_The Nature and Use of the Hop_.
This Vegetable has suffered its degradation, and raised its Reputation on
the most of any other. It formerly being thought an unwholsome Ingredient,
and till of late a great breeder of the Stone in the Bladder, but now that
falacious Notion is obviated by Dr_.Quincy_ and others, who have proved
that Malt Drink much tinctured by the Hop, is less prone to do that
mischief, than Ale that has fewer boiled in it. Indeed when the Hop in a
dear time is adulterated with water, in which Aloes, etc. have been
infused, as was practised it is said about eight Years ago to make the old
ones recover their bitterness and seem new, then they are to be looked on
as unwholsome; but the pure new Hop is surely of a healthful Nature,
composed of a spirituous flowery part, and a phlegmatick terrene part, and
with the best of the Hops I can either make or mar the Brewing, for if the
Hops are boiled in strong or small worts beyond their fine and pure
Nature, the Liquor suffers, and will be tang'd with a noxious taste both
ungrateful and unwholsome to the Stomach, and if boiled to a very great
Excess, they will be apt to cause Reachings and disturb a weak
Constitution. It is for these Reasons that I advise the boiling two
Parcels of fresh Hops in each Copper of Ale-wort, and if there were three
for keeping Beer, it would be so much the better for the taste, health of
Body and longer Preservation of the Beer in a sound smooth Condition. And
according to this, one of my Neighbours made a Bag like a Pillow-bear of
the ordinary sixpenny yard Cloth, and boil'd his Hops in it half an Hour,
then he took them out, and put in another Bag of the like quantity of
fresh Hops and boiled them half an Hour more, by which means he had an
opportunity of boiling both Wort and Hops their due time, sav'd himself
the trouble of draining them thro' a Sieve, and secured the Seeds of the
Hops at the same time from mixing with the Drink, afterwards he boiled the
same Bags in his small Beer till he got the goodness of it out, but
observe that the Bags were made bigger than what would just contain the
Hops, otherwise it will be difficult to boil out their goodness. It's
true, that here is a Charge encreased by the Consumption of a greater
quantity of Hops than usual, but then how greatly will they answer the
desired end of enjoying fine palated wholsome Drink, that in a cheap time
will not amount to much if bought at the best Hand; and if we consider
their after-use and benefit in small Beer, there is not any loss at all in
their Quantity: But where it can be afforded, the very small Beer would be
much improved if fresh Hops were also shifted in the boiling of this as
well as the stronger worts, and then it would be neighbourly Charity to
give them away to the poorer Person. Hence may appear the Hardship that
many are under of being necessitated to drink of those Brewers Malt
Liquors, who out of avarice boil their Hops to the last, that they may not
lose any of their quintessence: Nay, I have known some of the little
Victualling Brewers so stupendiously ignorant, that they have thought they
acted the good Husband, when they have squeezed the Hops after they have
been boiled to the last in small Beer, to get out all their goodness as
they vainly imagin'd, which is so reverse to good management, that in my
Opinion they had much better put some sort of Earth into the Drink, and it
would prove more pleasant and wholsome. And why the small Beer should be
in this manner (as I may justly call it) spoiled for want of the trifling
Charge of a few fresh Hops, I am a little surprized at, since is the most
general Liquor of Families and therefore as great Care is due to as any in
its Brewing, to enjoy it in pure and wholsome Order.
After the Wort is cooled and put into the working Vat or Tub, some have
thrown fresh Hops into it, and worked them with the Yeast, at the same
time reserving a few Gallons of raw Wort to wash the Yeast thro' a Sieve
to keep back the Hop. This is a good way when Hops enough have not been
sufficiently boiled in the Wort, or to preserve it in the Coolers where it
is laid thick, otherwise I think it needless.
When Hops have been dear, many have used the Seeds of Wormwood, the they
buy in the London Seed Shops instead of them: Others _Daucus_ or wild
Carrot Seed, that grows in our common Fields, which many of the poor
People in this Country gather and dry in their Houses against their
wanting of them: Others that wholsome Herb _Horehound_, which indeed is a
fine Bitter and grows on several of our Commons.
But before I conclude this Article, I shall take notice of a Country Bite,
as I have already done of a _London_ one, and that is, of an Arch Fellow
that went about to Brew for People, and took his opportunity to save all
the used Hops that were to be thrown away, these he washed clean, then
would dry them in the Sun, or by the Fire, and sprinkle the juice of
_Horehound_ on them, which would give them such a greenish colour and
bitterish taste, that with the help of the Screw-press he would sell them
for new Hops.
Hops in themselves are known to be a subtil grateful Bitter, whose
Particles are Active and Rigid, by which the viscid ramous parts of the
Malt are much divided, that makes the Drink easy of Digestion in the Body;
they also keep it from running into such Cohesions as would make it ropy,
valid and sour, and therefore are not only of great use in boiled, but
in raw worts to preserve them sound till they can be put into the Copper,
and afterwards in the Tun while the Drink is working, as I have before
hinted.
Here then I must observe, that the worser earthy part of the Hop is
greatly the cause of that rough, harsh unpleasant taste, which accompany
both Ales and Beers that have the Hops so long boiled in them as to
tincture their worts with their mischievous Effects; for notwithstanding
the Malt, be ever so good, the Hops, if boiled too long in them, will be
so predominant as to cause a nasty bad taste, and therefore I am in hopes
our Malt Liquors in general will be in great Perfection, when Hops are
made use of according to my Directions, and also that more Grounds will be
planted with this most serviceable Vegetable than ever, that their
Dearness may not be a disencouragement to this excellent Practice.
For I know an Alehouse-keeper and Brewer, who, to save the expence of Hops
that were then two Shillings _per_ Pound, use but a quartern instead of a
Pound, the rest he supplied with _Daucus_ Seeds; but to be more
particular, in a Mug of this Person's Ale I discovered three several
Impositions. _First_, He underboil'd his Wort to save its Consumption:
_Secondly_, He boiled this Seed instead of the Hop; and _Thirdly_, He beat
the Yeast in for some time to encrease the strength of the Drink; and all
these in such a _Legerdemain_ manner as gull'd and infatuated the ignorant
Drinker to such a degree as not to suspect the Fraud, and that for these
three Reasons: _First_, The underboil'd wort being of a more sweet taste
than ordinary, was esteemed the Produce of a great allowance of Malt.
_Secondly_, The _Daucus_ Seed encreased their approbation by the fine
Peach flavour or relish that it gives the Drink; and _Thirdly_, The Yeast
was not so much as thought of, since they enjoyed a strong heady Liquor.
These artificial Qualities, and I think I may say unnatural, has been so
prevalent with the Vulgar, who were his chief Customers, that I have known
this Victualler have more Trade for such Drink than his Neighours, who had
much more wholsome at the same time; for the _Daucus_ Seed tho' it is a
Carminative, and has some other good Properties, yet in the unboil'd Wort
it is not capable of doing the Office of the Hop, in breaking thro' the
clammy parts of it; the Hop being full of subtil penetrating Qualities, a
Strengthener of the Stomach, and makes the Drink agreeble, by opposing
Obstructions of the _Viscera_, and particularly of the Liver and Kidneys,
as the Learned maintain, which confutes the old Notion, that Hops are a
Breeder of the Stone in the Bladder.