Ginger wine
Encyclopedia
Fortified wine
Fortified wine is wine to which a distilled beverage has been added. Fortified wine is distinguished from spirits made from wine in that spirits are produced by means of distillation, while fortified wine is simply wine that has had a spirit added to it...
made from a fermented blend of ground ginger
Ginger
Ginger is the rhizome of the plant Zingiber officinale, consumed as a delicacy, medicine, or spice. It lends its name to its genus and family . Other notable members of this plant family are turmeric, cardamom, and galangal....
and raisins that was first produced in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
History
The first documented appearance of Ginger Wine occurred with the foundation of 'The FinsburyFinsbury
Finsbury is a district of central London, England. It lies immediately north of the City of London and Clerkenwell, west of Shoreditch, and south of Islington and City Road. It is in the south of the London Borough of Islington. The Finsbury Estate is in the western part of the district...
Distilling Company' based in the City of London
City of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
in 1740. The Finsbury Distilling Company, like other distillers, had to build a retail network in order to comply with the Gin Act 1751
Gin Act 1751
The Sale of Spirits Act 1750 was an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain which was enacted in order to reduce the consumption of spirits, a popular pastime that was regarded as one of the primary causes of crime in London...
. Joseph Stone, a grocer of High Holborn
Holborn
Holborn is an area of Central London. Holborn is also the name of the area's principal east-west street, running as High Holborn from St Giles's High Street to Gray's Inn Road and then on to Holborn Viaduct...
, was one of the most prominent and important customers of the Finsbury wines division, and as such, had his name given to their Ginger Wine.
In 1832, sales were boosted by a cholera
Cholera
Cholera is an infection of the small intestine that is caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. The main symptoms are profuse watery diarrhea and vomiting. Transmission occurs primarily by drinking or eating water or food that has been contaminated by the diarrhea of an infected person or the feces...
epidemic and a widely held belief that ginger offered protection against the disease; it has also been hailed as an aid to digestion and as an effective aphrodisiac
Aphrodisiac
An aphrodisiac is a substance that increases sexual desire. The name comes from Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of sexuality and love. Throughout history, many foods, drinks, and behaviors have had a reputation for making sex more attainable and/or pleasurable...
. Today it is still produced and is widely available through most licensed premises (though its use as an aphrodisiac today is less well-documented).
Ginger Wine can be drunk on its own or over ice, but it is most famously drunk as a 'Whisky Mac
Whisky Mac
A Whisky Macdonald more commonly known under the shortened name Whisky Mac is a cocktail made up of whisky and ginger wine. The whisky is expected to be a Scotch Whisky, usually a blended type, such as J&B. The ginger wine should be green ginger wine, such as Crabbie's or Stone's...
' when mixed with whisky
Whisky
Whisky or whiskey is a type of distilled alcoholic beverage made from fermented grain mash. Different grains are used for different varieties, including barley, malted barley, rye, malted rye, wheat, and corn...
. Ginger Wine can also be drunk with lemonade or other mixers such as ginger ale or bitter lemon. In Australia, a mixture of ginger wine and Toohey's Old dark beer is drunk, particularly among university students.