Medieval peasants did not spurn water as a beverage because fish “did things” in it as some popular pub songs suggest, but it was dirty. Lacking much of anything else in reasonable abundance, one took their chances, although most people knew to boil water first before drinking it. As many pub songs also attest, alcohol was consumed in liberal quantities when available — up to a gallon per person each day! — but more for medicinal purposes than recreational. In this case, to ward off bubonic plague.
Plague water was a cordial made from a blend of wine and various botanicals. An old recipe from A Boke of Gode Cookery reads: “Take a pound of Rue, of Rosemary, Sage, Sorrel, Celandine, Mugwort, of the tops of red Brambles, of Pimpernel, Wild-draggons, Arimony, Balm, Angelica, of each a pound. Put these Compounds in a pot, fill it with White-wine above the herbs, so let it stand four days. Then still it for your use in a Limbeck.”
Plague Water (Modern Version)
1 ounce green Chartreuse
1/2 ounce Angostura (herbal bitters)
1/2 ounce pineapple juice
1/4 ounce lemon juice
1/4 ounce honey sage syrup
To make the honey sage syrup:
Combine 1 cup water, 1 cup honey and 1 heaping tablespoon rough-chopped fresh sage in a saucepan. Heat over medium-low heat until warm. Lower heat to the lowest setting and let simmer, while stirring, for five minutes. Remove from heat. Let cool and strain into a clean bottle.
To make the cordial:
Combine the Chartreuse, herbal bitters, pineapple juice, lemon juice and honey sage syrup in a shaker of ice. Shake and strain into a glass. Garnish with a slice of lemon, if desired.
