1922 Home-Made Beverages and American Drinks by M E Steedman

32 Home-made Beverages. crushed sugar candy, shaking occasionally. Strain through filtering paper and store in air tight bottles. Damson. Ratafia. Take the kernels from 4 lb. damsons, and pound them in a mortar with 2oz. bitter almonds and a spoonful of brandy. Infuse them for six weeks in a tightly closed jar with 2 quarts of good brandy, shaking twice daily. Dissolve one and a half pounds sugarcandyin half a pint of cold water, add the strained brandy, filter into bottles, and cork and seal them securely. Damson Syrup. Put some ripe damsons in a jar, place it in a pot of water, and boil until the juice flows freely. Strain through a jelly bag, measure the liquid, allow 1 lb. pure cane sugar to every pint of juice, and boil together for ten minutes, skimming carefully. When cold, pour into bottles, place a little olive oil on the top, and cork and seal securely. When required remove the oil with a piece of cotton wool, and dilute the syrup to taste with plain or aerated water. Damson Vinegar. See recipe for Apricot Vinegar. Damson Water. See recipe for Peach Water. Damson Wine. BoU 16 lb. of pure cane sugar and 21 quarts of water together for half an hour, removing the scum as it rises, then add 16 quarts of stalked and stoned damsons, and boil for 30 minutes longer, stirring and ^-skimming frequently. Strain through a fine sieve into a large bowl, and when lukewarm add a gill of good yeast, and let it ferment for three or four days. Draw off into a cask, filter the lees, and fill up the cask with them as the fermentation subsides. When this has ended, add one and a half pints of good brandy, bung the cask tightly, and leave it for six months,then rack it off,filter the lees through a piece of folded flannel, and fill up the cask again, adding an ounce of isinglass dissolved in a quart of the wine. Bung securely and leave for two years, then bottle.