SC - Gulf War? was SC-RE:Gunther's Challenge

[Alderton, Philippa]

> With so many of these tidbits out there, you'd think we could find
> definitive documentary evidence that alcohol was used in our period for
> medicinal and entertainment purposes.  Sigh...
> Tara

Those documents are out there, if rarely studied: a fellow
Gwyntarian Tunners Guild member has done some research in
that area, and taught a class on it last Pennsic. Contact
Foreester Nigel FitzMaurice (Bruce Gordon) at
obsidian at raex.com for specifics in the manuscript. 
A few excerpts:
"a number of recipes are transcribed from various common
books dating from the late 14th century.
... all taken from four different manuscripts (Harleian
2378, the Johnstone Manuscript, Sloane 521, and Sloane
2584). Each of these works are privately produced
formularies describing a wide variety of medicinal
preparations, presenting several hundred leaves each both in
Latin and Middle English. ... They were selected as clear
examples of medicines on their way to becoming liquers."
(various cautions follow, on translating Middle English, and
the changes in plant names, etc)
from #5: Harl. 2378 p.278 
trans after original (which I don't have the ME font for):"A
precious water to clear a mans sight and destroy the pain in
a mans eye. - Take red rose, wood-sage (which some call
capillus vereris), fennel, ivy, vervain, eyebright, endive,
and betony; of each equal amounts, so that you have in all 6
handfulls; and let them rest in wine a day and a night. The
second day still them in a distillator; the first water that
you produce shall be the color of gold, the next of silver,
the 3rd of balm; this precious water may serve to ladies
instead of balm." 
further: "Another point which we shall see repeated in all
these recipes is that, for the most part, the part of the
plant to be used is not specified, and we are left to guess
whether the root, the stalk, the seeds, or the flowers are
meant."
A more obvious one might be:
#9. Johnstone Ms. P. 258. (probably 1400-1450, as it is the
last entry) 
Trans: "For to make aqua vite. - Take sage, and fennel-rotes
and persley-rotes and rosemaryne and tyme and lavender, each
in equal amounts. Wash them and dry them, and then grind
them a little in a mortar and add a little salt. Then put it
in the body of the distillator and pour in wine (red or
white), then place it in a pot of ashes over the furnace and
make a gentle enough fire underneath that when the
distillator begins to drip, look that it drips no faster
than you can say "one-two-three" between the drops. And so
distill it all together, then take the water that is
distilled, and distill again if you like, and take a little
spoonful every day while fasting."

I heartily urge you to consult with Nigel, as he has some
research on this topic I haven't seen produced anywhere
else. Maybe he'll teach the class for this at Pennsic.
- -- 
Ian Gourdon of Glen Awe, OP
Known as a forester of the Greenwood, Midrealm
 http://web.raex.com/~agincort