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An Excellent Boilled Salad	Pottage With Whole Herbs	Excellent Small Cakes
Custard	Ale From The Cask

An Excellent Boilled Salad

Ingredients:

10 ounces spinach
2 T butter
5/8 c currants
3 T wine vinegar
4 T sugar
1 lb loaf of white bread or more, toasted (sippets)

Instructions:

To make an excellent compound boil'd Sallat: take of Spinage well washt two or three handfuls, and put it into faire water and boile it till it bee exceeding soft and tender as pappe; then put it into a Cullander and draine the water from it, which done, with the backside of your Chopping-knife chop it and bruise it as small as may bee: then put it into a Pipkin with a good lump of sweet butter and boile it over again; then take a good handfull of Currants cleane washt and put to it, and stirre them well together, then put to as much Vinegar as will make it reasonable tart, and then with sugar season it according to the taste of the Master of the house, and so serve it upon sippets.

Gervase Markham, The English Huswife, 1615, book 2, p. 40, order rearranged by Editor.

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Pottage with Whole Herbs

Ingredients:

mutton, veal, or kid: 1 lb veal
1 1/2 c oatmeal
3 1/2 oz lettuce
generous handful spinach (~ 1.5 oz)
1 small endive (2 oz)
2 oz chiccory
5 flowerettes cauliflower
2 small onions
1/2 T salt
verjuice: 1 T wine vinegar
6 slices of toast (sippets)

Instructions:

Take mutton, veal or kid, break the bones but do not cut up the flesh, wash, put in a pot with water. When ready to boil and well skimmed, add a handful or two of small oatmeal. Take whole lettuce, the best inner leaves, whole spinach, whole endive, whole chiccory, whole leaves of colaflorry [cauliflower?] or the inward parts of white cabbage, with two or three onions. Put all into the pot until done. Season with salt and as much verjuice as will only turn the taste of the pottage; serve up covering meat with whole herbs and addorning the dish with sippets.
Editors Note:
Cook veal whole about 1/2 hour in enough water to cover. The vegetables were added as soon as the water came to a boil and was skimmed.

Gervase Markham, The English Huswife, 1615, book 2, p. 48, order rearranged by Editor.

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Excellent Small Cakes

Ingredients:

3 c flour
3/4 c sugar
3/4 lb currants = about 2 1/2 c
3/8 lb butter = 1 1/2 sticks
2 1/2 T cream
1 egg yolk
1/4 t nutmeg
2 t sack (Editor: we used sherry)

Instructions:

Take three pound of very fine flower well dried by the fire, and put to it a pound and a half of loaf sugar sifted in a very fine sieve and dried; 3 pounds of currants well washed, and dried in a cloth and set by the fire; when your flour is well mixed with the sugar and currants, you must put in it a pound and a half of unmelted butter, ten spoonfuls of cream, with the yolks of three newlaid eggs beat with it, one nutmeg; and if you please, three spoonfuls of sack. When you have wrought your paste well, you must put it in a cloth, and set it in a dish before the fire, till it be through warm. Then make them up in little cakes, and prick them full of holes; you must bake them in a quick oven unclosed. Afterwards ice them over with sugar. The cakes should be about the bigness of a hand breadth and thin; of the size of the sugar cakes sold at Barnet.
Editor's Note:
All of this assumes that "spoonful" = Tablespoon.
Cut butter into the flour as one would for piecrust. Bake cakes about 20 minutes at 350deg.
Icing: about 1/3 c sugar and enough water so you can spread it.

Sir Kenelm Digby, The Closet of Sir Kenelm Digby, Opened, 1669, p. 221/175, order rearranged by Editor.

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To Make a Custarde

Ingredients:

1 pie crust
2 c cream
3 egg yolks
1/4 c sugar
1/3 c raisins
1/4 c dates
3 t butter (or marrow)

Instructions:

A Custarde the coffyn must be fyrste hardened in the oven, and then take a quart of creame and fyve or syxe yolkes of egges, and beate them well together, and put them into the creame, and put in Suger and small Raysyns and Dates sliced, and put into the coffyn butter or els marrowe, but on the fyshe daies put in butter.
Editor's Note:
Make pie crust and pre-bake for 10-15 minutes at 400deg. . Chop dates. Beat the eggs, add cream, sugar, raisins and dates and pour into pie crust. Dot pie with butter. Bake at 350deg. for 1 hour 15 minutes.

Catherine Frances Frere, ed. A Proper Newe Booke of Cokerye, Cambridge: W. Heffer and sons, Ltd., 1913 (original from the 1500's), p. 23/C7, order rearranged by Editor.

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Cask Conditioned Ale

Being a redaction and recreation of a 1577 beer recipe

Brewed and Presented by HLS Rauţúlfr Rúnameistari

This beverage is the redaction of a recipe which appears in: A Sip Through time: A collection of Old Brewing Recipes, by Cindy Renfrow, 1994. It came about as I was looking over the redaction which Ms. Renfrow gave for the recipe and upon close comparison with the original found it wanting. The matter of her error lead me to ignore her proposed redaction in preparing the one which I give. The key was her failure to recognize the fact that the recipe was intended to yield three batches of eighty gallons each, while she numbered only two.[ A Sip Through time: A collection of Old Brewing Recipes, by Cindy Renfrow, 1994, p. 4.] The original is from The Description of England, by William Harrison, 1577; The original and my redaction are given in parallel text beginning on

Meal is used because of its availability and cost. This gives 475 pounds of grain to 240 gallons of water. Or about 2 pounds of grain per gallon. Each batch uses eighty gallons of boiling water.
This doone she letteth hir mash run till the malt be left without liquor, or at the leastwise the greater part of the moisture, which she perceiveth by the staie and softe issue thereof, and by this time hir second liquor in the furnace is ready to seeth, which is put also to the malt as the first woort also againe into the furnace, whereunto she addeth two pounds of the best English hors. and so letteth them seeth together by the space of two hours in summer, or an houre and a halfe in winter, whereby it getteth an excellent colour and continuance without impeachment, or anie superfluous tartnesse. But before she putteth her first woort into the furnace, or mingleth it with the hops, she taketh out a vessel full, of eight or nine gallons, which she shutteth up close, and suffereth no aire to come into it till it become yellow, and this she reserveth by it selfe unto further use, as shall appeare hereafter, calling it Brackwoort or Charwoort, and as she saith it addeth also to the colour of the drinke, whereby it yeeldeth not unto amber or fine gold in hew unto the eie.
My notes: Eighty gallons of boiling water is poured "softly" over the grain and allowed to steep without stirring. This would extend the grain so that there was not excessive extraction for the first and second batches. The second eighty gallons is put on the fire and when it boils the mash is allowed to drain until it will produce no more liquor. The second eighty gallons is put to the wort and then set to steep in the, and the first liquor is put to the fire along with 2pounds of hops. This is allowed to simmer for two hours in summer or an hour and a half in winter. Eight or nine gallons of the first wort are set aside before the hops are added. This will have herbs and spices added to it later to create medicinals. These recipes are not included here. The wort is then returned to the heat.
By this time also hir second woort is let runne, and the first being taken out of the furnace and placed to coole, she returneth the middle woort into the furnace, where it is striker over, or from whence it is taken againe. "When she hath mashed also the last liquor (and set the second to coole by the first) she letteth it runne and then seetheth it againe with a pound and a half of new hops or peradventure two pounds as she seeth cause by the goodness or baseness of the hops; and when it hath sodden in summer two hours, and in winter an houre and a halfe, she striketh it also and reserveth it unto mixture with the rest when time doth serve therefore. [The discussion of the preperation of brackwoort or charwoort has been ommited] I value my malt at ten shillings, my wood at foure shillings which I buie, my hops at twenty pence, the spice at two pence, servants wages two shillings sixpence, both meat and drinke, and the wearing of my vessell at twentie pence, so that for my twenty shillings I have ten score gallons of beer or more, notwithstanding the loss in seething. The continuance of the drinke is always determined after the quantitie of the hops, so that being well hopped it lasteth longer. For it feedeth upon the hop and holdeth out so long as the force of the same endureth which being extinguished the drinke must be spent or else it dieth and becometh of no value.
When the first batch has simmered sufficiently, it is removed from the fire and set to cool. The second batch of liquor has all drained from the wort and is then returned to the furnace for its simmering. This batch is simmered without hops added to it. While this is happening the third batch of eighty gallons of water is put to the wort for steeping. When the second batch is removed and set aside, 1 1/2 to 2 pounds of hops are added and this is then simmered for the appropriate amount of time. Final Notes: This produces three batches of beer equaling about 200 gallons. One premium beer, one good quality brew, and "small-beer" which was a drink for every day consumption. The tone tends toward frugality and economy. This passage seems to indicate that the hops were not only left in the brew during fermentation, but perhaps also during aging.

Observations and surmises:

1. We do not know what method was used to achieve fermentation, however because of the frugal tone of the recipe, we can presume that Ale-Barm was used to start fermentation. [ See appendix 1 for a discussion of beginning Fermentation.]
2. If Ale-yeast was added, we do not know what sort it was. It would have been close to a wild yeast in nature.
3. We do not know what the liquor was fermented in, or for how long.
4. We do not know what the beer was aged in, or for how long.

1. The hops were not strained out of the beer prior to fermentation.
2. The beer was open fermented.
3. The beer was aged and stored in wooden kegs.

1. I made only one batch of beer rather than three, because I do not have the space to brew, bottle, and age fifteen gallons of beer at the same time!
2. I used malt extract because of the lack of facilities to malt grain at my home. The six pounds of extract which I used would be equivalent to using eight pounds of malted grain.
3. I used milled wheat, but used flaked Oats rather than ground because that is what I could get.
4. The ratio of malt/grain to water is a bit lower in my recipe. Being about 1.9 pounds of grain to a gallon of water, rather than the original 2.0. Hopefully the lower ratio was compensated for because it was all used in one batch rather than trying to get three batches of beer from my grain.
5. I added the malt extract to the boiling water before pouring it over the grains. This gave the extract time to dissolve into the water. This took about five minutes. With a total time of about ninety minutes to bring the five gallons to a boil.
6. The grain was allowed to steep for ninety minutes, however I did agitate the grain in order to improve the contact with the water.
7. One ounce of fresh Fuggles hops was added to the liquor after the grain was removed, and before it was returned to the heat. The liquor was added to the fermenter with the hops still in it.
8. I used a trappist yeast. This is fairly close to a wild yeast, and is very tolerant of the environment. For example, it remains hardy up to 13% alcohol! When fermentation didn't really take off I added a dry standard brewers yeast.
9. Prior to bottling, 3/4 cup of corn sugar was added to the fermenter.
10. Two gallons of the beer was cask conditioned. The remainder was bottled. This allows for a comparison of the beer itself, and the beer as it turned out in the cask. I opted for a two gallon keg for three reasons. The first of which is that the beer must be consumed within 24 hours of tapping the cask; thus a five gallon cask would have required a reasonable number of folk to finish it off. The second of which is that the two gallon cast cost $67.00 U.S.. The five gallon was just too expensive! Thirdly, if something weird happens to the cask, there will still be bottles to sample!

The recipe:

The original recipe was:
421 pounds of malt;
27 pounds of wheat meal;
27 pounds of ground oats
1.65 pounds of hops for batch one
No hops for batch two
1 1/2 -2 pounds of hops for batch three
240 gallons of water

Converting these amounts for the production of five gallons of beer gave these rounded amounts:
8.7 pounds of malt
.7 pounds of ground wheat
.7 pounds of ground oats
0.54 ounces of hops (for the first batch)
0.41 ounces of hops (for the third batch)
5 gallons of water

The Redaction:
6 pounds light malt extract ( 8 pounds of malt
.75 pound milled wheat
.75 pound flaked oats
1 ounce of Fuggles hops
3/4 cup corn sugar
5 gallons of water
1 ounce of live Trappist yeast
1 ounce of dry Brewers Yeast, (for stuck fermentation)

The reasons why were:

1. The ratio of a malt extract, to a malted grain, is about 1.25 : 1, so my malt was slightly lighter in quantity than in the original.
2. I used .75 pounds of wheat meal, rather than .7 for simplicity.
3. I used .75 pounds of flaked oats rather than .7 for simplicity.
4. I used one ounce of Fuggles hops. This will make the beer slightly 'hoppier", but not significantly so. In the absence of any other information Fuggles seemed appropriate for a brew of this sort; it is what the English would currently use.
5. The corn sugar was used as an aid to fermentation, and to help the yeast get going which is important in open fermentation. (Particularly because I have never tried open fermentation before.)

The Process:

Because of the winter household temperature, two days before the start of brewing the yeast was activated. It was placed in a 2 liter bottle with an air trap. Roughly one quart of nutrient wort was mixed up and one ounce of trappist yeast was added. Trappist yeast was selected for reasons noted earlier. Brewing was begun using a six gallon stainless steel pot with five gallons of water which was brought to a boil. The sugar and the malt was added to this before the water was removed from the heat and poured over the grain. The grains were placed in a six gallon pot with a mesh bag lining it to aid in removing the grain. The boiling water and the malt was poured over this and the wort was allowed to steep for 1 1/2 hour. After that time, the grain was removed from the liquor, and was allowed to drain completely. The Grain was lightly squeezed to extract the most water possible. The liquor was then returned to the heat and the hops were added. The liquor was simmered for 1 1/2 hours and was not allowed to boil. It remained at about degrees F. for that time. Fermentation was open, in a ten gallon crock. The yeast was added after the temperature fell to about 85 degrees F. Because of the winter temperature of my home, I used a warming pad under the crock to help maintain a constant temperature at night. The temperature remained between 70o and 80o during fermentation. Fermentation was very slow in beginning, and so on the next day I added one ounce of a standard dry brewers-yeast. This seemed to liven things up. One difference between open and closed fermentation was apparent rather quickly. While one does hear gasses escaping from the trap with closed fermentation, one can hear a constant hiss from the open crock. There is also an increased brewing aroma, which is probably to be expected. On the whole, the effect is to make it more obvious that something is indeed happening!

Appendix I

Period Aids to Fermentation:

I have encountered two possible methods for starting fermentation which could apply in this instance. Both examples are from a slightly post-period document The Closet of Sir Kenelm Digby, Knight, Opened. This work was published posthumously in 1669, Digby having died in 1665.

1). The Use of Ale-Yeast for fermentation

The first is from a Currant-wine recipe found on P.98. I reproduce the entire recipe here:
CURRANTS-WINE
TAKE a pound of the best Currants clean picked, and pour upon them in a deep straight mouthed earthen vessel six pounds or pints of hot water, in which you have dissolved three spoonfuls of the purest and newest Ale-yest. Stop it very close till it ferment, then give such vent as is necessary, and keep it warm for about three days, it will work and ferment. Taste it after two days, to see if it be grown to your liking. As soon as you find it so, let it run through a strainer, to leave behind all the exhausted currants and the yest, and so bottle it up. It will be exceeding quick and pleasant, and is admirable good to cool the Liver, and cleanse the blood. It will be ready to drink in five or six days after it is bottled; And you may drink safely large draughts of it.
The significant portion is the passage: in which you have dissolved three spoonfuls of the purest and newest Ale-yeast. While we do not know when Digby actually set down these words, we do know that sometime prior to 1665 Ale-yeast was used in the fermentation process. It is therefore reasonable to suppose that they existed before 1650.

2). The use of Ale-Barm for fermentation.

The second method is found in a Scotch-Ale recipe which immediately follows the Currant-wine recipe. I am only including the relevant portion here: Producing Ale-Barm ...This quantity (of a hogshead) will require better then a quart of the best Ale-barm, which you must put to it thus. Put it to about three quarts of wort, and stir it, to make it work well. When the barm is risen quick scum it off to put to the rest of the wort by degrees. The remaining Liquor (that is the three quarts) will have drawn into it all the heavy dregs of the barm, and you may put it to the Ale of the second running, but not to this. Put the barm, you have scummed off (which will be at least a quart) to about two gallons of the wort, and stir it to make that rise and work. Then put two Gallons more to it. Doing thus at several times, till all be mingled, which will require a whole day to do. Cover it close, and let it work, till it be at it's height, and begin to fall, which may require ten or twelve hours, or more. Watch this well, least it sink too much, for then it will be dead. Then scum off the thickest part of the barm, and run your Ale into the hogshead, leaving all the bung open a day or two. Then lay a strong Paper upon it....
Because of I was only producing five gallons, I doubted that I could produce sufficient ale-barm to proceed without the addition of yeast. Additionally, I wanted to disturb the open fermenter as little as possible to maintain sanitation.

Appendix II

The Cask, and this competition

The cask was a two gallon wooden container of white Oak. There are some differences between this oak and the oak used for casks in England, but there are limits to the availability of an authentically English Oak cask. Of greater significance is the fact that, the smaller container presents some alterations on what we can expect.

1. Basic mathematics tells us that the surface area within a two galleon keg is greater by comparison to its volume than the respective surface area of a fifty-six gallon barrel in comparison with its total volume. This means that there is proportionally more beer in contact with oak in this barrel, than there would have been in a full sized ale cask. Because of this we can expect to find more of an oak-ish taste to the brew.
2. One of the first things mentioned in the booklet on Cellarmanship is: "Cask conditioned beer has to be set up into its serving position and then left undisturbed until the cask is empty. The cask has to be supported in such a way that it does not rock or shake."[ Cellarmanship, P. 5] Oddly enough, the circumstances of this competition do not allow this. The beer will be moved from Madrone to Lionsgate on Friday. It will be spiled on Friday, and will be broached on Saturday. This transportation will not allow the beverage to settle, and as such one ought to expect much more, very much more particulate than would have been produced had the keg not been disturbed.
3. The normal process would be to settle the cask on three points of contact, and leave the keg there. Once the keg was between 1/2 and 1/3 full, the keg would be stooped, or tilted into its final position. Too large a tilt will disturb the sediment; the key being to tilt until the final curve of the keg is parallel to the surface below it. The other option is to set the keg into the final serving position at the beginning and leave it there. The circumstances at the site where the keg will be judged, will determine how it will be setup.
4. Spiling, or venting the cask should occur within one to three days prior to tapping. Needless to say, spiling will occur the day before the beverage will be consumed. Fortunately, as this is likely to be a beverage which is only lightly carbonated, this ought to not be a problem.
5. Fortunately, tapping the keg ought to present no particular additional difficulty! As to the beverage which comes out, well, that is the whole question. Isn't it?

Appendix III

Conversion factors:

Ounce (Troy)
= 480 grains
= 480 minums
= 31 grams
= 8 drams
Ounce (Avoirdupois)
= 437.5 grains
= 28.35 grams
Pound (Troy)
= 5,760 grains
= 12 Troy ounces
Pound (Avoirdupois)
= 7,000 grains
= 16 Avoirdupois ounces
The English Bushel = 8 gallons of wheat
A gallon of wheat = 8 wheat pounds = 8 troy pounds

Bibliography:

Campaign For Real Ale, Cellarmanship: Caring For Real Ale, Campaign for Real Ltd. St. Albans, 1994
Digby, Sir Kenelm. The Closet of Sir Kenelm Digby, Knight, Opened: Newly Edited with Introduction, Notes and Glossary by Anne MacDonell, Philip Lee Warner, London, 1910
The Complete Anachronist:

• #81 Period Metrology: A study of Measurement, Part 1. The Society for Creative Anachronism Inc., 1995
  
• #82 Period Metrology: A study of Measurement, Part 2. The Society for Creative Anachronism Inc., 1995
  

Papazian, Charlie. The New Complete Joy of Home Brewing, Avon Books, New York, 1991
Renfrow, Cindy. A Sip Through time: A collection of Old Brewing Recipes, 1994
BEER- 1577 From The Description of England, by William Harrison, 1577.

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