[Sca-cooks] online glossary

[Cindy M. Renfrow]

2 more words with which to vex you.


1-- "redorte". A word used in Fr. heraldry meaning a branch of a tree
twisted into circles, either with or without leaves. Used only in foreign
[not Eng.] arms. It has been alleged that the word also means "a kind of
mat of twisted reeds or thin branches which is placed over the  grapes in a
wine press", but I have been unable to verify this.


2 -- "gruit" - used now to mean a mixture of herbs used in brewing in place
of hops.

Allegedly this is a German word, but I haven't found it in my modern German
dictionary. It's not in OED either. Does anyone know the derivation of this
word? Also, can anyone verify the names given below for these herbs? (I
couldn't get Gernot Katzer's search function to work.)

 Randy Mosher posted this about gruit herbs today to hist-brewing:
<begin quote>
"According to J.S. Arnold, "The Origin & History of Beer & Brewing" (1911),
who discusses this topic at some length, there exists in Cologne an
inventory of gruit stocks &/or aquisitions dating from Oct. 1391 to May
1392:

"According to these itemized accounts, then, gruit consisted not alone of
Myrica gale and Ledum palustre, but also of juniper berries, ginger, caraway
seed, aniseed, and several other ingredients. Scheben [Die Kunst der Brauer
in Koln] says that to judge by the inventory, myrica gale and juniper
berries were the chief ingredients."

A couple of paragraphs later, Arnold says:

"While along the lower Rhine, especially in Cologne, Myrica gale formed the
fundamental substance of the gruit, in Westphalia it seems to have been
mainly composed of Ledum Palusrte, Porze, Porsz or Post. Porze or wild
rosemary was, according to Grewe [Braugewerbe der Stadt Muenster, 1907],
used in Westphaila, notanbly in the county of Tecklenburg, until the end of
the 17th century, and seems to have enjoyed a great popularity. Wild
rosemary, says the same author, because of its spicy taste and stimulating
effect, was highly considered for brewing purposes, and, in fact, it was
still generally employed, even after the use of hops had been universally
adopted, almost down to the present time."

He also says a few paragraphs earlier:

" Opinions as to what went into the composition of gruit differed formerly,
and even today, somewhat. However to judge from the scant information that
has come down to us on this point, it must have been chiefly three plants
which formed the stock of the gruit, namely:

1. Myrica Gale, sweet gale, called in Westphalia pors, porze, porst, and the
same in Danish, as well as Swedish; well-known also in the moors and bogs of
Scotland and elsewhere.

2. Ledum Palustre, marsh or wild rosemary, in German Sumpfporst, Porst,
wilder Rosemarin, Bienen-, Brauerkraut, also Wanzen- or Mottenkraut (moth or
bug herb).

3. Achillea Millefolium. milfoil, yarrow; German Schafgarbe."

Everywhere I've seen spices for gruit enumerated, the three (MG, LP, Y) are
always mentioned, even in the older books. I know bad information does get
repeated, but the preceeding quote would indicate, at least in certain
places, that LP was valued in its own right as a brewing spice.

A more modern source, is the huge work on unhopped beers by Christian
Ra(")tsch, "Urbock: Bier jenseits von Hopfen und Malz."

He gives some German names for wild rosemary:

"Brauerkraut, Gruitkraut, Gruiz, Grund, Gruut, Borse, Pors, Porsch, Post,
Pursch, Porstkraut, Kien-Porst, Ku"hnrost, Kiefernporst, Tannen-porst,
Rosmarinporst, Moor-rosmarin, Wilder Rosmarin, Bo"hmischer Rosmarin,
Waldrosmarin, Morose, Mottenkraut, Flohkraut, Wanzenkraut, WeiBe heide,
Hartheidem Zeitheide, Bienenheide, Bienenscheide, Heidenbienenkraut,
Mutterkraut, Zeitheil, Altseim, Gichtlanne, Sautanne, Gra"nze,
Schweineposse, Robkraut, Bagen, Baganz, and Rausch."

(" = Umlaut, B = esset/ss)

--Randy Mosher"
</end quote>


Regards,

Cindy