Beacon's Gate Boar Hunt 2000

enough unsweetened apple juice concentrate to make 10 gallons
2 TB. powdered cinnamon or more
2 TB. powdered ginger or more
1 TB. powdered cloves
1 TB. grated nutmeg
Several quartered fresh apples

We reconstituted half the apple juice in a kettle large enough to hold it with room to spare. Put on a high fire and added at least a tablespoon each of cinnamon and of ginger and 1-1/2 tsp each of cloves and nutmeg, and a couple raw apples cut into very large chunks. Brought to a simmer, stirring occasionally. The cinnamon gets kind of "gummy", but still tastes fine.

To serve, float some cut up fresh apples in the cider.

This was put on the table in the hall after the Hunt had been going on for a few hours. When the pot was nearly empty, we prepared the remainder and put it out. We could probably have served twice as much.

Naturally this would be much more delicious made with fresh pressed cider, but where i live, it was much too expensive, so i used unsweetened concentrate which was quite acceptable.

Hypocras Spices:

4 oz. cinnamon powder
4 oz. ginger powder
1 to 2 oz. clove powder
1 to 2 oz. nutmeg
1 oz. galangal
1 oz. spikenard
1 oz. whole grains of paradise

7 cans unsweetended white grape juice concentrate
7 cans unsweetended purple grape juice concentrate
2 cans unsweetened cranberry juice concentrate
2-2/3 cup sugar

Blend together all spices for spice blend.

Put the juice concentrates into a very large kettle and add water to reconstitute. Don't worry if it is not well blended or dissolved.

Add spice blend. Put on high fire and bring to simmer, stirring frequently. Adjust fire so it does NOT boil. After about 15 minutes, taste and add sugar as needed.

When well seasoned, put on sideboard.

This was served during the meal.

Faulx Ypocras Notes
1. Juice: The use of juices is modern. The event site was dry, so at the suggestion of some of the members of the SCA-Cook e-mail list, i substituted juices. I used both purple grape juice and white, which seems less cloying to me. Cranberry juice provided tartness which the purple Concord grape juice lacks.

2. Spices: My spice blend is derived from several period sources. Below are three examples:

Le Menagier de Paris
(1.) To make powdered hippocras, take a quarter-ounce of very fine cinnamon, hand-picked by tasting it, an ounce of very fine meche ginger and an ounce of grains of paradise, a sixth of an ounce of nutmeg and galingale together, and pound it all together. And when you want to make hippocras, take a good half-ounce or more of this powder and two quarter-ounces of sugar, and mix them together, and a quart of wine as measured in Paris.

(2.) To make a quart or quarter-ounce of hippocras by the measure used in Besiers, Carcassone, or Montpelier, take five drams of fine select clean cinnamon, select peeled white ginger, three drams: of clove, grains, mace, galingale, nutmeg, nard, altogether one and a fourth drams: more of the first, and of the others less and less of each as you go down the list. Grind to powder, and with this put a pound and half a quarter-ounce, by the heavier measure, of ground rock sugar, and mix with the aforesaid spices; and have wine and the sugar melted on a dish on the fire, and add the powder, and mix: then put in the straining-bag, and strain until it comes out a clear red. Note that the cinnamon and the sugar should dominate.

(3.) Forme of Cury
Original
Pur fait yprocras. Troys vnces de canel & iii vnces de gyngeuer; spykenard de Spayn, le pays dun denerer; garyngale, clows gylofre, poeure long, noie3 mugade3, ma3io3ame, cardemonii, de chescun i quarter donce; grayne de paradys, flour de queynel, de chescun dm. unce; de toutes soit fait powdour &c.

My Translation
To make hypocras. three ounces of canel and 3 ounces of ginger; spikenard of Spain, the country, one denerer; galangal, cloves, long pepper, whole nutmeg, marjoram, cardamom, of each 1 quarter-ounce; grains of paradise, flour of cinnamon (or possibly cinnamon flowers, i.e. cassia buds), of each half ounce; of all make a powder etc.