Spruce Beer

Spruce beer is a beverage flavored with the buds, needles, or essence of spruce trees. Spruce beer can refer to either alcoholic or non-alcoholic beverages.

A number of flavors are associated with spruce-flavored beverages, ranging from floral, citrusy, and fruity to cola-like flavors to resinous and piney. This diversity in flavor likely comes from the choice of spruce species, the season in which the needles are harvested, and the manner of preparation.

Using evergreen needles to create beverages originated with the Indigenous peoples of North America who used the drink as a cure for scurvy during the winter months when fresh fruits were not available. It may also have been brewed in Scandinavia prior to European contact with the Americas, but French and British explorers were ignorant of its use as a anti-scurvy treatment when they arrived in North America. The fresh shoots of many spruces and pines are a natural source of vitamin C. European sailors adopted the practise and spread it across the world.