[rachel]

My Mother has just told me that when I was born (I'm nearly thirty - but not quite!) her Mother gave her a bottle of sweet sherry and told her to drink a glass a day for medicinal purposes. She then re-supplied my Mother with more. Has anyone else ever heard of this, drinking a glass of sweet sherry to keep a lady in good health. Or was it just an excuse for Scottish ladies to drink?
Thank Goodness she wasn't recommended to have one at every nappy change!

 

[athenaeus]

I will leave that to Melina and if she doesn't reply ,
I will post this great great recipe!

Well the **** did you remember that?

I remember myself as a child pretending the ill so as my grandmother gives me a drop. But she used to refuse by saying that this was for ladies only.Now that I am thinking of it, my grandmother must not have been that young then to use it...but I never knew with my grandma.

If I won't find the proper words to explain why this cherry was for ladies, I will post in private the reason for that!!
Oh what memories you brought back,mysterious Scotish lady.

 

[rachel]

My mother just told me today! She neglected to tell me how many bottles my Grandmother bought her and is considering starting the whole thing again. I await your e-mail with anticipation Athenaeus

 

[melina]

Although it's very late I always keep this recipe in my mind!

First I need to tell you that in Greece we have a kind of sherries, the black ones that we make our own home made sherry.
I will post you the original version first.

Place in 1 lt bottle black cherries. You should put the cherries up to the middle of the bottle, fill the rest of the bottle withe sugar.

Leave this bottle on your terrace for 2 months !!
When it is ready take the half of the liquid that means Half of the Lt and put 250cl of brandy with 2 sticks of cinnamon!

This is your sherry.
Be carefull because you get easily drunk with this one!

Since it's difficult to make your own sherry you may buy one bottle , it hasn't to be the best one) and prepare it with the same concept: For I lt of sherry you have to add 1/2 lt of brandy.

I hope that I made my self clear!

If I was a chef I wouldn't have to work that late at night!

 

[isa]

My great grand mother had a shot of gin or scotch every day. Shelieved to be 107...

 

[anneke]

..hence the term "pickled"!
Sorry Isa, I really meant no disrespect. It's a joke in my family too as my great granny lived to 100, as did my friend's granny and she drank single malt every day of her life.

Alcohol is after all a preservative!

On an unrelated note, I read somewhere that our carcasses decompose 25% (I think) slower than they used to because we injest so many food preservatives. How bizarre!

 

[rachel]

Now a single malt a day sounds like a good idea. Melina and Athenaeus, are you talking about a cherry liqueur? I was talking about sherry, as in fortified wine from jerez in the south of Spain, it's somewhat similar to Port or Marsala, but isn't the same. . . But this cherry liqueur sounds even more medicinal, except i haven't got a balcony, or any sun, will that make it impossible to make?

 

[athenaeus]

Ahh Melina...

Where is Rachel going to find sun??? In Scotland??

Rachel I know the difference between sherry and cherry but thanks for asking in order to clarify it.

You can use both! If you use sherry you should add more brandy.
Try cherry though because it's more 'warming". This drink suppose you to make you feel warmer, and cherry with brandy and cinnamon is an extra strong warmer...but you get drunk really really easy!!

Thanks Isa for your grandmother's story. I knew that I had a good reason for having a single malt every evening but I just needed someone to reveal it for me!!

 

[rachel]

I never doubted that you would know the difference, I was getting confues with all the dcoments on sherry and cherries. So your grandmother drank sweet sherry too?

 

[athenaeus]

Yeap she drunk sweet sherry also but these black cherries Melina mentions make sweet cherry.

When you return to Spain don't forget to make some cherry of your own...:smoking:

 

[rachel]

Afra, every European lady knows who healthy at least one strong drink a day is( at least that'a what I'm beginning to discover). If nothing else it makes your children and your family much more bareable!

 

[pastachef]

Interesting that our carcasses decompose slower today because of preservatives. I know that alcohol is a preservative, but I also have seen women who drink heavily and look so old and saggy because of it. I have also read over and over how doctors now recommend one drink a day for health purposes. They are finally recognizing they stress of living in society today.

 

[athenaeus]

Seriously now.

There is no doubt that drinking is definetely bad for health.
My best friend is a doctor and she once showed me some ultrasound images of liver of people who were drinking. Their liver was surrounded by fat...

I have heard that we don't decompose anymore because of the medicaments we are taking. You see people in our days they cannot take pain even for one moment and they do not hesitate to use medicaments even for the slightest headache...

Afra this sherry is for menstrual cramps. It suppose to warm you up and you feel much better
As for this I have heard endless rumours about how nutrition can help you with cramps and PMS...
Any ideas about that?

 

[rachel]

Afra,
there's a saying in Spanish 'no one is born knowing' (nadie nace sabiendo). I remember Cubans being disgusted with my ignorance of plantains. I'd never heard of them until I was 20!!
Here's some information on Sherry and other things in Jerez and Andalucia, you should be able to find it in places that sell good wine
http://www.sherry.org/envhp01.html
P.S. If you get it in Spanish then click on the Britsh flag

 

[rachel]

I'm gladthat you do. You should also look up on google Port Wine, and Marsala Wine. All three are quite different from 'regular' wine and are worth learning about!

 

[melina]

I think that the Marsala wine is perfect too for that purpose! Everyhing depends on the quantity of brandy and cinnamon you add.

It's a shame to waste Port in such a drink, I think.

 

[mezzaluna]

Sherry... Xeres, right? Spanish wine, sweet or dry. I use the extra dry stuff in cooking.

My grandmother used to drink a beer now and then, but her favorite "tonic" was Rock and Rye. I guess it was whiskey sweetened with rock sugar. Her bottle always had those ultra-red maraschino cherries in it, and chunks of pineapple. Alas, she didn't live to be 107- "only" 77.