Cherry Wine

This recipe comes from Mary Hookes, an English gentlewoman active between 1675 and 1725, a time when home wine-making was both a practical solution for preserving seasonal fruits and a genteel pursuit in well-appointed households. Such recipes were often handed down in family manuscripts, reflecting both the available produce and the taste for sweet, fortified, and fruit-based cordials that enriched 18th-century English tables. The addition of white wine shows an early hybridization, merging fruit syrups with the continental tradition of grape wine, and the use of sugar reflects the increasing availability of refined sugar in upper-class kitchens.

The process would have used a deep earthenware crock or bowl for crushing and collecting the cherry pulp. 'Breaking' the cherries by hand ensured maximum juice extraction while avoiding harsh flavors from the pits. A jelly bag (a tightly woven, reusable cloth hung over a bowl) gently filtered the juice. Wine bottles were sealed with cork or even wax, then stood upright, sometimes packed in cool, insulating sand—a common method to mimic cellar conditions before refrigeration. A basic pan or cauldron was used to heat and partially sanitize the wine mixture. All tools would be carefully cleaned to prevent spoilage.