Part 1
DRINKS OF THE WORLD
BY JAMES MEW, Author of “Types from Spanish Story,” &c., &c., AND JOHN ASHTON, Author of “Social Life in the Reign of Queen Anne,” &c., &c.
_ONE HUNDRED ILLUSTRATIONS._
1892.
_LONDON:_ _The Leadenhall Press, 50, Leadenhall Street, E.C. Simpkin, Marshall, Hamilton, Kent & Co., Ltd._
_NEW YORK: Scribner & Welford._
* * * * *
“Ingeniosa Sitis.”—_Martial, Epig._ xiv. 117.
“J’y ai songé comme un autre, et je suis tenté de mettre l’appétence des liqueurs fermentées, qui n’est pas connue des animaux, à côté de l’inquiétude de l’avenir, qui leur est étrangère, et de les regarder l’une et l’autre comme des attributs distinctifs du chef-d’œuvre de la dernière révolution sublunaire.”—_Brillat-Savarin, Physiologie du Goût, Medit._ 9.
“Ac si quis diligenter reputet, in nulla parte operosior vita est, ceu non saluberrimum ad potum aquæ liquorem natura dederit, quo cætera omnia animantia utuntur.”—_Pliny, Nat. Hist._ xiv. 28.
“Wine that maketh glad the heart of man.”—_Ps._ civ. 15.
INDEX.
Absinthe, 162-166
Adulteration of Beer, 199
Aërated Drinks, 324 Waters, Introduction of, 332
African Beers, 200 Wines, 58
Aix-la-Chapelle Council Decree, 158
Aizen, 355
Alcohol in Wine, 53 Effects on different Races, 51 Origin of the word, 116
Alcoholic strength of Gin, 140
Ale Conners, 200-220 Syllabub, 335 and Wine drinkers, social difference in, 93 Early mention of, 39 Origin of the word, 196 Various, 226
American Beers, 201 Drinks, 180 Terms, explanation of, 180-181 Wines, 59
Aminean Wine, 26
Analysis of Tea, 246
Anglo-Saxon Liquors, 44
Animals’ Blood, 355
Anisette, 165
Aqua Vite Composita recipe, 120 Early esteem of, 117
Arrack, 113, 343
Araffer, 359
Artificial Wines, 157
Assur-ba-ni-pal’s List of Wines, 19
Assyrian Wines, 18
Athenæus on Egyptian Wines, 15
Athol-brose, 148
Auld Man’s Milk, 185
Augustus’ favourite Drink, 30
Australian Wines, 60
Austrian Beers, 202
Bacon’s value of Cider, 111
Baga Wine, 17
Ballston Waters, 353
Barbot’s description of Kola, 296
Barley Wine, 198
Bastard Wine, 48
Bavarian Beers, 202
Beer, 49 Adulteration of, 199 Antiquity of, 197 Belgian, 202 English, The Metropolis of, 219 English, Popularity of, 207 Egyptian, 16 Manufacture of, 195-196 Origin of the word, 196 The Inventor of, 197 Various, 226
Beowulf, 37, 38, 45
Besdon, 360
Biliousness, Liqueur Specific for, 176
Black Jack Jug, 213
Bon Gaultier Ballads, 149
Bordeaux Wines, 69
Borneo Beers, 203
Bottled Beer, origin of, 219
Bottling, Italian mode of, 97
Brandy, 115 German Legend, 115 Origin of the name, 123 and Port, 361
Braket, 352
Brewers’ Company, 220
Brick Tea, 243
Bull, 359
Burgundy, 80
Burns, Robert, 148
Burton (Robert) and Coffee, 306
Burton-on-Trent, 219
Burton Brewery, early mention of, 209
Cæcuban Wine, 30
Caffeine, 317
Capnian Wine, 26
Canaries Wines, 62
Caravan Tea, 243
Cassis, 166, 175
Catherine de Medicis, 164
Cattia Edulis, 298
Ceylon Tea, 243
Champagne Country, The, 64
Champagne Cyder, 328
Champagne Manufacture, 65
Chemicals used in non-alcoholic Drinks, 329
Chinese Beers, 204 Tea, Substitutes for, 298 Tea Trade, 243 Natural Beverage, 237
Chocolate, 323
Cider, 45, 110 The finest, where made, 113
Claret, 69
Clergy Drinking, 46
Cobbler, The, 180, 181
Coca, 279 Cultivation of, 291 Early mention of, 280 Leaf, Medicinal qualities, 294
Cocaine, 295
Cocks’ Wines of Bordeaux, 75
Cocktail, 181
Cocoa, 320 Substitute, 323 Tax, 322
Cocoa, Its Manufacture, 321 Where grown, 320
Coffee, 303 Adulteration, 319 Legend about, 304, 305 Species of, 316, 319 Prosecution for the Sale of, 309 Value of different Species, 316 Its Growth, 303, 304 Its Medicinal qualities, 308 How to make, 318 Where most drunk, 303
Coffee-Leaf Tea, 300
Coffee and Liqueur, 159
Coffee Houses, a Poem on, 312 Rules and Orders of, 311 Popularity of, 309 The first, 306
Columella’s Wine Receipt, 31
Continental Liqueurs, 165
Cooked Wine, 157
_Cordial Makers’ Guide_, 167
Cordials (Non-Alcoholic), 331
Cornish Drink, 124
Corsican Wines, 82
Cowley’s Poem on Cuca, 288
Cow’s Milk, Formula for Fermenting, 341
Cream Syrup, 330
Crème de Noyau, 175
Croker’s Irishman and Whiskey, 144
Crusta, The, 181
Cuca, 279
Curaçoa, 165, 177
Curious Records, 132
Cuttach, 20
Danish Drinking Vessels, 49
Dantzig Liqueurs, 171
Date Coffee, 319
Definition of Wine, 52
Distilling Brandy, Mode of, 126
Drinking Cups, 49 Mode of Keeping, 34 Health, Origin of, 33 Horns, 41 Vessels, 213-214-216
Drinks, Pliny’s List of, 33
Drunkards, Punishment of, 51
Drunkenness, Common Cause of, 132 Cure for, 298
Duty on Gin, 133
Eau Clairette de Framboises, 176 Chamberri, 177 de Cerises, 176
Ecbolada, 16
Egg-nogg, 185
Egyptian Process of Wine Making, 14
Egyptians’ Early Use of Wine, 13, 16
Eichhoff, 156
Elixir, Derivation of, 166
English National Drink, 207 Wines, 62
Falernian Wine, 31
Fall of Madame Geneva, 134
Fathers of Brandies, 160
Fenkål, 361
Fermenting Cow’s Milk, 341
Ferrintosh, 148
Flannel, 182
Flip, 181
“Food of the Gods”, 320
Francatelli’s Service of Wine, 55 on Gin Sling, 188
French Beers, 228 Liqueurs, 172 Wines, 64
Fruit Syrups, 330
Garapa, 360
Garway’s Tea Advertisement, 253
Garoe, 349
Gartmore Estate Tea, Sale of, 244
Galazyene, 340
Gallebodde Estate Tea, Sale of, 244
Ganges Water, 350
Generous Wines, 57
Geneva (Gin), 128, 130
Gerard and the Use of Cider, 111
German Beers, 228 Liqueurs, 70 Wines, 83
Ghee, 354
Gill-house, 130
Gin, 128 Lane, 138 Sling, 140, 188 Alcoholic Strength of, 140
Ginger Ale, 327
Gingerade, 326
Ginger Beer, 324 Recipes (old & new fashions), 324-325
Glenlivet, 149
Goethe’s Opinion of Wines, 89
Gongonha, 277
Gout, Accredited Agent, 104
Grecian Wines, 26, 90 Dessert Wines, 32 Process of Wine Making, 27
Gregory of Tours, 157
Greybeard Jug, 216
Grieve (Dr. J.) and Koumiss, 339
Guru, 297
Hanway’s Essay on Tea, 266
Harrison’s (Gen.) Favourite Beverage, 185
Haynau (Gen.) & Brewer’s Draymen, 225
Heather Beer, 227
Hebrews and Wines, 22
Heidelberg Tun, 83
Helbon, The Wine of, 18
Herb Wine, 157
Hervey (Lord) and Drunkenness, 132
Hippocras, 158
Hippocrates and the Virtue of Wines, 33
Hittites and Wines, 20
Hock, 85
Hogarth’s Gin Lane, 138
Holy Tree, The, 349-350
Homer’s Wine of Thrace, &c., 25
Hunding, King, Death of, 48
Hungarian Wines, 93
Hydromel, 48, 158
Hypoteques, 177
Indian Beers, 231 Tea, 245
Irish Whiskey, 146
Italian Mode of Bottling, 97 Wines, 94
Japanese Beers, 232
Jekyll, Sir Joseph, 133
Jerry Thomas, 180
Jewish Prayers respecting Wine, 345
Johnson (Dr.) on Tea, 267 The Gin Act, 137 Different Liquors, 124-267
Julep, 181-182
Kef, 355
Kirsch, 178
Kola, 296
Koumiss, 336-355 Its Curative Properties, 339 Its Manufacture, 341-342
Kümmel, 165-174
Kvas, 112
Ladakh Beer, 360
Ladies’ Tippling, 121
Lamb Wine, 356
Lapps, The Common Drink of, 360
L’Eau Clairette de Groseilles, 176 Grenade, 177 Coings, 177
Leather Bottel, The, 214
Leake’s Description of Grecian Wines, 93
Leban, 355
Lemonade, 327
Liqueurs, 156 (Non-Alcoholic), 331
_Liqueur Makers’ Guide_, 167
Lovage Receipt, 168
Madeira Wines, 97
Mahogany Drink, 124
Maimonides, 347
Makasso, 297
Malmsey Wine, 100
Maraschino, 175
Markham on the Coca Leaf, 291
Marryatt, Capt., and Mint Julep, 182
Maté, 272 Production of, 273
Maturing Spirits, New Process, 151
Mead, 41-48
Mead-hall, 40
Mead-horns, 41
Medicinal Quality of Tea, 255
Médoc Wines, 72
Melo-cacti, 351
Methylated Spirits, 362
Metropolis of English Beer, 219
Milk, 334, 354 Beer, 355 As a Beverage, Disadvantages of, 334
Mineral Waters, 331
Mint Julep, 183
Misson on Coffee Houses, 310
Monastical Liqueurs, 160
Montaigne, 159
_Moonshine_ on American Drinks, 193
Morat, 45-158
Morewood and Birch Wine, 63
Motteux’s Poem in praise of Tea, 264
Mulder, Professor, 54
Mulls, 181-183
Murrey, 158
Murrhine Cups, 34
Mushroom Drink, 351
Nantz, 123
Negus, 181-185
Nile Water, 350
Nogg, 181-185
Non-Alcoholic Cordials & Liqueurs, 331
Northern Love of Drinking, 47-50
Noyau, 175
Olaus Magnus, 47
Old Falernian, 156
Old Tom, Origin of, 141
Ombulbul, 359
Omeire, 358
Oporto Wine Co., 99
Osiris, 197
Paraguay Tea, 272
Parfait Amour, 177
Pepys, 209-260
Pereira, 169
Perry, 114
Persian Wines, 97
Perlin’s description of English society, 209
Peter’s Pence, 162
Pigment, 45, 158
Pliny’s List of Drinks, 33-197-349-353
Poem on Tea, 261
Polo (Marco), 339-355-356-357
Pombe, 361
Pomeranzen, 178
Pope, 129-130
Popularity of Tea, 237-238
Populo, 164
Port Wines, 99-100
Portuguese Wines, 99
Private Brewing, 209
Procope, 175
Psithian Wine, 26
Ptisana, 351
Pulque, 359
Pulteney’s Duty on Gin, 133
Punch, 181-185-187
Punishment of Drunkards, 51
Pusey Horn, The, 42
Raspail, 178
Ratafia, 166-175-176
Recipes (Drinks):— A Yard of Flannel, 190 Archbishop, 192 Black Stripe, 193 Blue Blazer, 192 Bimbo Punch, 191 Bishop, 192 Bottled Velvet, 191 Champagne Cyder, 328 Cardinal, 192 Ginger Ale, 327 Gingerade, 326 Ginger Beer, 324-325 Lemonade, 327 Locomotive, 192 Pope, 192 Pousse l’Amour, 192 Rumfustian, 191 Sleeper, 191 Stone Fence, 191 White Tiger’s Milk, 190
Recipes (Liqueurs):— Amiable Vainqueur, 173 Eau Aerienne, 172 d’Amour, 170 de Pucelle, 171 de Scubac, 173 de Sultane Zoraide, 170 de Yalpa, 170 Divine, 171 Miraculeuse, 171 Nuptiale, 170 Elixir de Garus, 173 Guignolet d’Angers, 173 Huile des Jeunes Mariés, 173 Vespetro, 172
Recipe for Cream Syrup, 330 Fermenting Cow’s Milk, 341
Redding, Cyrus, 60-83-85-94-107
Redi’s _Bacco in Toscana_, 95
Reis’ Classification of Wines, 56
Reland, 55
Rhine Wines, 83
Rhodes, Father, on Tay, 249
Roman Wines, 30-32
Roots’ Cuca Cocoa, 293
Rosee’s Handbill on Coffee, 307
Rossolio, 164
Roussillon, 81
Rubruquis and Koumiss, 339 and Rice Wine, 357
Rice Wine, 357
Rules & Orders of the Coffee House, 311
Rum, 153
Russian Beers, 233 Wines, 104
Sabzi, 355
Sacred Wine Tree, 356
St. Vincent and the Holy Tree, 349, 350
Saguer, 357
Samchou, 361
Sangaree, 181, 188
Saprian Wine, 26
Saratoga Water, 354
Säure, 355
Sbitena, 358
Scandal and the Tea Table, 263
Schiedam, 139
Scotch Whiskey, 147 Earliest Account of, 148
Sea Water Wine, 349
Setine Wine, 30
Shandy-gaff, 324
Sherries, 106
Shrub, 181, 188
Sicilian Wines, 105
Silent Spirit, 151, 154
Sir John Barleycorn, 210
Slemp, 336
Sling, 181, 188
Sloe Poison, 271
Small Still Whiskey, 150
Smash, 181, 189
Social difference in Ale & Wine drinkers, 39
Soda Water, 332
Spanish Wines, 106
Sparkling Wines, 57
Spirit Beading, 167
Spruce Beer, 233
“Still Room”, 119
Strabo, 55
Substitutes for Chinese Tea, 298
Surrentine Wine, 31
Swedish Beers, 233 Drinking Vessels, 49
Swiss Wines, 108
Syllabub, 335
Syra, 355
Syrups, List of, 330
Table Wines, 56
Taidge, 360
Tartary Beers, 234
_Tatler_, The, 262
Tay, 250
Tea Advertisement, Garway’s, 253
Tea, 237 Duty, 238 Houses, 237 Statistics, 245 Trade, Centre of, 238 Plant, Growth of, 241 Value in time of Queen Anne, 262 Analysis of, 246 Earliest mention of, 248, 249 Early Duty on, 253 High Prices for, 244, 245 How to Make, 268 Introduction to England, 253, 260 Largest Consumers of, 239 Legendary Origin of, 239 Medicinal Qualities of, 255 Poems on, 261-263-264-265 The Finest, 243 When First Used, 240 Where Grown, 239
Teas, Various, 242
Thales, 348
The Brown Jug, 216
Theine, 295, 296
Theobromine, 322
Thudicum, Dr., 150
Toak, 359
Toast Water, 351
Toby Philpot, 216
Toddy, 189
Tokay Wine, 94
Toupare, 359
Trade Rum, 154
Transition Wines, 57
Tree Water, 349
Tschudi on the Cuca Plant, 289
Ulph’s Horn, 43
Usquebath, Recipe for, 146
Varieties of Wines, 53
Vega’s Description of Cuca, 282
Vermuth, 178
Village Ale-house, The, 225
Villeneuve, 161-163-164
Vine, Cultivation of, 39-99
Vine’s Treatise on Home-made Wines, 62
Vinegar, 351
Vizitelly and White Wines, 76
Vontaca, 359
Waller’s Poem on Tea, 261
Walnut Liquor, 357
Walpole, Sir Robert, 133
Ward, Edward, and Ladies’ Drinking, 122
Ward’s Dialogue: Claret & Darby Ale, 212
Warm Water, 354
Wassail Song, 206
Water, 348
Water Melon Drink, 358
Water of Life, 144
Whiskey, 144 Distillation, 146 Manufacture, 145 Maturing, 151 Duty on, 149
Whistling Shop, 143
White Ratafias, 177
White Wines of the Médoc District, 75
Wine Making by Greeks & Romans, 27 Vessels, 24 Alcohol in, 53 Definition of, 52 Distinguishing Qualities, 52 Origin of, 54 Oldest Records of, 13 Egyptian Process of, 14 Varieties of, 53 and Beer, Merits of, 197
Wines, Assyrian, 18 Francatelli’s Service of, 55 Goethe’s Opinion of, 89 Reis’ Classification of, 56
Wolff’s Description of Kirsch, 178
Women’s Tears, 347
Youourt, 355
Ywera, 358
Zythum, 16
Introduction.
From the Cradle to the Grave we need DRINK, and we have not far to look for the reason, when we consider that at least seventy per cent. of the human body is composed of water, to compensate the perpetual waste of which, a fresh supply is, of course, absolutely necessary. This is taken with our food (all solid nutriment containing some water), and by the drink we consume. But, as the largest constituent part of the body is fluid, so, naturally, its waste is larger than that of the solid; this fluid waste being enormous. Besides the natural losses, every breath we exhale is heavily laden with moisture, as breathing on a cold polished surface, or a cold day by condensing the breath, will show; whilst the twenty-eight miles of tubing disposed over the surface of the human body will evaporate, _invisibly_, two or three pounds of water daily. Of course, in very hot weather, or after extreme exertion, this perspiration is much more, and is visible.
To remedy this loss we must DRINK, as a stoppage of the supply would kill sooner than if solid food were withheld, for then the body would, for a time, live upon its own substance, as in the cases of the fasting men of the last two years; but few people can live longer than three days without drinking, and death by thirst is looked upon as one of the most cruel forms of dissolution. To palliate thirst, however, it is not absolutely necessary to drink, as a moist atmosphere or copious bathing will do much towards allaying it,—the one by introducing moisture into the system by means of the lungs, the other through the medium of the skin.
Thirst is the notice given by Nature that liquid aliment is required to repair the waste of the body; and, as in the case of Hunger, she has kindly provided that supplying the deficiency shall be a pleasant sensation, and one calculated to call up a feeling of gratitude for the means of allaying the want. Indeed, no man knows the real pleasures of eating and drinking, until he has suffered both hunger and thirst.
Water, as a means of slaking man’s thirst, has been provided for him in abundance from the time of Father Adam, whose “Ale” is so vaunted by abstainers from alcoholic liquors. But Water, unless charged with Carbonic Acid gas, or containing some mineral in solution, is considered by some, as a constant drink, rather vapid; and Man, as he became civilized, has made himself other beverages, more or less tasty, and provocative of excess, and also more or less deleterious to his internal economy. The juice of luscious fruits was expressed, the vine was made to give up its life blood; and, probably through accident, alcoholic fermentation was discovered, and a new zest was given to drinking. A good servant, Alcohol is a bad master; but that it satisfies a widely felt craving, probably induced by civilization, is certain, for most savage tribes, emerging from their primitive and natural state, manufacture drinks from divers vegetable substances, more or less alcoholic.
The present volume is intended for that class of the public which is known as “the general reader”; and its object is to interest rather than to inform. Therefore it deals at no great length with what may be termed the _caviare_ of the subject, as, for instance, the varied opinions of the medical faculty with respect to the hygienic value of drinks, their supposed uses in health and disease, and their chemical constituents, or analyses. Nor is the question of price discussed, nor long lists of vineyard proprietors given, nor the names of the brewers, nor the number of casks of beer brewed. In short, as few statistics have been introduced as possible. In deference to a maxim not always remembered in books on beverages, “_De gustibus non est disputandum_,” or its English equivalent, abhorred of Chesterfield, “What is one man’s meat is another man’s poison,” the verdicts of enthusiasts and vendors have been, except in rare instances, alike rejected.
Nor has very much been said on the inviting topic of adulteration. It would be almost cruel to disturb the credulity of the good people who drink and pay for gooseberry as Champagne, or _Val de peñas_ as curious old Port. It is a pretty comedy to watch the _soi-disant_ connoisseur drinking a wine fully accredited with crust, out of a bottle ornamented with fungus and cobwebs of proper consistency—a wine flavoured with _essence_ at so much a pound, and stained with _colour_[1] at so much per gallon. There is no need to proclaim upon the housetops the constituents of Hamburg sherry, nor how the best rum is flavoured with “R.E.,” or brandy with “Caramel” or “Cognacine.”
We have generally avoided the profane use of trade or professional jargon, too often the outcome of ignorance, pretence, and affectation, such as “full,” “fruity,” “smooth on palate,” “round in the mouth,” “full of body,” “wing,” “character,” etc.; nor have we touched, or desired to touch, on the influence of alcohol on man’s social or other well-being. Peter the Hermit is fully represented already, and we have no mission to call upon our fellow-countrymen to “rise to the dignity of manhood,” and never touch another glass of Madeira.
The authors have followed the example of the illustrious Molière in taking their matter wherever they could find it. The information contained in this work is derived either from other books, oral information, or personal experience. “The sun robs the sea, the moon robs the sun, the sea robs the moon,” says Timon of Athens, repeating Anacreon, who adds that the earth robs them all. So preceding authors are indebted to one another, and the present volume to them all. It has been written, it is hoped, without bias or prejudice of any kind; but, as the drinks containing Alcohol are many more than those in which it is absent, more have been mentioned. That a full record of all drinks should appear, is impossible; nor could any critic expect it; but an attempt has been made to give a fairly full list, and to render it as pleasant reading as the subject admits.
THE DRINKS OF ANTIQUITY.
EGYPT: Method of Wine-Making—Early Wines—Names of Wines—Ladies and Wine—Beer, etc. ASSYRIA: List of Assur-ba-ni-pal’s Wines—Method of Drinking—Different Sorts of Wine. HITTITE: Two Ladies Drinking—Their Appreciation of Wine—The Hittite Bacchus. JUDEA: Mention of Wines in the Old Testament—Wine as an Article of Commerce—Mixed Wines—Wine Vessels.
Has any man been bold enough to attempt to fix upon the discoverer of Wine? Not to our knowledge. Nor can a date be even hazarded as to its introduction. It was so good a thing, that we may be sure that men very soon came to know its revivifying effects. We do know this: that the oldest records of which we have any cognisance, those of the Egyptians (who were in a high state of civilization and culture when the Hebrews were semi-barbarous nomads), show us that they had wine, and used it in a most refined manner, as we see by the headpiece to this chapter. Here a father is nursing his child, who invites him to smell a lotus flower, another blossom of which his mother is showing him. An attendant proffers wine in bowls wreathed with flowers, and another is at hand with a bowl possibly of water, and a napkin. This wreathing the bowls with flowers shows how highly they esteemed the “good creature,” and, also, that they were then at least as civilized as the later Greeks and Romans, who followed the same practice.
We have the Egyptian pictures showing the whole process of wine-making. We see their vines very carefully trained in bowers, or in avenues, formed by columns and rafters; their vineyards were walled in, and frequently had a reservoir of water within their precincts, together with a building which contained a winepress; whilst boys frightened the birds away with slings and stones, and cries. The grapes, when gathered, were put into deep wicker baskets, which men carried either on their heads or shoulders, or slung upon a yoke, to the winepress, where the wine was squeezed out of a bag by means of two poles turned in contrary directions, an earthen pan receiving the juice. But they also had large presses, in which they trod the fruit with their naked feet, supporting themselves by ropes suspended from the roof.
The grape juice having fermented, it was put into earthen jars, resembling the Roman _amphoræ_, which were closed with a lid covered with pitch, clay, mortar or gypsum, and sealed, after which they were removed to the storehouse, and there placed upright. The Egyptians had a peculiar habit, which used also to be general in Italy and Greece, and now obtains in the islands of the Archipelago, of putting a certain quantity of resin or bitumen at the bottom of the amphora before pouring in the wine. This was supposed to preserve it, but it was also added to give it a flavour—a taste probably acquired from their having been used to wine skins, instead of jars, and having employed resins to preserve the skins.