Welcome to Celtnet's Hannah Glassse's Recipes for Distilling — This page gives you the entire contents of the Twentieth Chapter: 'DISTILLING' from Hannah Glasses's 1747 volume,
The Art of Cookery Made Plain and Easy. Each recipe is given here in its original form, with a link underneath to the modern redaction, should you wish to replicate it. This is the first time that Hannah Glasse's book has been made available in its entirety on the internet. Enjoy...
These pages have been written to be as close to the 1747 original as possible, within the limitations of HTML. As a result, the long-s symbol 'ſ' has been used in the text wherever it features in the original. Typically this is used where the s precedes a long letter such as an I, t or 1 or another long-s (to create a ligature), or where the S precedds a curved letter such as an 'a', 'e', 'o' or 's'. As a result, in the original work 'seasoned skirret soop' is typeset 'ſeaſoned ſkirret ſoop'.
You will encounter many unfamiliar culinary terms and usages in this work. Where the recipe has been redacted into modern form, these are either defined in the redaction or a link to a definition is given. However, may of the terms can also be found by browsing or searching the
glossary of cooking and food terms pages on this site.
The text presented here is derived directly from Hannah Glasse's book and redacted specifically for this website. Please do not copy or use the content of these pages without first gaining permission.
Hanna Glasse's Twentieth Chapter
CHAP. XX.
DISTILLING
To diſtil walnut water.
TAKE a peck of fine green walnuts, bruiſe them well in a large mortar, put them in a pan, with a handful of baum bruiſed, put two quarts of good French brandy to them, cover them cloſe, and let them lie three days ; the next day diſtil them in a cold ſtill ; from this quantity draw three quarts, which you may do in a day.
How to uſe this ordinary ſtill.
YOU muſt lay the plate, then wood-aſhes at the bottom, then the iron pan, which you are to fill with your walnuts and liquor, then put on the head of the ſtill, make a pretty briſk fire till the ſtill begins to drop, then ſlacken it ſo as juſt to have enough to keep the ſtill at work, mind all the time to keep a wet cloth all over the head of the ſtill all the time it is at work, and always obſerve not to let the ſtill work longer than the liquor is good, and take great care you don't burn the ſtill ; and thus you may diſtil what you pleaſe. If you draw the ſtill too far it will burn, and give your liquor a bad taſte.
To make treacle-water.
TAKE the juice of green walnuts four pounds, of rue, carduus, mary gold, and baum, of each three pounds, roots of butter-bur half a pound, roots of burdock one pound, angelka and maſterwort, of each half a pound, leaves of ſcordium ſix handfuls, Venice treacle and mithridate of each half a pound, old Canary wine two pounds, white wine vinegar ſix pounds, juice of lamon ſix pounds, and diſtil this in an alembic.
To make black cherry water.
TAKE ſix pounds of black cherries, and bruiſe them ſmall then put to them the tops of roſemary, ſweet marjoram, ſpearmint, angelica, baum, marygold flowers, of each a handful, dried violets one ounce, aniſeeds and ſweet fennel ſeeds, of each half an ounce bruiſed ; cut the herbs ſmall, mix all together, and diſtil them off in a cold ſtill.
To make hyſterical water.
TAKE betony, roots of lovage, ſeeds of wild parſnips, of each two ounces, roots of ſingle piony four ounces, of miſletoe of the oak three ounces, myrrh a quarter of an ounce, castor half an ounce ; beat all theſe together and add to them a quarter of a pound of dried millepedes : pour on theſe three quarts of mugwort-water, and two quarts of brandy ; let them ſtand in a cloſe veſſel eight days, then diſtil it in a cold ſtill poſted up. You may draw off nine pints of water, and ſweeten it to your taſte. Mix all together, and bottle it up.
To diſtil red-roſe buds.
WET your roſes in fair water ; four gallons of roſes will take near two gallons of water, then ſtill them in a cold ſtill ; take the ſame ſtilled water, and put into as many freſh roſes as it will wet, then ſtill them again.
Mint, baun, parſley, and penny-royal water, diſtil the ſame way.
To make plague-water
| Roots. | Flowers | Seeds. |
| Angelica, | Wormwood, | Hart's tongue |
| Dragon, | Suckery, | Horehound, |
| Maywort, | Hyſop, | Fennel |
| Mint, | Agrimony, | Melilot |
| Rue, | Fennel, |
St. John's wort, |
| Carduus, | Cowſlips, | Comfrey, |
| Origany, | Poppys, | Featherfew, |
| Winter-ſavoury | Plantain, | Red roſe-leaves, |
| Broad thyme, | Setfoyl, | Wood-ſorrel |
| Roſemary, | Vocvain, | Pellitory of the wall, |
| Pimpernel, | Maidenhair | Heart's eaſe, |
| Sage, | Motherwort, | Centaury, |
| Fumatory, | Cowage | Sea-drink, a good handful of each of the aforeſaid things, |
| Coltsfoot, | Golden-rod | |
| Scabeus, | Gromwell, | Gentian-root |
| Burridge, | Dill. | Dock-root, |
| Saxafreg, | | Butterbur root, |
| Betony, | | Piony-root |
| Liverwort, | | Bay-berries, |
| Jarmander, | | Juniper-berries, of each of theſe a pount. |
One ounce of nutmegs, one ounce of cloves, ad half an ounce of mace ; pick the herbs and flowers, and ſhred them a little. Cut the roots, bruiſe the berries, and pound the ſpices fine ; take a peck of green walnuts, and chop them ſmall ; mix all theſe together, and lay them to ſteep in ſack lees, or any white wine-lees, if not in good ſpirits ; but wine lees are beſt. Let them lie a week or better ; be ſure to ſtir them once a day with a ſtick, and keep them cloſe covered, then ſtill them in an alembic with a ſlow fire, and take care your ſtill does not burn. The firſt, ſecond, and third running is good, and ſome of the fourth. Let them ſtand till cold, then put them together.
To make ſurfeit-water.
YOU muſt take ſcurvy-graſs, brook lime, water-creſſes, Roman wormwood, rue, mint, baum, ſage, clivers, or each one handful ; green merery two handfuls ; poppys, if freſh half a peck, if dry a quarter of a peck ; cochineal, ſix pennyworth, ſaffron, ſix pennyworth ; aniſeeds, carraway-ſeeds, coriander-ſeeds, cardamom-ſeeds, of each an ounce ; liquorice two ounces, ſcraped, figs ſplit a pound, raiſins of the ſun ſtoned a pound, juniper-berries an ounce bruiſed, nutmeg an ounce beat, mace an ounce bruiſed, ſweet fennel-ſeeds an ounce bruiſed, a few flowers of roſemary, marygold and ſage-flowers : put all theſe into a large ſtone jar, and put to them three gallons of French brandy ; cover it cloſe, and let it ſtand near the fire for three weeks. Stir it three times a week, and be ſure to keep it cloſe ſtopped, and then ſtrain it of ; bottle your liquor, and pour on the ingredients a gallon more of French brady. Let it ſtand a week, ſtirring it once a day, then diſtil it in a cold ſtill, and this will make a fine white ſurfeit water.
You may make this water at any time of the year, if you live at London, becauſe the ingredients are always to be had either green or dry ; but it is the beſt made in ſummer.
To make milk water.
TAKE two good handfuls of wormwood, as much carduus, as much rue, four handfuls of mint, as much baum, half as much angelica, cut theſe a little, put them into a cold ſtill, and put to them three quarts of milk. Let your fire be quick till your ſtill drops, and then ſlacken your fire. You may draw off two quarts. The firſt quart will keep all the year.
How to diſtil vinegar you have in the Chapter of Pickles.
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The Art of Cookery Made Plain and Easy
