SC - question after recipe

[Jeff Gedney]

Previously mentioned on this list, in the Islamin Alcohol thread
was aquavitae made from rice. Source was "the Voyages and 
Works of of John Davis, Navigator (1604)". In context the useage 
of the term implied that Aquavitae meant "distilled ardent alcoholic 
beverage", and was applied as a classification, and not an indication 
of a specific recipe.

Aquavitae means "water of life", and more or less is used to mean 
"essence". The same term "water of life" is applied to the grain 
based distilled beverage of Scotland and Ireland. 

I shall find other examples of this usage. and post them here. I have 
already marked several passages in Hakluyt's "Voyages" (1602, I believe)
for scanning, a couple of which include this usage.  I hope to do this 
scanning this week, if I am feeling better.

A couple right off my head:
  
Excerpt from the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland:
"Eight bolls of malt to Friar John Cor wherewith to make aqua vitae"
(That is enough malt to make 300 gallons od product. this is clearly intended for 
beverage purposes)

Scottish laws in the 1500's, which address whiskey as a beverage, refer 
consistnetly to the substance as Aqua vitae.
For example: 
1555, an act forbidding the export of "certain victuals during famine"
makes the following exception:
'It sal be leifful to the inhabitants of the burrowis of Air, Irvin, Glasgow, 
Dumbertane and uthers our Soverane Ladys leigis dwell and at the 
west setis to have bakin breid, browin aill and aqua vite to the Ilis to 
bertour with uther merchandice' 
("It shall be lawful to the inhabitants of the boroughs of Air, Irvin, Glasgow, 
Dunbertane and others (where) our Soveriegn Lady leiges dwell and at 
the west sites(?) to have the baking of bread, brown ale and aquavitae 
to the Isles to barter with other merchandise")



>>> Magdalena <magdlena at earthlink.net> 03/06 12:23 PM >>>
Jeff Gedney wrote:

> For spices I'd use a good unflavored 100 proof vodka.
> While many period "aquavitae" recipes are wine based, that is not
> necessarily the defining characteristic. The term "Aquavitae" appears
> to have been applied to any ardent distilled alchohol.
> There are plenty of examples of Grain-based Aquavitae's in late period.

source, please?  I don't have any in my collection.

- -Magdalena




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