The Closet of Sir Kenelm Digby Knight OpenedDigby, Kenelm
History
The Closet of Sir Kenelm Digby Knight Opened
Digby, Kenelm
Cooking -- Early works to 1800; Digby, Kenelm, Sir, 1603-1665; Liquors; Wine and wine making -- Early works to 1800
Take a quart of honey, and mix it with a Gallon of Fountain-water, and work
it well four days together, four times a day; The fifth day put it over
the fire, and let it boil an hour, and scum it well. Then take the whites
of two Eggs, and beat them to a froth, and put it into the Liquor; stirring
it well, till the whites of Eggs have raised a froth of Scum; then take it
off, scumming the liquor clean. Then take a handful of Strawberry-leaves
and Violet-leaves together, with a little Sprig of Rosemary and two or
three little Sprigs of Spike; and so boil it again (with these herbs in it)
a quarter of an hour. Then take it off the fire, and when it is cold, put
it into a little barrel, and put into it half a spoonful of Ale-yest, and
let it work; which done, take one Nutmeg sliced, and twice as much Ginger
sliced, six Cloves bruised, and a little stick of Cinamon, and sow these
Spices in a little bag, and stop it well; and it will be fit for use within
a fortnight, and will last half a year. If you will have your Metheglin
stronger, put into it a greater quantity of honey.
MY LORD HOLLIS HYDROMEL
In four parts of Springwater dissolve one part of honey, or so much as the
Liquor will bear an Egge to the breadth of a Groat. Then boil it very well,
and that all the scum be taken away. He addeth nothing to it but a small
proportion of Ginger sliced: of which He putteth half to boil in the
Liquor, after all the scum is gone; and the other half He putteth into a
bag, and hangeth in the bung, when it is tunned. The Ginger must be very
little, not so much as to make the Liquor taste strongly of it, but to
quicken it. I should like to adde a little proportion of Rosemary, and a
greater of Sweet-bryar leaves, in the boiling. As also, to put into the
barrel a tost of white bread with mustard, to make it work. He puts nothing
to it; but his own strength in time makes it work of it self. It is good to
drink after a year.
A RECEIPT FOR WHITE METHEGLIN
Take to every quart of honey, 4, 5, or 6, quarts of water; boil it on a
good quick fire as long as any scum riseth; as it boils, put about half a
pint of water at a time very often, and scum it very well as it riseth; and
be sure to keep it up to the same height and quantity as at the first: Put
into it a little Rosemary, according to the quantity that you make, and
boil it half a quarter of an hour; scum it very well. You may put a little
Ginger into it, onely to give it a taste thereof, and let it have a little
walm of heat after it. Then take and put it into a Woodden vessel, (which
must be well scalded, least it taste of any thing) let it stand all night,
and the next morning strain it through a sieve of hair.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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