House Malkinius Serving Guidelines

• There is no "Servery", just storage areas at the back of the room and a staging counter in front of them.
• There is no ice available and no cold room.
• Wine comes in bottles or amphorae, not in botas. A bota can be filled from a bottle using a funnel for practice in serving from a bota. Several botas are hung on the side of the fireplace next to the Paga pot. These botas should only be used for Paga. Wine botas are hung from the left side of the shelves with serving dishes.
• Paga is in the pot, not in botas. Use a pitcher or a ladle. If you fill a bota, be certain not to mix wine and paga and rinse the bota after use. Do not try to heat the botas. Paga should be heated in a metal pot in the fireplace. Hot Paga should be ladled directly into a wood or ceramic bowl. Paga is brought to the place of service in pitchers or bowls. Small pitchers for this use are on the shelves under the paga pot.
• Partially used bottles of wine should be returned to the staging table. Check there first when serving wine and finish an open bottle before uncorking a new one.
• Several corkscrews are kept on thongs on the wine rack. If removed, return them there. The one on the staging counter is not to be removed from that location.
• Drinking vessels are on the shelves to the left of the wine. Most are ceramic, glass, and stoneware. There are a number of metal goblets and cups and a few of wood. A few drinking horns of various sizes are on the lowest shelf.
• Plates are usually ceramic or metal, but may be of wood. Bowls can be of wood, metal or ceramic. Trenchers for use as plates and serving trays are made of wood and stored under the staging table.
• Most items are plain or simply decorated, mostly in lines or geometrics. The ceramic vessels will tend to have scenes of battle, the hunt, the capture of women, or the enjoyment of food and beverage. There are no vessels made of gold or silver or studded with gems available for use.
• The staging table contains many useful items. It is open on the side facing the wine shelves with shelves down both the left and right sides and larger open areas in the middle.
• Spoons and eating tines are in the upper right shelf of the staging counter. A knife for cutting is hung on a chain on the back, left side of the staging table. Use it when something needs to be cut.
• If you empty the pot of Black Wine, make more! Beans are in a box on the second shelf from the top in the right side in the staging table along with a hand crank grinder. The two sugars and powdered Bosk milk are also on this shelf.
• Woven rep-cloth hand protectors are hung on the right side of the fireplace. Use them for hot items.
• A broom and cleaning supplies are kept to the right of the fireplace in the corner next to the firewood.
• There is no sink, but a small basin of water is to be kept filled under the center of the staging counter for quick rinsing of items. Another basin for the storing of soiled items is next to it. A large bota of water hangs on the left side of the staging table.
• If you do not know where something is, think! If it fits with what has been described, where would the logical place to be to have stored it? If all else fails, check the staging counter. If something is needed and not provided, contact the Master of the House, Malkinius. Provisions will be made for providing what is needed.

Revised 17/09/99