Recipe Manuscript

To Make Elder Wine, Lady Lister

Name: To Make Elder Wine, Lady Lister
Prep time: PTPT10M
Cook time: PTPT0M
Yield: 70
Cuisine: European
Ingredients: 18 kg Malago raisins (substitute: high-quality dark raisins if unavailable); 38 liters clean water (for first extract); 3.5 liters juice from ripe elderberries; 26-32 liters clean water (for second extract/smaller wine); 1.7 liters juice from ripe elderberries (for smaller wine)

1650

From the treasured pages of The Lady Grace Castleton's booke of receipts

Written by Grace Saunderson, Viscountess Castleton

Renaissance (1400 - 1700)European Intermediate Drink

Original Recipe • 1650

Original Manuscript(circa Renaissance, 1400 - 1700)

As inscribed by the original author's hand, transcribed with care by Lost Kitchen Scrolls

To Make Elder Wine, Lady Lister

"Take 40 pd of malligo Rasons steep them in 10 gallons of water 9 or 10 days then drene of ye licquer & tunn it up into a vessill & put to it 3 quarts of ye iuise of elder berges full ripe, let it stand in some warme rome, & it may work, if you please. a boute a month. after you may botle it up but if you make much it is as good in vessills, when you have drane forth ye first licquer you may put to it 7 gallons or 6 gallons of water, for ye smaller wine, as before but to it when you ton it up 3 pints of elder bery Gorice, ye stronger will keepe a yeare ye smaller halfe as long."

Note on the Original Text

This recipe follows the conventions of its time: ingredients are listed within the instructions by unit (pounds, quarts, gallons), and spelling is highly phonetic (e.g., 'malligo Rasons' for Malago/Malaga raisins, 'iuise' for juice, 'berges' for berries, 'tonn' for tun, 'vessill' for vessel). Instructions are conversational and rely on assumed knowledge, omitting precise timings, temperatures, or detailed techniques. The manuscript English of the 1600s often included unfamiliar abbreviations (e.g., 'pd' for pounds) and interchangeable spellings. Directions are linear, inclusive of variant methods (a 'smaller wine' from a second extraction), and storage advice is based on practical experience rather than chemistry.

Modern Kitchen Interpretation

Recipe's Origin

The Lady Grace Castleton's booke of receipts - Click to view recipe in book

Title

The Lady Grace Castleton's booke of receipts (1650)

You can also click the book image above to peruse the original tome

Writer

Grace Saunderson, Viscountess Castleton

Era

1650

Publisher

Unknown

Background

A delightful voyage into 17th-century English kitchens, this collection reveals the refined tastes and culinary secrets of the aristocracy, serving up a sumptuous array of period recipes and gracious domestic wisdom.

Kindly made available by

Folger Shakespeare Library

Historical Background of the Recipe

Learn about old traditions

This recipe for elder wine hails from seventeenth-century England, attributed to Grace Saunderson, Viscountess Castleton, and carefully recorded in a household manuscript. At the time, homemade fruit wines were a cherished tradition among well-to-do households, offering both refreshment and medicinal value, as elderberries were believed to keep illnesses at bay. The use of Malago (or Malaga) raisins suggests access to imported ingredients, indicative of the household's elite status and wealth. Elder wine like this was both a beverage and a sign of hospitality, served at family tables and for special gatherings. Its careful preparation and aging reflected a blend of country lore and early scientific curiosity about fermentation.

Culinary Tools when the Recipe was Crafted

Tools and techniques from kitchens of old

Historically, this wine would have been made using large earthenware or wooden tubs for steeping, along with wooden spoons or hands for stirring. Muslin or linen cloth was used to strain the wine, and the liquid was stored in barrels, glass bottles sealed with cork and wax, or ceramic jugs. Presses or mortars may have been used to crush the elderberries for their juice. Temperature control was managed by the location—a warm room in the house or cellar—while all steps relied on manual labor and a keen eye rather than exact measurements or modern equipment.

Modern Kitchen Adaptation

Ingredients and techniques for today's cooks

ounces, cups, Fahrenheit

Prep Time

10 mins

Cook Time

0 mins

Servings

We've done our best to adapt this historical recipe for modern kitchens, but some details may still need refinement. We warmly welcome feedback from fellow cooks and culinary historians — your insights support the entire community!

Ingredients

40 lbs Malago raisins (substitute: high-quality dark raisins if unavailable)
10 gallons clean water (for first extract)
1 scant gallon (about 3.7 quarts) juice from ripe elderberries
7–8.5 gallons clean water (for second extract/smaller wine)
0.45 gallons (about 1.9 quarts) juice from ripe elderberries (for smaller wine)

Instructions

Begin by placing 40 lbs of Malago raisins (or other high-quality dark raisins) into a large, sanitized fermentation vessel and cover them with 10 gallons of clean water.
Allow the mixture to soak and ferment gently at room temperature for 9-10 days, stirring daily.
After this period, strain out the solids using a fine mesh or muslin cloth, reserving the liquid.
Pour the strained liquid into a clean fermentation vessel and add in 1 scant gallon (approximately 3.7 quarts) of juice pressed from fully ripe elderberries.
Optionally, allow this mixture to ferment in a warm room for up to a month for richer flavor development.
When fermentation slows, bottle the wine, or store it in sanitary aging vessels (demijohns or barrels) for further maturation.
To make a lighter wine, reuse the raisins: add 7–8.5 gallons of fresh water to the spent fruit, let soak and ferment as before, and when straining, add 0.45 gallons (about 1.9 quarts) of elderberry juice.
The strong wine will keep about a year; the lighter version is best enjoyed within six months.

Estimated Calories

130 per serving

Cooking Estimates

Making this wine takes about 10 minutes to prepare the ingredients, but you will need to leave it to ferment for up to 10 days for the first batch. There is no actual cooking involved. Each serving has about 130 calories, and the recipe makes approximately 70 servings of wine.

As noted above, we have made our best effort to translate and adapt this historical recipe for modern kitchens, taking into account ingredients nowadays, cooking techniques, measurements, and so on. However, historical recipes often contain assumptions that require interpretation.

We'd love for anyone to help improve these adaptations. Community contributions are highly welcome. If you have suggestions, corrections, or cooking tips based on your experience with this recipe, please share them below.