 Section 29 of The Complete Confectioner by Hannah Glass. This LibriVox recording is in the public domain. Pickles Part 2 To Pickle White Plums Take the large white plums, and if they have stalks, let them remain on, and pickle them as you do peaches. To Pickle Radish Pods Make a strong pickle with cold spring water and bay salt, strong enough to bear an egg. Put the pods in, lay a thin board over them to keep them under water, and let them stand 10 days. Drain them in a sieve, and lay them on a cloth to dry. Then take white wine vinegar, as much as you think will cover them. Boil it, and put your pods in a jar, with ginger, mace, cloves, and Jamaica pepper. Pour your vinegar boiling hot on them. Cover them with a coarse cloth, three or four times double, that the steam may come through a little, and let them stand two days. Repeat this two or three times. When it is cold, put in a pint of mustard seed, some horseradish, and cover them close. To Pickle Lemons Take 12 lemons, and scrape them with a piece of broken glass. Then cut them across in several parts, but not quite through, so that they will hang together. Put in as much salt as they will hold. Rub them well, and strew them over with salt. Let them lay in an earthen dish three days, and turn them every day. Slit an ounce of ginger very thin, and salt it for three days. A small handful of mustard seeds bruised, and zest through a hair-save, and some red India pepper. Take your lemons out of the salt, squeeze them very gently. Put them into a jar with the spice and ingredients, and cover them with the best white wine vinegar. Stop them up very close, and in a month's time they will be fit to eat. To Pickle Grapes Get grapes at the full growth, but not ripe. Cut them in small bunches, fit for garnishing. Put them in a stone jar with vine leaves between every layer of grapes. Then take as much spring water as you think will cover them. Put in a pound of basalt, and as much white salt as will make it bear an egg. Dry your basalt, and pound it. It will melt the sooner. Put it into a bell-metal or copper pot. Boil and skim it well, and, as it boils, take the black scum off, but not the white. When it has boiled a quarter of an hour, let it stand to cool and settle. When it is cold, pour the clear liquor on the grapes, lay vine leaves on the top, tie them down close with a linen cloth, cover them with a dish, and let them stand 24 hours. Then take them out, lay them on a cloth, cover them over with another, and dry them between the cloths. Then take two quarts of vinegar, one quart of spring water, and one pound of coarse sugar. Let it boil a little while, skim it clean as it boils, and let it stand till it is quite cold. Dry your jar with a cloth, put fresh vine leaves at the bottom, and between every bunch of grapes, and on the top. Then pour the clear off the pickle on the grapes, tie a thin piece of board on a flannel, lay it on the top of the jar to keep the grapes under the pickle, and tie them down with a bladder and leather. Take them out with a wooden spoon, but be sure to make pickle enough to cover them. To pickle, fennel. Set spring water on the fire with a handful of salt. When it boils, tie your fennel in bunches, put them into the water. Just give them a scold, and lay them on a cloth to dry. When cold, put them in a glass with a little mace or nutmeg, fill it with cold vinegar, lay a bit of green fennel on the top, and tie over it a bladder and leather. To pickle, golden pippins. Take the finest pippins you can get, free from spots and bruises. Put them into a preserving pan of cold spring water, set them on a charcoal fire, and keep them turning with a wooden spoon till they will peel, but do not let them boil. When they are enough, peel them and put them into the water again with a quarter of a pint of the best vinegar, and a quarter of an ounce of alum. Cover them close with a pewter dish, and set them on the charcoal fire again, a slow fire not to boil. Let them stand, turning them now and then till they look green. Then take them out, and lay them on a cloth to cool. When cold, make your pickle as for the peaches. Only instead of made mustard, it must be mustard seed whole. Cover them close, and keep them for use. To pickle young suckers or young artichokes, before the leaves are hard. Take young suckers, pair them very nicely, all the hard ends of the leaves and stalks, and just scold them in salt and water. When they are cold, put them into glass bottles with two or three large blades of mace, and a nutmeg sliced thin. Fill them either with distilled vinegar, or the sugar vinegar of your own making, with half spring water. To pickle, mock ginger. Take the largest cauliflower you can get, cut off all the flower from the stalks. Peel them, and throw it to strong spring water and salt for three days. Then drain them in a sieve pretty dry, and put them in a jar. Boil white wine vinegar with cloves, mace, long pepper, and allspice, each half an ounce. Forty blades of garlic, a stick of horseradish cut in slices, a quarter of an ounce of cayenne pepper, a quarter of a pound of yellow turmeric, and two ounces of bay salt. Pour it boiling over the stalks, and cover it down close till the next day. Then boil it again, and repeat it twice more, and when it is cold, tie it down close. Melon mangoes. Take as many green melons as you want, slit them two thirds up the middle, and with a spoon take all the seeds out. Put them in strong spring water and salt for twenty-four hours, and then drain them in a sieve. Mix half a pound of white mustard, two ounces of long pepper, the same of allspice, half an ounce of cloves and mace, a good quantity of garlic and horseradish cut in slices, and a quarter of an ounce of cayenne pepper. Fill the seed holes full of this mixture. Put a small skewer through the end, tie it round with pack thread close to the skewer, and put them in a jar. Boil up the vinegar with some of the mixture in it, and pour it over the melons. Cover them down close, and let them stand till next day. Then green them in the same manner as you do gherkins. When cold, tie them down close and keep them for use. To pickle, elder shoots in imitation of bamboo. Take the largest and oldest shoots of elder which put out in the middle of May. The middle stalks are the most tender and biggest. The small ones are not worth pickling. Take off the outward peel or skin, and lay them in a strong brine of salt and water for one night. Then dry them in a cloth, piece by piece. In the meantime, make your pickle of half white wine and half beer vinegar. To each quarter pickle, you must put an ounce of white or red pepper, an ounce of ginger sliced, a little mace, and a few corns of Jamaica pepper. When the spice has boiled in the pickle, pour it hot on the shoots. Stop them close immediately, and set the jar two hours before the fire, turning it often. It is as good a way of greening pickles as frequent boiling. You may boil the pickle two or three times, and pour it on boiling hot, just as you please. If you make the pickle of the sugar vinegar, there must be one half spring water. To pickle, red currants. To every quarter of white wine vinegar, put half a pound of Lisbon sugar, and a quarter of a pound of white salt. Then pick out the worst of your currants and put into this liquor, and put the best in bunches into glasses. Then boil the pickle with the worst currants in it, skim it very clean, and let it boil till it looks of a fine colour, and let it stand till it is cold. Then strain it through a coarse cloth, bring it through to get out all the colour of the currants, and let it stand to settle. Then pour the clear off the setlings, and fill up your glasses with it. Tie them over with a bladder and leather, and keep them in a cold, dry place. To pickle, ox pellets. Take as many ox pellets as you want, and wash them clean with salt and water. Put them in a pot, cover them with water, put in some salt, and as the scum rises, skim it off clean. Then put in half an ounce of cloves and mace, a little allspice and whole pepper. Stew them gently till they are tender, which will be in four or five hours. Take them out, and take the two skins, clean off. Cut them of what size and shape you please, and let them stand till they are cold. In the meantime, make a pickle of half white wine and half vinegar boiled together, with some fresh spices in it. When both the pickle and pellets are cold, lay a layer of pellets in a jar, and put in some bay leaves with a little fresh spice between every layer, and pour the pickle over them. Tie them down close, and keep them for use. These are very useful to put into made dishes of all sorts. Only wash them out of the pickle in warm water. You may make a little side dish with white or brown sauce, or butter and mustard, with a spoonful of white wine in it. To pickle, cox combs. Put your combs into scolding water, and take the skins off. Then put them into a stew pan, cover them with white wine vinegar, put in some cloves and mace, a little allspice and whole pepper, a few bay leaves, a little bay salt, and stew them for half an hour. Then put them into a jar, and when they are cold, melt a little mutton suet and put over them to keep out the air, and tie them down with a bladder and leather. When you want to use them, lay them in warm water for an hour before, and you may put them in made dishes, or make a little dish of them with white or brown colours. To pickle, purple cabbage. Take two cauliflower, two red cabbages, half a peck of kidney beans, six sticks, with six cloves of garlic on each stick. Wash them all well, and give them a boil up. Then drain them on a sieve, lay them leaf by leaf on a large table, and salt them with bay salt. Then lay them to dry in the sun, or in a slow oven, until they are as dry as a cork, and make the following pickle. Take a gallon of the best vinegar, with one quarter of water, a handful of salt, one ounce of whole pepper, and boil it all together for a quarter of an hour, and let it stand till it is cold. Then take a quarter of a pound of ginger cut in pieces, salt it, and let it stand a week. Take half a pound of mustard seed, wash it, and lay it to dry. When very dry, bruise half of it, mix the whole, and bruise it with some allspice, whole pepper, the prepared ginger, and an ounce of powder of turmeric. Then have a jar, and lay a row of cabbage, then cauliflower, and then beans. Put the garlic in the middle, and sprinkle between every layer your mixture. Then pour your pickle over all, and tie it down with a bladder and leather. To pickle, salmon. Take your salmon, scale and gut it, and wash it very clean. Have a kettle of spring water boiling, with a handful of salt, a little allspice, cloves and maize. Put in the fish, and boil it three quarters of an hour, if small, if large, one hour. Then take the salmon out, and let it stand till it is cold. Strain the liquor through a sieve. When it is cold, put your salmon very close in a tub or pan, and pour the liquor over it. When you want to use it, put it into a dish with a little of the pickle, and garnish it with green fennel. To pickle, sturgeon. Take your sturgeon and cut it in handsome pieces. Wash it well, and tie it up with bass. Make a pickle of half spring water, and half vinegar. Make it pretty salt, with some cloves, maize and allspice in it. Let it boil, then put in your sturgeon, and boil it till it is tender. Then take it up, and let it stand till it is cold. Strain the liquor through a sieve. Then put the sturgeon into a pan or tub as close as you can. Pour the liquor over it, and cover it close. When you use it, put it in a dish with a little of the liquor, and garnish it with green fennel or parsley. To pickle, mackerel, called koveach. Cut your mackerel into round pieces, and divide one into five or six pieces. To six large mackerel, you may take one ounce of beaten pepper, three large nutmegs, a little maize, and a handful of salt. Mix your salt and beaten spice together. Then make two or three holes in each piece, and thrust the seasoning into the holes with your finger. Rub each piece all over with the seasoning. Fry them brown in sweet oil, and let them stand till they are cold. Put them into a jar, cover them with vinegar, and pour sweet oil over them. They will keep, well covered, a long time, and are delicious. To pickle, mack anchovies. To a peck of Sprat, take two pounds of common salt, a quarter of a pound of bay salt, one pound of saltpita, two ounces of salpranella, and a little bowl of armoniac. Pound all in a mortar. Put them into a stone pot, a row of Sprats, a layer of your compound, and so on to the top alternately. Press them hard down, and cover them close. Let them stand six months, and they will be fit for use. Observe that your Sprats are very fresh, and do not wash or wipe them, but take them as they first come out of the water. To pickle, smelts. Take a hundred of fine smelts, half an ounce of pepper, the same of nutmeg, a quarter of an ounce of mace, half an ounce of saltpita, and a quarter of a pound of common salt. Beat all very fine. Wash and clean the smelts, gut them, then lay them in rows in a jar, and between every layer of smelts, screw the seasoning with four or five bay leaves. Then boil red wine, and pour over them. Cover them with a plate, and when they are cold, tie them down close. They exceed anchovies. To pickle, oysters. Open one hundred of the finest and largest rock oysters you can get into a pan, with all their liquor in them. But mind you do not cut them in opening, as that will spoil their beauty. Wash them clean out of the liquor one by one. Put the liquor into a stew pan, and give it a boil. Then strain it through a sieve, and let it stand half an hour to settle. Then pour it from the setlings into a stew pan, and put in half a pint of white wine, half a pint of vinegar, a little salt, half an ounce of cloves and mace, a little allspice and whole pepper, a nutmeg cut in thin slices, and a dozen bay leaves. Boil it up five minutes. Then put in your oysters, and give them a boil for a minute or two. Put them into small jars, and when they are cold, put a little sweet oil at the top, and tie them down with a bladder and leather. Keep them in a cool dry place, and when you use them, untie them, skim off the oil, put them in a dish with a little of the liquor, and garnish them with green parsley. If you want oyster sauce, take them out, and put them into a good anchovy sauce with a spoonful of the pickle. For fish or poultry, wash them in warm water, and put them into a white sauce. To pickle cockles or mussels. Take half a peck of cockles or mussels, and wash them well. Then put them into a saucepan, cover them close, and set them over a slow fire till they are all opened. Strain the liquor from them, pick them all out of the shells, mind and take the sponge or crab out of the mussels, and wash them clean in warm vinegar. Strain about half the liquor from the setlings, and treat them in the same manner as oysters. To make white wine vinegar. As this vinegar, by the name, is thought to be made from white wine only, it is proper to give directions for making it. When you brew in the month of March or April, take as much sweet wart of the first running as will serve you the year. Boil it without hops for half an hour, and then put it in a cooler. Put some good yeast upon it, and work it well. When it has done working, break the yeast into it, and put it into a cask. But mind to fill the cask, and set it in a place where the sun has full power on it. Put no bung in the bung-hole, but put a tile over it at night, and when it rains. But when it is fine, take the tile off. Let it stand till it is quite sour, which will be in the beginning of September. Then draw it off from the setlings into another cask. Let it stand till it is fine, and draw it off for use. If you have any white wine that is tart, put it in a cask, and treat it in the same manner. Or cider may be done the same way. A cask of ale turn sour makes ale vinegar in the same manner. But none of these are fit for pickles to keep long, except the white wine vinegar. To make sugar vinegar. In the month of March or April, make this vinegar as follows. To every gallon of spring water you use, add a pound of coarse Lisbon sugar. Boil it, and keep skimming it as long as the scum will rise. Then pour it into a cooler, and when it is as cold as beer to work, toast a large piece of bread, rub it over with good yeast, and let it work as long as it will. Then beat the yeast into it, put it in a cask, and set it in a place where the rays of the sun have full power on it. Put a tile over the bunghole when it rains, and every night, but in the daytime when it is fine weather, take it off. And when you find it is sour enough, which will be in the month of August. But if it is not sour enough, let it stand till it is, then draw it off. Put it into a clean cask, and throw in a handful of eyes and glass. Let it stand till it is fine, then draw it off for use. To make elder vinegar, take two pounds of the pips of elder flowers, and put them in a stone jar with two gallons of white wine vinegar. Let them steep, and stir them every day for a fortnight. Then strain the vinegar from the flowers, press them close, and let it stand to settle. Then pour it from the setlings, and put a piece of filtering paper in a funnel, and filter it through. Then put it in pint bottles, cork it close, and keep it for use. To make tarragon vinegar, pick the leaves off the stalks of green tarragon just before it goes into bloom, and put a pound weight to every gallon of white wine vinegar, and treat it in the same manner as elder vinegar. To make walnut ketchup, take half a bushel of green walnuts before the shell is formed, and grind them in a crab mill, or beat them in a marble mortar. Then squeeze out the juice through a coarse cloth, and wring the cloth well to get all the juice out. To every gallon of juice, put a quart of red wine, a quart of a pound of anchovies, the same of basalt, one ounce of cloves and maize, a little ginger, and horseradish cut in slices. Boil all together till it is reduced to half the quantity. Pour it into a pan. When it is cold, bottle it, cork it tight, and it will be fit for use in three months. If you have any pickle left in the jar after your walnuts are used, to every gallon of pickle, put in two heads of garlic, a quart of red wine, and an ounce each of cloves, maize, long, black, and Jamaica pepper, and boil them all together till it is reduced to half the quantity. Pour it into a pan, and the next day bottle it for use, and cork it tight. To make Mushroom Ketchup Take a bushel of the large flaps of mushrooms, gather dry, and bruise them with your hands. Put some at the bottom of an earthen pan. Strew some salt over them, then mushrooms, then salt till you have done. Put in half an ounce of beaten cloves and maize, the same of all spice, and let them stand five or six days. Stir them up every day. Then tie a paper over them, and bake them for four hours in a slow oven. When so done, strain them through a cloth to get all the liquor out, and let it stand to settle. Then pour it clear from the setlings. To every gallon of liquor add a quart of red wine, and if not salt enough, a little salt. A race of ginger cuts small, half an ounce of cloves and maize, and boil it till about one third is reduced. Then strain it through a sieve into a pan. The next day pour it from the setlings and bottle it for use, but mined to cork it tight. To make Mushroom Powder Take the largest and thickest button mushrooms you can get. Cut off the root end and peel them. Do not wash them, but wipe them clean with a cloth. Spread them on pewter dishes, and put them in a slow oven to dry. Let the liquor dry up in the mushrooms, as it will make the powder much stronger. When they are dry enough to powder, beat them in a mortar. Sift them through a sieve with a little cayenne pepper and pounded maize. Put the powder in small bottles, cork them tight, and keep it for use. End of Section 29 Section 30 of The Complete Confectioner by Hannah Glass This LibriVox recording is in the public domain. Distillation Part 1 Distilling in general The mystery which the generality of distillers have affected to throw over their art in order to keep it from the public has not a little contributed to induce many pretenders to attempt an explanation of its excellent qualities. Which, like quackery and physic, not only defrauds us of our money, but what is more valuable, injures our health likewise. With a view of detecting such impositions, we give the following small treaties, in which we shall endeavour to be as clear and concise as possible. We shall begin first by explaining what is meant by distilling, how many sorts of distillings there are, what are the instruments fit for that business, what accidents it is liable to, and what must be done to prevent them. Then point out the remedies which may be applied to those accidents when they do happen. And at last enter into the detail of the different sorts of liquours, that of their composition and the various ways of preparing them by a plain and methodical account of the principle of the art. In which we shall endeavour to omit nothing of what may serve to instruct completely either the lovers of distilling or the artists who profess it and make it their particular business. Distilling in general is the art of extracting spirits from bodies. To extract spirits is to produce, by means of heat, such an action as will secrete them from the bodies in which they are detained. If that heat is the proper and natural affection of the bodies and produces the secretion of spirits without any foreign help, it is called fermentation. If it is produced exteriorly by means of the fire or other hot matters in which the steel is placed, then it is called either digestion or distillation. Digestion, when the receipts are only prepared to the secretion of their spirits, distillation, when the action of heat has such power as really to secrete those spirits and make them to distill. It is that heat which provoking a commotion and agitation among the insensible parts of any body whatsoever detaches them, divides them and procures a passage to the spirits which are concealed in it, from the faint or to aqueous qualities with which they were employed. Considered in that point of view, distilling may become worthy of engaging the attention of the learned and be the object of their studies. Infinite are the parts which this art embraces. Everything which the earth produces, whether flowers, fruits, grains, spices, aromatical or vulnaary plants, and perfumed oils or essences. We shall not undertake to defend its utility nor its charms. It is from the course of this work we hope it may and will be deduced wherewith to make and justify its encomium. Of distilling in particular. After having defined distilling in general, we must say something more particular on that article. They reckon generally three different species of distilling. The first, called distilling per ascensum, that is to say by raising, is made by placing the still on the fire or other hot matters, such as gravel, horse dung, boiling water, etc., which promotes a rising of the spirits. This method is the most common and almost the only one distillers put in practice. The second, called per descensum, that is to say by depressing or defrauding, is procured by placing the fire on the top of the vessel employed in distilling, which precipitates the spirits. This method is used by the lecurous distillers, but for the oils of cloves, nutmegs and mace. Some assert that the oil of juniper berries is very good drawn per ascensum. The third and last, called per latus, that is to say, sidely or by the side, is never practiced but by chemists. Therefore, we shall pass it over in silence. Definition of spirits By spirits is meant the most subtle particles of any bodies whatsoever. All bodies, without exception, are impregnated with spirits in more or less quantities. These particles are an igneous substance, which, by its very nature, is susceptible of, and disposed to, a great commotion. That subtle portion of bodies is more or less disposed to secretion, according as the bodies in which it is contained are more or less persons or more or less oily. Definition of essences By essences are meant in distillery, as well as chemistry, the oily parts of a body. That sort of oil, called essence, may be extracted from all sorts of bodies and constitutes one of the principles with which they are composed. At least it has been ascertained by those who have been particular in their observations that nothing has been distilled from which oil or essence could not be extracted. In every sort of distillation made from fruits, flowers, sweet-smelling spices, principally, and all other sorts of spices put in digestion, there has always been seen swimming over the flems or faints a soft and unctuous substance, and that substance is an oil. Now that oil is what is called essence, when it is the object of our distillation. Definition of simple waters By simple waters is meant what is distilled from flowers and other things without water, brandy, or spirit of wine. Such distillations are generally of a phlegmatic quality, though fragrant always charged with the odour of the body from which it is extracted, and even of a more perfect pregnancy than the body itself. Definition of flems Flems, which some call faints, are the toacqueous particles which make part of the composition of bodies. Whether this principle be active or passive, we leave to the chemist to discuss. However it may be, it is nevertheless very essential for all artists of that profession to be well acquainted with its nature, for many are mistaken in it. Some take as flems certain white and cloudy drops which come first when the receipts contained in the still begin to run. Notwithstanding it is certain that these drops are often the most spiritous particles of the matters which distill, which they deprive themselves of very gradually. The whiteness of those cloudy drops is owing only to some moistness which remained in the top of the still. When if they had observed to wipe it off well, they should have seen that the first drop which runs would have been as transparent and brilliant as the last, and it is to their detriment that they throw off those first drops which are the most volatile and spiritous of their receipts. Here is an observation which deserves all their attention, and which we recommend earnestly to every distiller. In all the matters which have first been put in digestion, or what is the same meaning, set to infuse the day before, the spirits are the first which fly to the top of the still. When on the contrary in those receipts which have not been set to infuse, the phlegm rays first and the spirits afterwards, the reason is quite physical and so plain that it requires no further elucidation to conceive it. We shall add another observation, which no doubt will please the curious, and even all those who have some notion of distillation. In all the mixed receipts, such as those in which you would put two distilled flowers, fruits and spices together, without being previously prepared by means of the digestion, the action of the fire raises first the spirits of the flowers. In such a manner that, in spite of the mixture, these spirits have contracted nothing from the smell of the fruits nor of the spices. That secretion made, the spirits of the fruits rise next, without any mixture of the spices or of the flowers. In fine, the spirits of the spices come last, without the least impregnation of the odour of the flowers or the taste of the fruits. Every article keeps distinct by itself in that distillation, and those who doubt the veracity of this assertion are desired to try the experiment. Another interesting observation that has been made on spices is that whether they have been put in digestion or not, whether the phlegms or faints have rose before the spirits or the spirits before the phlegms. The spirits you draw from those sorts of ingredients are hardly impregnated with the smell and taste of them, and it has always been found necessary to mix along with those spirits a certain portion of the phlegms in more or less quantities to give them the taste and perfume of the spices, because it is the phlegms, not the spirits, which contain more of that taste and flagrancy. This observation is absolutely necessary and may perhaps prove satisfactory to a curious reader. Definition of digestion As the word digestion has often been made use of in this essay, we shall explain what is meant by it, its utility and even the necessity it is of in many circumstances. Matters are said to be in digestion when you have them to soak in a proper dissolvent over a very mild heat to soften them. This preparation is necessary for many sorts of ingredients in distillery. It procures the spirits a more facile issue from the matters where they are contained. The digestions which are made without any heat at all are those which are more generally used, and the least, because those which are made over the fire, or by means of hot matters such as dung, etc., in which the vessel is placed, always take away some of the goodness, quality and merit of the goods, as they cannot but promote some of the spirits, and it is very easy to conceive that this must be so much of the quality. When you intend to draw essences, the ingredients must unavoidably be prepared by means of the digestion. In order to draw well the spirits and essences from spices, digestion is again there of an absolute necessity. In short, digestion enters necessarily in our principles, and is an indispensable one itself. Of fruits and their different species Various other fruits made use of in distilling, some with rinds, some with skins, some with kernels, some with stones, and others covered over with a shell. The fruits with rinds, such as the Portugal orange, as the French call it, or China, as we call it in England, the Cedra, the Citron, the Bigerade or Seville Orange, the Lemon, and the Bergamot are excellent for the liqueurs of taste, when you make use of the zest of those different with the oil of essence. The quintessence of those sorts of fruits cannot be drawn here, as in the countries that produce them, because, besides that they lose so much of their primitive flavour by importation, the price they fetch in this country renders it an impossible thing for the distiller to think of drawing that quintessence from them with any profit or advantage to himself. We shall speak of the manner of choosing those fruits when we come to speak of them singly. The Bergamot, a kind of Citron, is more commonly made use of for odiferous waters than for palatable liqueurs. Among the fruits with kernels, there are few which the distillers make use of, except the rinette apple, the roselet pear, and the quince. We make what is called rotafia or cordial water with those three sorts of fruits, but the roselet pear is more ordinarily preserved in brandy. As quince is fit for a spirit as fermentation, you may distill the spirits on liquor, which, by so fermenting, comes from it, and the spirit of that water, or rather, virus liquor, is successfully employed in a liquor which in preserving all the delicacy of taste of that fruit, acquires its well-known beneficent qualities for the stomach. Cordials are made also with stone fruits such as cherries, plums, apricots and peaches. These four species of fruits may be preserved in brandy. There are again other sorts of fruits which distillers employ for rotafia and syrups, such are raspberries and strawberries, which enter in the composition of several sorts of cordials in order to give them a nicer and more exquisite taste. Mulberries and raspberries as well as morello cherries are again often made use of to give a colour to certain cordials. There is a syrup made with mulberries and currants which is very agreeable to the taste and which is very much in use for sick people. Shell fruits are likewise of great use in distillation. Rotafia may be made with walnuts and that fruit may also be preserved in brandy when young and tender. Almonds are made use of for the odonoio and from that fruit we draw as well as from nuts, oils for perfumed essences. We have spoken here but of those fruits which are generally made use of by distillers. There are many others which might be employed with as much success. It is enough to have pointed here the use which is made of them. It behoves the lovers of the art to improve the ancient discoveries. The receipts change as the taste changes but the method and proceedings we recommend here will always serve and be useful to direct the operations of the aromatical and vulnerary plants. Those plants are called aromatical whose stalks and flowers have a strong and penetrating odour though all together agreeable. Such plants preserve that odour a long while after they are gathered even after they are dried up. Those are called vulnerary which have an aromatical taste and which are unctuous and balsamic. The aromatical and vulnerary plants are in great numbers but we shall not enter into their detail. We shall content ourselves with only pointing out those which the distillers make the greatest consumption of such as Melissa, Rosemary, Lavender, Asbeck, Marjoram, Sage, etc. From the aromatical plants we draw odiferous waters which are exquisite to strengthen the heart and the brain and which are constantly used in swoons. We may likewise draw quintessences from them which stand in the stead of the plants themselves in the seasons in which the plants exist no more. Aromatical plants are distilled in two different manners either with water to make simple waters or with spirited wine to make odiferous waters. Both of them contribute to health in contributing to the cleanliness of the body. The best vulnerary plants are those which come from Switzerland. They generally send in those sorts of plants dry leaves and flowers altogether. They preserve enough of their good quality to be employed here. The vulnerary plants which are used in the composition of the aqua boussade water all grow in France. They are employed in their strength when they are quite green. It is principally in the time that they are in blossom they are to be employed. They may be distilled with plain water but those distilled with spirited wine have a great deal more virtue. Both the leaves and flowers of aromatical plants used in the composition of the potpourri they are likewise employed in the making of sweet swelling satchels or bags. The general rule is to employ them in their full vigour and to gather them before the too great heat of the day has deprived them of their frequency. Of the various spices and seeds used in distillation the spices mostly made use of in distillation are cloves, cinnamon, nutmegs and mace. From these spices you may draw by means of distillation what is called spirits and by infusion you may make tinctures and oils of essence. These spices are also used in the composition of several odiferous waters but especially in most of the cordials of which they are material ingredients. The seeds most known in distillation are fennel, angelica, aniseed, coriander, juniper, parsley, caraway, carrot and many others. From these various sorts of seeds you draw spirits with brandy for palatable liquours. You may likewise draw oils of essence or make infusions for ritaffias. End of section 30 Section 31 of The Complete Confectioner by Hannah Glass This LibriVox recording is in the public domain. Distillation Part 2 To make lily water liquor Choose fine lilies thick and well-blown, not at all faded nor begun to decay and gather them immediately after the rising of the sun. Cut nothing but the stalk of the flower because it would give to the distillation a taste of green. Leave the flower whole and put it in the kukubite with common water and brandy in the proportion hereafter mentioned and distill it upon a naked fire a little quick. When your spirits are drawn melt some sugar in water and then mix your spirits with it. Pass the whole through a bag and when fined down your liquor will be fit for use. To make common lily water liquor Take 3 quarts of brandy, half a pound of lily flowers, 3 quarts of water and a pound of sugar for the syrup. The whole must make up 5 quarts of liquor in all when finished. To make the double liquor Take half a pound of flowers, 3 quarts of brandy, 3 pounds of sugar and 2 quarts of common water which will produce 4 quarts of liquor when done. To make 1 gallon of spearmint water Take the leaves of dried spearmint, 1 pound and a half and 2 gallons and a half of water and draw off by a gentle fire 1 gallon. This water will be more fragrant if distilled in Balneum Marie or the Cold Steel but if the latter be used the same caution must be observed of distilling the plant green. To make a gallon of Jamaica pepper water Take half a pound of Jamaica pepper and 2 gallons and a half of water and draw off 1 gallon with a pretty brisk fire. The oil of this fruit is very ponderous and therefore this water is best made in an alembic. To make a gallon of the water of dill seed Take 1 pound of dill seed and 3 gallons of water Distill off by the alembic 1 gallon with a pretty brisk fire. To make 10 gallons of single Angelica water Take the roots and seeds of Angelica cut and bruised of each 1 pound and a half 11 gallons of proof spirit and 2 gallons of water Draw off 10 gallons or till the faints begin to rise with a gentle fire and sweeten it if required with lump sugar. It is a good carminative and therefore good against all kinds of flatulent colics and griping of the bowels. To make 10 gallons of compound Angelica water Take the roots and seeds of Angelica and sweet fennel seeds of each 1 pound and a half The dried leaves of barman sage of each 1 pound Slice the roots and bruise the seeds and herbs and add to them of cinnamon 1 ounce Of cloves, cubebs, galangals and mace of each 3 quarters of an ounce Of nutmegs, the lesser cardamom seed, pimento and saffron each half an ounce Infuse all these in 12 gallons of clean proof spirit and draw off 10 gallons with a pretty brisk fire It may be sweetened or not at pleasure This water is a powerful carminative and good in all flatulent colics and other griping pains in the bowels It is also good in nauseas and other disorders of the stomach To make 10 gallons of Dr. Stevenson's water Take of cinnamon, ginger, galangal, cloves, nutmegs, grains of paradise, the seeds of anise, sweet fennel and caraway each 1 ounce The leaves of thyme, mother of thyme, mint, sage, penny-royal, rosemary, flowers of red roses, chamomile, oreganum and lavender of each 8 handfuls Of clean proof spirit 12 gallons and water 2 gallons Digest all 24 hours and then draw off 10 gallons or till the faints begin to rise Sweeten with fine sugar to your palate It is a noble cephalic cordial and carminative and also in some degrees and hysteric Good in all colic pains in the stomach and bowels and diseases of the nerves To make 15 gallons of clove water Take 4 pounds of cloves bruised, half a pound of pimento or allspice and 16 gallons of clean proof spirits Let it digest 12 hours in a gentle heat and then draw of 15 gallons with a pretty brisk fire Another way to make 15 gallons of clove water Take 4 pounds of winter's bark, 6 ounces of pimento, a pound and a quarter of cloves and 16 gallons of clean proof spirits Digest and draw off as before You may sweeten it to your palate by dissolving in it double refined sugar To make 10 gallons of anti-scorbutic water Take of the leaves of watercressers, garden and sea scurvy grass and brook lime of each 20 handfuls Of pine tops, jamander, whorehound and the lesser centauri each 16 handfuls Of the roots of bryony and sharp pointed dock each 6 pounds Of mustard seed, 1 pound and a half Digest the hole in 10 gallons of proof spirit and 2 gallons of water and draw off by a gentle fire It is good against scorbutic disorders as also in tremblings and disorders of the nerves To make 10 gallons of imperial water Take the dried peels of citrons and oranges, nutmegs, cloves and cinnamon of each 1 pound The roots of cypress, florentine oris, calamus aromaticus of each 8 ounces Cedori, galangal and ginger of each 4 ounces The tops of lavender and rosemary of each 16 handfuls The leaves of marjoram, mint and thyme of each 8 handfuls The leaves of white and damaskrosers of each 12 handfuls Digest the hole 2 days in 10 gallons of proof spirit and 4 gallons of damaskrose water After which draw off 10 gallons It is a very good cephalic and of great use in all nervous cases To make 10 gallons of compound bryony water Take the roots of bryony 4 pounds Wild valerian root 1 pound Penny-royal and roux of each 2 pounds The flowers of fever-few and tops of savin The rind of fresh orange peel and love-age seeds of each half a pound Cut or bruise these ingredients and infuse them in 11 gallons of proof spirit and 2 gallons of water And draw off 10 gallons with a gentle hand Another way to make 10 gallons of compound bryony water Take of fresh bryony root 4 pounds The leaves of roux and mugwort of each 4 pounds The tops of savin 6 handfuls Fever-few, cat-mint and penny-royal of each 4 half a pound Fever-few, cat-mint and penny-royal of each 4 handfuls Orange peel 8 ounces Mure 4 ounces Russia caster 2 ounces Proof spirit 11 gallons Water 2 gallons Digest and distill as before It is very forcing upon the uterus And therefore given to promote delivery And forward the proper cleansings afterwards As also to open menstrual obstructions And in abundance of other female complaints It is also good against convulsions in children And of service in all nervous complaints In either sex To make 10 gallons of spiritus penny-royal water Take 15 pounds of the dried leaves of penny-royal 10 gallons of proof spirits and 2 gallons of water Draw off 10 gallons with a gentle fire It is a good carbonative of use in colics and grippings of the bowels Also in pleurices and the jaundice It is of known efficacy in promoting the menses And other disorders of the female sex To make 10 gallons of carbonative water Take of fresh chamomile flowers 4 pounds Dill seed 2 pounds and a half Leaves of balm, origini and thyme of each 1 pound Seeds of anise and fennel of each 6 ounces Cumin seed 4 ounces The peels of oranges and citrons 8 ounces Juniper and bayberries of each 6 ounces Cinnamon 8 ounces Mace 4 ounces Bruise and digest these ingredients in 11 gallons of proof spirit And 2 gallons of water Then draw off 10 gallons and sweeten it with fine sugar It is good in the colic and grippings of the bowels And to remove sickness and nauseas from the stomach To make a gallon of sedrat water Take the yellow rinds of 5 sedrats A gallon of fine proof spirit and 2 quarts of water Digest the hole 24 hours in a vessel close stopped After which draw off 1 gallon in Balnea Marie And sweeten with fine loaf sugar To make a gallon of bergamot water Take the outer rind of 3 bergamots A gallon of proof spirit and 2 quarts of water Draw off 1 gallon in Balnea Marie And sweeten it with sugar To make a gallon of jesemine water Take of Spanish jesemine flowers 12 ounces Essence of Florentine citron or bergamot 8 drops Fine proof spirit a gallon Water 2 quarts Digest 2 days in a close vessel After which draw off 1 gallon and sweeten with fine loaf sugar To make a gallon of the cordial water of Montpellier Take the yellow rinds of 2 bergamots Or 50 drops of the essence of that fruit Cloves and mace of each half an ounce A gallon of proof spirit and a quart of water Digest 2 days in a close vessel Draw off a gallon and sweeten with fine sugar To make a gallon of Father Andrews water Take of white lily flowers 8 handfuls Orange flowers 4 ounces Rose water a quart Proof spirit a gallon Water a quart Draw off a gallon in Balnea Marie And sweeten with fine sugar To make a gallon of the water of Father Barnabas Take the roots of Angelica 4 ounces Of cinnamon and auras root each half an ounce Brew these ingredients in a mortar Put them into an olympic with a gallon of proof spirit And 2 quarts of water Draw off a gallon with a pretty brisk fire To make a gallon of the water of the 4 fruits Take of the essence of Sedrat 50 drops Of the essence of Bergamot 36 drops Of the essence of Citron 60 drops And of the essence of Portugal Orange 64 drops Fine proof spirit 1 gallon Water 2 quarts Draw off with a pretty brisk fire Till the fates begin to rise And sweeten with fine sugar To make a gallon of the water of the 4 spices Take of cinnamon 2 ounces Nutmegs and cloves of each 3 grams And mace 6 grams Brew the spices in a mortar And add a gallon of proof spirit And 2 quarts of water Digest 24 hours in a close vessel And distill with a brisk fire Till the fates begin to rise And sweeten with fine sugar It is an excellent stomacic Good in all depressions of the spirit And paralytic disorders To make 10 gallons of the water of the 4 seeds Take of sweet fennel seed 7 ounces Coriander seed 9 ounces The seeds of angelica and anise Of each 3 ounces Brew all these in a mortar And put them into the still With 10 gallons and a half of proof spirit And 2 gallons of water Draw off with a gentle fire Till the fates begin to rise And sweeten with fine sugar It is good in colics Nauseas of the stomac And gripes of the bells To make a gallon of divine water Take of orange flowers fresh-gathered 2 pounds Coriander seed 3 ounces Nutmegs half an ounce Brew the nutmegs and coriander seed And put them together with the orange flowers Into an olympic With a gallon of proof spirit And 2 quarts of water Draw off the liquor with a gentle fire Till the fates begin to rise And sweeten with fine sugar To make a gallon of rectified Barbados water Take the outer rind of 8 large Florentine citrons Half an ounce of cinnamon bruised And a gallon of rectified spirit Distill to a dryness in Balnea Marie Then dissolve 2 pounds of sugar in a quart of water And mix it with the distilled liquor And run it through the filtering bag Which will render it bright and fine To make a gallon of amber-coloured Barbados water Take the yellow rind of 6 bergamots Half an ounce of cinnamon And 2 drams of cloves Brew the spices and digest the whole 6 days In a gallon of rectified spirit And then add a drum of saffron And let the whole stand 6 days longer in digestion Dissolve 2 pounds of fine sugar in a quart of water Add to it the tincture And run it through the filtering bag To make a gallon of Roman water Take the outer or yellow peels of 6 citrons 2 drams of mace bruised A gallon of proof spirit And 2 quarts of water Draw off with a gentle fire Till the faints begin to rise And sweeten with fine sugar To make a gallon of low Samparel Take the outer peels of 12 citrons 3 quarts of fine proof spirit And a quart of water Put all into a glass olembeck And distill to a dryness in Belneum Marie Fill to the water And put it into bottles well stopped Another way to make a gallon of low Samparel Take the essence of cedrat, bergamot, orange And lemon of each 2 drams A gallon of rectified spirit And 2 quarts of water Put all into a glass olembeck And distill in Belneum Marie Till the faints begin to rise When the receiver must be immediately removed To make a gallon of Vestal water Take the seeds of Dorcas Creticus Or Candy Carrots 2 ounces A gallon of spirit of wine And 2 quarts of water Distill in Belneum Marie Until the faints begin to rise Then add to the spirit drawn over An ounce of the essence of lemons And 4 drops of the essence of ambergris Redistill in Belneum Marie And keep the water in bottles Well stopped for use To make a gallon of Cyprus wine Take the essence of ambergris Half an ounce Put it into a glass olembeck With a gallon of spirit of wine And 2 quarts of water Place the olembeck in Belneum Marie And draw off till the faints begin to rise To make a gallon of Anhalt water Take of the best turpentine A pound and a half Oli bannum, 3 ounces A loaves wood, powdered, 1 ounce Grains of mastic, cloves, ghillie flowers Or rosemary flowers, nutmegs and cinnamon Of each 2 ounces and a half Saffron, 1 ounce Powder the whole and digest them 6 days In 11 gallons of spirit of wine Adding 2 scruples of musk tied up in a rag And draw off in Belneum Marie Till it begins to run foul It is a high aromatic cordial Invigorates the intestines And thereby promotes digestion And dispels flatulences It is a sovereign remedy for guitars And pains arising from colds As also in pulses, epilepsies, apoplexies And lethages, the parts affected Being well rubbed with it To make 10 gallons of gelt water Take the flowers of chamomile Leaves of penny-royal, lavender, marjoram Rosemary, sage and ground pine Of each 8 ounces Mure, 4 ounces Cloves and cinnamon Of each 1 ounce Roots of piney, 2 ounces Pelletary of spain and cypress oris Of each 1 ounce The lecicardamons and cubabs Of each half an ounce Nutmegs, 2 ounces Cut and bruise these ingredients And digest them 4 days in 11 gallons Of proof spirit and 2 gallons of water Then draw off 10 gallons And sweeten with fine sugar It is good in all nervous cases Palsies, epilepsies and Loss of memory To make a gallon of bouquet water Take the flowers of white lilies And spanish jesamine Of each half a pound Orange, jonquil and pink flowers Of each 4 ounces Damus grozers, 1 pound Let them all be fresh-gathered And immediately put into a glass olympic With a gallon of clean proof spirit And 2 quarts of water Place the olympic in Balnea Marie And draw off till the faints begin to rise End of section 31 End of The Complete Confectioner by Hannah Glass