Cock Ale (hee, hee!)

Here's a craft beer for you - Cock Ale (oh, stop giggling)...

This recipe is from an ancient book on brewing techniques, published in England in 1744. This recipe consists of basically three steps:

1. Take a six-month old rooster, truss him up and throw him in a pot to boil. When done be sure to squeeze him well - apparently to get all the flavor!

2. Take the raisons, dates, nutmegs (sic), and mace, and infuse them in a quart of "Canary," which I think refers to red wine from the Canary Islands.

3. Now, take a 12-gallon cask of Ale, toss in the rooster juice and fruits, add some ale yeast, and let the whole thing work for a day or two, depending on the weather.

Tap the cask and enjoy a pint of Cock Ale, which according to the recipe: "Contributes much to the Invigorating of Nature." Why, yes indeed! Ask your local craft brewer to mix up a batch.

Cheers,

Dave