Sir Paul Neale's Way of Making Cider

Ingredients

• one Bushel of Pippins
• twelve Gallons of water
• five pound of Brown-sugar
• a pint of Ale-yest

Method

1. 1

   Take one Bushel of Pippins, cut them into slices with the Parings and Cores; boil them in twelve Gallons of water, till the goodness of them be in the water; and that consumed about three Gallons.

2. 2

   Then put it into an Hypocras-bag, made of Cotton; and when it is clear run out, and almost cold, sweeten it with five pound of Brown-sugar, and put a pint of Ale-yest to it, and set it a working two nights and days.

3. 3

   Then skim off the yest clean, and put it into bottles, and let it stand two or three days, till the yest fall dead at the top.

As published

This recipe was extracted from The closet of Sir Kenelm Digby Knight opened (1910) by Sir Kenelm Digby, page 71. The excerpt below is the record exactly as published.

SIR PAUL NEALE'S WAY OF MAKING CIDER The best Apples make the best Cider, as Pear- mains, Pippins, Golden-pippins, and the like. Cod- lings make the finest Cider of all. They must be ripe, when you make Cider of them : and is in prime in the Summer season, when no other Cider is good. But lasteth not long, not beyond Autumn. The foundation of making perfect Cyder consisteth in not having it work much, scarce ever at all ; but at least, no second time ; which Ordinary Cider doth often, upon change of weather, and upon motion : and upon every working it grows harder. Do then thus : Choose good Apples. Red streaks are the best for Cider to keep ; Ginet-moils the next, then Pippins. Let them lie about three weeks, after they are ga- thered ; Then stamp and strain them in the Ordi- I02 SIR KENELM8 DIGBIS nary way, into a woodden fat that hath a spigot three or four fingers breadth above the bottom. Cover the fat with some hair or sackcloth, to secure it from any thing to fall in, and to keep in some of the Spirits, so to preserve it from dying ; but not so much as to make it ferment. When the juyce hath been there twelve hours, draw it by the spigot (the fat inclining that way, as if it were a little tilted) into a barrel ; which must not be full by about two fingers. Leave the bung open for the Air to come in, upon a super- ficies, all along the barrel, to hinder it from ferment- ing ; but not so large a superficies as to endanger dying, by the airs depredating too many spirits from it. The drift in both these settlings is, that the grosser parts consisting of the substance of the Apple, may settle to the bottom, and be severed from the Li- quor ; for it is that, which maketh it work again (upon motion or change of weather) and spoils it. After twenty four hours draw of it, to see if it be clear, by the settling of all dregs, above which your spigot must be. If it be not clear enough, draw it from the thick dregs into another vessel, and let it settle there twenty four hours. This vessel must be less then the first, because you draw not all out of the first. If then it should not be clear enough, draw it into a third, yet lesser than the second ; but usually it is at the first. When it is clear enough draw it into bottles, filling them within two fingers, which stop close. After two or three days visit them ; that if there be a danger of their working (which would break the bottles) you may take out the stopples, THE CLOSET OPEO^D 103 and let them stand open for half a quarter of an hour. Then stop them close, and they are secure for ever after. In cold freesing weather, set them upon Hay, and cover them over with Hay or Straw. In open weather in Winter transpose them to another part of the Cellar to stand upon the bare ground or pave- ment. Inhot weather set them in sand. The Cider of the Apples of the last season, as Pippins, not Peermains, nor codlings, will last till the Summer grow hot. Though this never work, 'tis not of the Nature of Strummed Wine ; because the naughty dregs are not left in it. DOCTOR HARVEY'S PLEASANTW^ATER- CIDER, WHEREOF HE USED TO DRINK MUCH, MAKING IT HIS ORDINARY DRINK Take one Bushel of Pippins, cut them into slices with the Parings and Cores; boil them in twelve Gallons of water, till the goodness of them be in the water ; and that consumed about three Gallons. Then put it into an Hypocras-bag, made of Cotton ; and when it is clear run out, and almost cold, sweeten itwithfive pound of Brown-sugar, and put a pint of Ale-yest

Cook this with the app: pantry check, scaling, and the assistant.