Pirate Period Beverages

[William Brand]

This thread is designed to house period beverages and recipes. You may post information on drinks inside or outside the Golden Age of Pyracy, but please list the first recorded use of terms and definitions with sources where available.

*FLIP (n.) sailors' hot drink usually containing beer, brandy and sugar, 1695, from flip (v.), so called from notion of it being "whipped up" or beaten.

A flip recipe from Daily Lush Magazine

12 oz ale

1 oz brandy

1 oz lemon juice

1 egg yolk

1 tbsp granulated sugar

1/4 tsp ground ginger

Heat lemon juice, ginger, sugar, and 2 ounces of ale in a saucepan over moderate heat until the sugar has dissolved. In a bowl, beat the egg yolk into the brandy. Pour the lemon juice mixture into the bowl with the egg. Beat with whisk until well blended. Transfer mixture into a beer mug. Add the rest of the ale, stir well, and serve.

*From the Online Etymology Dictionary.

[Hester]

Not a recipe, but a place to visit -- the wine vaults in Newfoundland, where they aged port, beginning in 1679:

http://www.manl.nf.ca/newman.htm

They have a gift shop!

Cheers, Hester

[Cap'n Pete Straw]

I had started another thread here in "THE WAY TO A PIRATE'S HEART" titled Admiral Vernon Grogtini, Martini recipe adapted from 1740. To enhance this present thread, I will copy below parts of a couple of my posts from that thread. I have made slight modifications from the earlier posts...

How to make an Admiral Vernon Grogtini:

Here is my recipe for a Grog Martini, folks. I claim authorship of this modern martini drink recipe as of today, although it is a modified resurrected recipe of the original 1740 orders how to mix Grog -- thus the drink bears Admiral Vernon's name. I am drinking my second one now as I type this (I had to be sure I could replicate the recipe, and this time measure the ingredients accurately... getting really woozy... Holy Crap, these are potent). If someone else has created and published this exact same recipe previously (other than a reprint of Admiral Vernon's 1740 orders), please provide the specific print or internet reference so that I can credit them.

If you like martinis, write this one down -- these suckers are damned smooth and Whoo Boy, the second one is starting to kick in. DISCLAIMER: If you are under legal drinking age (in your respective state) DO NOT MAKE ONE OF THESE. And please remember: do not drink and drive... nor drink and pilot a ship.

Admiral Vernon Grogtini:

Into a martini shaker, put several cubes of ice (duh). Add 1 teaspoon of sugar (if possible, use Turbinado Sugar; I have not yet tried a dollop of molasses instead of the sugar, but this is worth trying). Add a shot and a half of Captain Morgan's Original Spiced Rum, and 3 shots of water. Add 2 (or 3!) teaspoons of ReaLime Juice (if you have real limes, don't argue with me -- use them instead. Use key limes if available). Shake well. Strain into a martini glass with a twist of lime.

Enjoy.

Then thank me... Or toast me and the late but very, very intelligent Admiral Vernon in absentia. This is one quite refreshing martini, let me tell you. Pass this one on, or tell your bartender how to mix one for you, because I think the World should know. (I taught this drink to a local bartender, and now I get these for free anytime I go there).

WORD OF CAUTON: Sugar and Lime and Water makes Rum taste like innocuous candy. This is one smooth baby. This chilled drink is super-refreshing, and is perfect for a warm or hot day ... but it can have the same effect as a Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster. You have been warned.

* * * * * * * * * *

HISTORIC REFERENCE:

The origin of Grog and Vernon's Orders

Grog is essentially a diluted rum mixture, with two parts water and one part Rum. The word "grog" was derived from the nickname for Admiral Vernon who was nicknamed "Old Grogram" based on the waterproof grogram cloak he wore on ships. He first ordered this rum dilution process that yielded grog to be carried out in 1740. This command was called "Vernon's Orders" and it also encouraged the addition of sugar and limes to the grog mixture.

Prior to 1740, rum was issued to the men neat or in "drams" - without water. Admiral Vernon (the hero of Portobello and the West Indies Commander-in-Chief) changed all this by his issuance of his infamous "Order to Captains No. 349" on 21 August 1740. His order refers to the "...unanimous opinion of both Captains and Surgeons that the pernicious custom of the seaman drinking their allowance of rum in drams, and often at once, is attended with many fatal effects to their morals as well as their health ... besides the ill consequences of stupifying their rational qualities ... You are hereby required and directed ... that the respective daily allowance ... be every day mixed with the proportion of a quart of water to a half pint of rum, to be mixed in a scuttled butt kept for that purpose, and to be done upon the deck, and in the presence of the Lieutenant of the Watch who is to take particular care to see that the men are not defrauded in having their full allowance of rum... and let those that are good husbanders receive extra lime juice and sugar that it be made more palatable to them."

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

[William Brand]

Very nice, mates. That's the spirit. Or...spirits...in this case.

If anyone knows the first recorded use of the word Rumfustian, I would greatly appreciate a reference, but I have found the term often enough among reputible pirate sources to know that it existed during the GOAP. Here is one Rumfustian recipe.

Rumfustian

1 tsp. sugar

2 oz. sherry

1 cup ale

2 egg yolk

Lemon peel

2 oz. gin

Cinnamon stick

Nutmeg (ground)

Several cloves (ground)

Beat egg yolks in a bowl with sugar.

In a saucepan, bring ale, gin, sherry, cinnamon, cloves, and lemon peel to the boiling point. Turn heat to simmer and pour in egg mixture. Stir briskly with a whisk. Serve in a warmed mug and top with grated nutmeg.

[Captain Jim]

I must protest the use of "spiced" rum in the Grogtini: I doubt that the admiralty issued spiced rum. I will try this recipe using Mount Gay Eclipse and report back.

BOILING LIQUOR! AAGGHHH! The first thing to go is the alcohol, which boils at a much lower temp than water. You will end up with a non-alcoholic pirate beverage. Not good, no, not good. Or to paraphrase a certain popular pirate: "But why is the alcohol gone?"

[LongTom]

Maybe I'm missing something, but it seems to me that the quoted "proportion of a quart of water to a half pint of rum" is a dilution of 4 parts water to 1 part rum, not 2:1?

Not that I would recommend diluting your Admiral Vernon Grogtini to that extent. It sounds excellent just the way it is.

[William Brand]

BOILING LIQUOR! AAGGHHH! The first thing to go is the alcohol, which boils at a much lower temp than water. You will end up with a non-alcoholic pirate beverage. Not good, no, not good. Or to paraphrase a certain popular pirate: "But why is the alcohol gone?"

I understand the concern, but most studies have shown that high percentages of alcohol are retained when it is cooked. A study conducted by the US Department of Agriculture’s Nutrient Data Laboratory calculated the percentage of alcohol remaining in a dish based on various cooking methods, and the study concluded that alcohol may be added to other boiling liquids or boiled alone and still retain up to 85% of the alcohol on average. In fact, boiling has proved in studies to be the one method of cooking alcohol which retains the highest percentage.

[Cap'n Pete Straw]

I must protest the use of "spiced" rum in the Grogtini: I doubt that the admiralty issued spiced rum.

I am absolutely certain you are correct -- but my recipe is for a Grogtini -- not for the original Grog (I included the original orders for reference). Me Thinks Thou Doest Protest Too Much -- here, have a Grogtini.

Speaking of which, I stopped on the way home to pick up carry-out dinner to bring home to the Missus, and had a Grogtini at the bar while I waited for the food to be ready. Yummies.

Maybe I'm missing something, but it seems to me that the quoted "proportion of a quart of water to a half pint of rum" is a dilution of 4 parts water to 1 part rum, not 2:1?

Please understand I created a Martini recipe which was inspired by the concoction of Grog. I am NOT suggesting or claiming that the "Grogtini" is actually "Grog." Thus the spiced rum, and the proportions.

Not that I would recommend diluting your Admiral Vernon Grogtini to that extent. It sounds excellent just the way it is

Oh, it is, indeed.

[LongTom]

Please understand I created a Martini recipe which was inspired by the concoction of Grog. I am NOT suggesting or claiming that the "Grogtini" is actually "Grog." Thus the spiced rum, and the proportions.

Oh, understood, definitely. The question was not about your recipe at all (which sounds delicious), but about your Historical Reference paragraphs. They mention two different descriptions of the proportions of grog which don't line up.

Speaking of historical proportions, Patrick O'Brian (a secondary or tertiary source, but interesting, since he seems to have researched his other details pretty well) describes grog as three parts water to one part rum, plus the lime and sugar. He also describes one level of shipboard punishment as being put on "six-water rum" for a week.

After reading that, I had to try out both mixtures. The three-water rum is actually pretty good, when you add the lime and sugar, though it could stand to be stronger (and, as you mention, is entirely too easy to drink too much without even noticing). The six-water is barely palatable; if you omit the lime and sugar, it's downright vile, hardly better than I imagine the water straight from the barrel would have been. (One other popular theory is that the rum was supposed to kill the foul taste of the barreled water. After hearing about Admiral Vernon, I begin to doubt that one.)

If these proportions are accurate, they are presented as circa War of 1812 or a few years previous. I wonder if the mixing practice changed proportions over the years?

On the whole, I think the 2:1 in the Grogtini probably wins for taste. Cheers, mate!

[Cap'n Pete Straw]

Oh, understood, definitely.  The question was not about your recipe at all (which sounds delicious), but about your Historical Reference paragraphs.  They mention two different descriptions of the proportions of grog which don't line up.

That was pulled off the Internet, and I cannot vouch for its accuracy. I am sure the exact wording of Admiral Vernon's Orders can be verified (it is a matter of military history)... but I do not have any other source for them.

Speaking of historical proportions, Patrick O'Brian (a secondary or tertiary source, but interesting, since he seems to have researched his other details pretty well) describes grog as three parts water to one part rum, plus the lime and sugar.  He also describes one level of shipboard punishment as being put on "six-water rum" for a week. 

In his book, The Sea Rover's Practice (Potomac Books: 2005), Benerson Little includes an Appendix (6) on Spirits and Belly Timber: Some Culinary History and Recipes for the Adventurous. He has a paragraph on "Punch" which is somewhat germane to the Grog topic... The first few sentences of his paragraph are as follows:

Punch: by whatever recipe, punch was the favorite drink of the English. Labat's recipe is two parts eau-de-vie (brandy, in the New World rum) to one part water. Add the same ingredients as in sangria below (except the wine): cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, a crust of toasted bread, but substitute egg yolks for the lime or lemon juice. Milk or cream may be substituted for the water.

Okay, you know what? That sounds awful. Toast? Eggs? What is that, a drink, or breakfast?

After reading that, I had to try out both mixtures. 

Excellent! Now that's the kind of research that is called for!

[Hester]

In Richard Zacks' Pirate Hunter I came across the following recipe for "English Lemonade", which was imbibed by Captain Kidd as a celebratory drink on Antigua in 1690:

English Lemonade:

Canary Island wine

sugar

lemon juice

cinnamon

nutmeg

clove

a bit of amber essence.

Cheers, Hester

[Hester]

Grog is essentially a diluted rum mixture

"Grog is all well and good, but it doesn't really beat a nice cup of tea." ~ The Pirate Captain, in The Pirates! in an Adventure with Whaling by Gideon Defoe.

[Alder]

Truly a magnifent study and distribution of wisdom.

Another Round !

:)

[Capt. Bo of the WTF co.]

From the "Chronicles of Arundel" trilogy books, by Kenneth Roberts,(excellent reading by the way), New England Flip at one time around the Rev War was simply a bucket of "small beer", mixed with some black rum in a punch bowl, (or a bucket if you're a poor man), and stirred with a red-hot fire poker. Arundel is the first book in the trilogy, and that's where I remember reading it. It is mentioned again in "The Lively Lady, the second book I believe. Sounds positively nasty to me... think I'll have to try it someday!

I know this is a drink thread, but now that I've mentioned Mr. Roberts, anyone that loves historical novels will enjoy the series of books he wrote on Maine life during the American Revolution. Lots of sailing and privateering in them! " Rabble in Arms" was the third. "Captain Caution" was another. You may know him best for the "Northwest Passage". "Oliver Wiswell" is a great read as well. He wrote it from a Loyalist perspective. Lots of "sea time" in that one too. Good to curl up with on a cold winter eve while tossing down some flip! :)

[Pew]

Bringing this back to the top....

Does the inclusions of "Canary Island Wine" and "Brandy", refer to rum, or truly the liquor that we know of today, (different tastes, of course, but along the same lines)?

[Taemus MacRoegen]

Has anyone ever actually tried the Blackbeard gunpowder/grog thing? Just curious.

[Red Cat Jenny]

Bumping this topic fer th upcoming Holidays!

[Red Cat Jenny]

Now bumping for the long cold winter months

"A pirates gotta do something to keep warm!"

heehee little Miracle on 34th Street tribute