A single 1744 ledger entry tells the tale: "By
a pint of Mathigelin -- 1 pence."
A flavoured spiced mead,
Metheglin was an alcoholic libation derived
from the fermentation of honey and water. As
one of the earliest of all alcoholic beverages, it
assuredly had its place on the Pennsylvania
frontier, and Jacobus Quick demonstrated that it
could be used to pay off charges accrued at Dupui's
general store. Yet a pint of the brew didn't
generate much income -- a mere pence -- (pointing to
the meager popularity of the beverage).
Combined with the fact that the Dupui ledger records
neither purchases of honey (the key ingredient), nor
payments made in honey, a bottle of Mathigelin must
have been a Pennsylvania frontier rarity (perhaps
accepted for token payment owing solely to its curio
value).
Production of mead was also not a quick process as
this recipe from period indicates:
|
Put three Pounds of the finest Honey to
one Gallon of Water, two Lemon-pills to each
Gallon; Boil it half an Hour, well scummed,
then put in while boiling Lemon-pill; work
it with Yeast, then put it in your Vessel,
with the Pill, to stand five or six Months,
and bottle it off for your Use. |
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The area's beverage of choice was, of course, rum.
In the year 1744 alone, hundreds of gallons of rum
were sold at Dupui's general store (with a gallon
costing a mere 8 shillings).
While popular literature will reference items such
as tavern drinking mugs "from which specially they
drank their mead, metheglin, and ale," the Depui
ledger offers no support for the notion that either
mead generally, or metheglin specifically, enjoyed
any degree of popularity on the Pennsylvania
frontier.