1892 Drinks of the world

DRINKS.

185

Of nectar we have no information worth the reader's acceptance. It appears to be applied indifferently to any dulcet drink. Negus may be made of any sweet wine, but is com- monly composed of port. *' It is," says Jerry Thomas, " a most refreshing and elegant beverage, particularly for those who do not take punch or grog after supper." Egg-nogg, of which other noggs seem to be the lineal descendants, though a beverage of American origin, has '*a popularity that is cosmopolitan. In the South of the United States it is almost indispensable at Christmas time, and at the North it is a favourite at all seasons." In Scotland the beverage is called " auld mans milky The presence of the ^gg con- stitutes the differentia in this drink. Every well- ordered bar has a tin egg-nogg *' shaker'' which is a great aid in mixing. The historian will be glad to learn that it was General Harrison's favourite bever- age, and the consumptive and debilitated person that it is full of nourishment. Punch^ is remarkable for its variety. It is con- ^ Tl^e verdict of Francois Guislier du Verger, the master-distiller in the art of chemistry at Paris, in his Traiie des Liqueurs, in 1728, is altogether unfavourable to what he calls Le Ponge. " It is/' he says, " an English liqueur, and a man must be English to drink it; for I think it cannot be to the taste of any other nation in the world. It upsets the stomach, provokes the bile, and violently affects the head. How, indeed, can it be otherwise, seeing that it is composed of white wine, Eau de vie, citrons, a little sugar, and bread crumbs." And then follows the observation: " If water were put instead of Eau de vie, with an equal quantity of wine, a citron, and four ounces of sugar, a liqueur suitable to every one would be the result, a liqueur which would do as much good as the other does harm."