Even though North Americans are in love with strawberries, it is Wepion, Belgium, that declares itself the strawberry capital of the world having grown the fruit for about 150 years now. They even make a local beer from the luscious fruit known as wepionaise (no relation to mayonnaise which comes from another time and place). If that isn’t noteworthy enough, consider that world’s only museum dedicated to this luscious fruit that belongs to the local family is also located in good old Wepion.

More than 90% of Americans admit to enjoying strawberries and throughout history, the strawberry has enjoyed a checkered career, having been used as everything from an aphrodisiac to a good luck charm. (In some cases, isn’t that the same thing?) The ancient Romans used the juice and the pulp of strawberries as a cure-all for throat infections, kidney stones, gout and even bad breath. Some country dwellers in Bavaria still practice the Spring ritual of tying a small basket of wild strawberries to the horns of their cattle, in the belief that elves favoring the fruit would grant them healthy calves and a good milk yield. (You gotta watch those elves, though. Don’t believe in them too much!)

And then there were those who believed that strawberries were good for the skin, notably Madame Talien, a well-known figure during the reign of Napoleon. She was known to bather in the juice and needed as much as 22 pounds of strawberries to fill the tub!

Don’t worry about bathing or throat infections. Throw a few on top of some ice cream and sit back and enjoy. Who cares what anyone else ever did with them!

Happy strawberries everybody!