Page:Mrs Beeton's Book of Household Management.djvu/1662

1486 the liquid to 5 gallons. Replace in the bowl or tub, stir in the cream of tartar, cover with a heavy woollen cloth, and allow the vessel to stand in a moderately warm place for 2 days. Now strain the liquid into a small cask, cover the bung-hole with a folded cloth until fermentation ceases—which may be known by the cessation of the hissing noise—then bung closely, but provide the top of the cask with a vent-peg. Make this wine in the beginning of June, before the berries ripen; let it remain undisturbed until December, then drain it off carefully into a clean cask. In March or April, or when the gooseberry bushes begin to blossom, the wine must be bottled and tightly corked. To ensure its being clear and effervescing, the wine must be bottled at the right time and on a clear day.

Ingredients.—Firm green gooseberries. To each lb. of fruit allow 2 pints of cold water. To each gallon of juice obtained from the fruit allow 3 lbs. of loaf sugar, ½ a pint of good gin, 4 ozs. of isinglass.

Method.—Top and tail the gooseberries, bruise them thoroughly, pour over them the cold water, and let them stand for about 4 days, stirring frequently. Strain through a jelly-bag or fine hair sieve, dissolve the sugar in the liquid, add the gin and isinglass dissolved in a little warm water, and pour the whole into a cask. Bung loosely until fermentation has ceased, then tighten the bung, and let the cask remain undisturbed for at least 6 months. At the end of this time the wine may be bottled, but it will not be ready for use for at least 12 months.

Ingredients.—Sound, not over-ripe grapes; to each lb. allow 1 quart of cold water. Add to each gallon of liquid obtained from the grapes 3 lbs. of loaf sugar, ¼ of a pint of French brandy, ¼ of an oz. of isinglass.

Method.—Strip the grapes from the stalks, put them into a wooden tub or earthenware bowl, and bruise them well. Pour over them the water, let them stand for 3 days, stirring frequently, then strain through a jelly-bag or fine hair sieve. Dissolve the sugar in the liquid, then pour the whole into a cask. Bung lightly for a few days until fermentation subsides, then add the isinglass dissolved in a little warm water, and the brandy, and tighten the bung. Let the cask remain undisturbed for 6 months, then rack the wine off into bottles, cork and seal them securely, and keep for at least a year before using.

Ingredients.—5 ozs. of hops, 8 gallons of water, 2½ lb. of brown sugar, 3 or 4 tablespoonfuls of yeast.