Herbal

Spirit of wine tasting of what vegetable you please #2

Spirit of wine tasting of what vegetable you please — illustration
Illustration — a stand-in until there's a photo of the real thing.

Source Sir Hugh Plat, Delightes for Ladies (Humfrey Lownes, London 1609) — original

Ingredients

  • Rosemarie
  • Sage
  • sweet Fennel seeds
  • Marjerom
  • Lemmon or Orenge pils, &c.
  • spirits of wine

Method

  1. Macerate Rosemarie, Sage, sweet Fennel seeds, Marjerom, Lemmon or Orenge pils, &c. in spirits of wine a daie or two, and then distill it over againe,
  2. unless you had rather have it in his proper colour: for so you shall have it upon the first infusion without any farther distillation: and some young Alchymists doe hold these for the true spirits of vegetables.

Notes

  • Explicitly permits the undistilled infusion — the model for modern cordial redactions.

This recipe predates 1700 and is quoted from its original printed source. Spelling is left exactly as printed.