To the extent possible under law, the Text Creation Partnership has waived all copyright and related or neighboring rights to this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above, according to the terms of the CC0 1.0 Public Domain Dedication (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/). This waiver does not extend to any page images or other supplementary files associated with this work, which may be protected by copyright or other license restrictions. Please go to http://www.textcreationpartnership.org/ for more information.
The making of a hydromell, very good and clear, out of Raisins, both greater and smaller, resembling the best Spanish wine; out of which also is made a very good and clear vineger.
RAIsins are nothing else but ripe grapes dryed, which in Spain, and other hot countries are cut off in a just season, and are dryed upon warm Earth, and being dryed are sent
into Germany, and other countreys; which in their nature and property are nothing elce but the juice of grapes dryed in the husk, for the aquosity whilest they are in drying, leaves in the husk a sweet juice, as the sugar or essence of grapes; which being lost by the heat of the Sun, the humidity may be re∣stored again by other water, so that wine may be made there∣of; that which hath been tryed of many, who have poured upon raisins whole or cut, warm water, and fermented them in a tub or other vessel, that by this means they might obtain Spanish wine or Sack: but it hath not succeeded according to their expectation, for they have not got wine, but a cer∣taine sweet liquor; because the raisins in drying have assumed another nature, by reason whereof they cannot yeeld such a wine as those that are new are used to do. Wherefore hitherto the making of sack out of raisins hath not been known, like to that which is made out of new grapes, which is now found out. It is beleived by many that raisins by the pouring on of water, recover that which departed from them in the drying, and therefore that the making of wine out of them is possi∣ble, like in vertue and tast, to that which is made out of new grapes. But this is not done by the common way, but by a∣nother, viz. by the help of a certain precipitation, or taking away of the tast of the raisins, by the promoting of fermen∣tation, and separation of the heterogeneall parts. For it is not any peculiar Art to make a certain sweet drink out of raisins by the addition of water after that common known way, which cannot undergoe the proof of true durable wine, but being not yet clarified by the fermentation that is made, doth by little and little grow sour, that which good Spanish wine (although that grow sowre before others) doth not, being durable for the space of some years, if it be rightly ordered. Wherefore because those wines made after that common way out of raisins, are not durable (as experience can witnesse) the making of them was afterward neglected, because of an opinion which men had of the impossibility thereof; which fault is not to be imputed to the raisins, but to the Artist; for if in the drying nothing but the insipid humidity evapo∣rate,
all the goodness being left in the raisins, why should the making of wine out of them be impossible by restoring of a humidity like to the naturall? But the strong tast of the raisins which is got by drying which no one can take away hinders it: But in case any one knew how to doe it, he shall not be able only to make thereof a Spanish, but also a Rhenish wine. But thou wilt ask, how can Rhenish wine be made of Spanish raisins; which being new yeeld only a sweet wine? The answer is given in the preceding Paragraphs, where the possibility of making divers kinds of wines out of any sweet matter is demonstrated.
I dare devoutly affirm that I have sometimes made out of those common raisins, and honey, sweet wines, which have been drunk by most for Spanish. No more therefore of this thing which will be confirmed by experience.
But I shall say this in the place of conclusion, that if thou didst know to take away the ungratefull tast and odour of hony, thou mayst in any place of the world, where honey is to be had, or sweet pears, make good sack, or haply any other, as Mallago, or that which is called the wine of Simon Peters Mount, viz. without raisins, because the matter of them is to be had in every place. These kinds of wine yeeld also a white, cleer, and very sharp vineger, and indeed better then the French, and Rhenish. Such kinds of wines may also be made all the year long, so that thou needst not be tyed to any certain time of the year; that which is a great profit for those, who every year have a great loss of wine.