This is a well-known story,
that has been told for several centuries, very often while sharing a good beer with companions. The sacrifice of the Eye of Odin became an allegory teaching how all good things require effort, will and sacrifice. This is a well-known story, but it is not the entire tale of this legendary moment.
Raising the cup to his lips,
Odin drank the water from Mimir's Well to the last drop. The last drop, which slipped along the lips of the god, trickling gently down his beard, remained suspended at the end of a hair of his chin for a moment which seemed an eternity, until the fateful moment when the drop of the Well of Wisdom, blessed with the kiss of the lips of the All-Father, rushed to the ground, where it should have been absorbed by the earth and returned to the Well. This is what would have happened, if it had not been for the cunning astuteness of Laf, an epicurean wanderer, who had seen a unique opportunity. The last drop fell from Odin's face high above and ended falling into a tiny bottle placed at just the right time, in the right place. A bottle too small to be seen, either by the god or the giant.
The sacrifice of the Eye of Odin, an allegory on the origin of the VIKA elixir
To grant the god Odin the privilege of drinking from the Well of Wisdom and of infused knowledge, the giant Mimir demanded of the All-Father that he sacrifice an eye. Odin agreed to the Well Keeper's condition and tore out his eye with his own hand. Demonstrating his desire to acquire knowledge of the past, present, and future, Odin lived out the remainder of his immortal existence with only one eye, but also with unparalleled wisdom.
waited until Odin and Mimir left the area to collect the prize for his effort. He did not want to be caught in his theft by the Keeper of the Well nor by the god who had just paid a dear price to drink from its water. Perched on the branch of a nearby tree, Huginn and Muninn, Odin's raven familiars, were the only ones to see the whole scene. They could have informed their master. They could have said something. But Odin had just lost an eye. They didn't want to bother him over such a small detail. And what bad could happen of a single lost drop?
Laf, immensely proud of his achievement,
A single drop of the Well of Wisdom
was all Laf needed to complete his greatest concoction. The master brewer had spent years developing it. All that was missing was one ingredient. Just one drop to achieve perfection. He only had one word to describe his effervescent elixir: VIKA!
Our wandering brewer
spent the rest of his long life traveling the different lands and worlds to make others discover the fruits of his labor and always continue to experiment concocting new varieties of his elixir. The inspirations, new ingredients and processes discovered on his journeys continued to transform and enrich his delicious drink.
He was not entirely alone in his travels however,
as the ravens Huginn and Muninn followed Laf from above and reported regularly to Odin. Because of course the god had known what had happened on the day he had sacrificed his eye. He had after all acquired infused knowledge. The god simply wanted to make sure that the traveler only had benevolent intentions. However, he could only encourage and support the brewer's journey. For discovery through travel was at the heart of the philosophy of the All-Father.
One day, when Laf
has judged that his elixir had reached a level of sublime perfection worthy of returning to the lips of a god, he will appear before Odin, ask forgiveness for his theft, and implore him to taste the delicious VIKA beer. Obviously, his hoppy drink was already perfect, and Odin enjoyed it regularly. Knowing the future, he knew Laf would return to him one day. Until then, like the two raven familiars, we invite you to follow Laf in his surreal and delicious adventures!
Thus, was born our VIKA beer.
A divine elixir with mythical origins!
