with each other and to enjoy a wonderful array of food.

There was no opening court; since there was a small number of people that early in the day.  However, the Autocrat of the event, Lady Delphina de Grenada, opened with announcements on the activities planned for her Oktoberfest.

JoJo enjoys the fruit of her labor at the Barony of Selviergard’s Oktoberfest celebration.  Photograph by Halfdan Ozurrson.  October 29, 2016.

Bobbing for apples is a wonderful Fall activity, and one that many of the youth and young at heart enjoyed at this event.  The apples gracefully floated in the water waiting to be bobbed; and the Autocrat had a timer out to turn this activity into an exciting competition.  Out of all the people participating, it was Jojo who won with little more than one second to bob for her apple—easily the fastest time out of all the other competitors.

Throughout the event there was a game played—and it was quite popular with many of the youth.  The site token, a small decorated clip, was the prize for catching anybody saying the word “Halloween.”  One misspoken word and you could lose all the tokens that you had collected up to that point—and throughout the progress of the event the stakes were quite high.  Many people tried to trick the others into saying this word with varying degrees of success.  By the end of the day Viscount Fergus mac Thomais took the prize of a scented candle for playing this game skillfully.

People gathered together in the warm hall to discuss a variety of topics throughout the day.  From verisimilitude to fighting in the SCA and many things in between.  Tables were shared, or oftentimes groups would just congregate as stories were told, topics were discussed, and ideas were thrown about much to the enjoyment of all.

As the day gave way to evening and the sun began to sink low into the horizon it was time to prepare for a memorable German feast.

Mistress Margarita di Calvi and her daughter prepare a feast for the Barony of Selviergard’s Oktoberfest celebration.  Photograph by Halfdan Ozurrson.  October 29, 2016.

As is custom in the Barony of Selviergard, there was food for a grand feast for all to enjoy.  The menu, which included many if not all traditional German foods, was created by Mistress Margarita di Calvi who slaved away in the kitchen all day to bring a taste of Germany to the tables of those in attendance.  The menu consisted of four removes:  Pickles and Cheeses with side dishes of different mustards was first brought out for appetizers.  After that came the meals themselves; the first remove was bratwurst with potato pancakes and sauerkraut, the second remove was roulade and spaetzli with roasted root vegetables, and the dessert was a apfelkuchen; also known as an apple cake.

In a dinner court Baron Halfdan acknowledged and thanked the Autocrat of the event with a bronze ring which is his custom.  The Baron noted that Lady Delphina de Genada has worked several times as a co-autocrat and that he greatly looked forward to more events by her hand.  Additionally, Princess Dagmar the Red took the time to thank everybody for a wonderful time adding that she was quite pleased to be part of Oktoberfest.

Although the event was small when viewed against other Selviergardian activities, these types of events are a wonderful way to spend time with family and friends.  It gives time to enjoy the day, to relax and have fun without having to worry about a crazy and hectic schedule, and gives encouragement for people to get to know their neighbors a bit more.

The Selviergard Associated Press

Published in the December 2016 edition of The DragonTale

Event Date:  October 29, 2016