Hypocras

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Making and tasting hypocras in the Middle Ages

The Hypocras or Ypocras , in other notations also hipocras, hippo crass, ypocrasse, hyppocras, ipocras, ippocras or üpikraz, was one with honey , and later with sugar , heavily sweetened red spiced wine , the one in the Middle Ages attributed medicinal properties. The drink was only common in the courts of kings and rich nobles because of the spices that were very expensive at the time. The white variety of Hypocras is called Claret in Saxon wine and winemaking books .

Manufacturing

A classic recipe from Taillevent , the personal chef of Charles V , looks cinnamon , cloves and orange blossom front as flavoring ingredients. Other typical ingredients are ginger , cardamom and rose water instead of orange blossom, but marjoram , nutmeg and pepper were also used.

Surname

The name of the spicy wine, which is regarded as a medicinal product, is derived from the name of the Greek doctor Hippocrates , who also appeared as an appellative for respected doctors in the Middle Ages. The name “Hippocrates” can also be found in the product name Manica Hippocratis (“Hippocras Sack”), a textile filter sack made of felt that was used by pharmacists at the time and was used to prepare the “Hypocras”.

history

Spiced wines were already known to the Romans. They spread wine as food and medicine in their provinces. Three recipes are recorded in Pliny the Elder's natural history . These wines were called Conditum Paradoxum in Rome .

The Knight Templar and medicin Arnau de Vilanova mentioned in his writings Hippocrates, in old Catalan Ipocras, and gave a recipe that used cinnamon. The spiced wines are reminiscent of the mulled wines and fire tongs punch drunk today .

Basel hypocras

Hypokras, popular in Basel today, is made from various red and white wines , sugar, lemon peel and the spices cinnamon , cloves , nutmeg , ginger , coriander and cardamom . This hypocras was first mentioned in the Middle Ages. In 1523, the Grand Council of Basel allowed this sweet wine to be traded. It is drunk in the hour before and after the turn of the year, and Basler Läckerli are usually served with it.

The custom of drinking Hypocras on New Year's Day was revived in public spaces in 1996 by the Guild of the Golden Stars . The custom lives on in traditional Basel families as well.

swell

  • André Dominé : The art of the aperitif. Recipes, drinks, philosophy . Kunstverlag Weingarten, 1989, ISBN 3-8170-0013-8 , p. 21
  • Willem Frans Daems : The Clareit and Ypocras recipes in Thomas van der Noot's 'Notabel boecxken van cokeryen' (around 1510). In: Specialist literature of the Middle Ages. Festschrift for Gerhard Eis. Edited by Gundolf Keil , Rainer Rudolf, Wolfram Schmitt and Hans J. Vermeer, Metzler, Stuttgart 1968, pp. 205–224.
  • Kurt Lussi: Liebestrünke myths, rites and recipes. AT Verlag, Aarau 2006, ISBN 978-3-03800-271-0 ,
  • Schweizerisches Idiotikon , Volume II, Column 1481 f., Article Hippokras digitized .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Gundolf Keil: Ipokras. Personal authoritative legitimation in medieval medicine. In: Peter Wunderli (Ed.): Origin and Origin. Historical and mythical forms of legitimation. Files from the Gerda Henkel Colloquium, organized by the Research Institute for the Middle Ages and Renaissance at the […] University of Düsseldorf, October 13-15, 1991. Jan Thorbecke, Sigmaringen 1994, pp. 157–177, here: pp. 165 and 168.
  2. ↑ Zedler: Large complete universal lexicon of all sciences and arts ... Ed. By Carl Günther Ludovici, 1739 (Manica Hippocratis)