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108
USEFUL FORMULAS.
To insure good Koumiss it is es_sential that the mares be of the steppe
breed and fed on steppe pasture. They are milked from four to six times a day,
the foal being kept apart from the mother a nd allowed to suck only in the
night-time. The mare
will
not give her milk, however, unless, at the time of
milking, her foal is brought to- her side, when such is the joy of the reunion,
that after sundry acts of loving, smelling and kissing, the maternal feeling
shows itself by her sometimes giving milk from both nipples at once. Milking
is done by Bashkir women, who, taking a position close to the bind legs of the
mare, rest on one knee, ancl
0!1
the other support a pail directly under the
uclcler, pulling at each nipple in turn, ancl receiving from three to four pints at
a milking.
To make Koumiss the milk is beaten i;p in a churn (but not sufficiently
to make butter), ancl by fermentation is converted after twenty-four hours into
weak Koumiss, from which condition it passes aft er twelve hours more to a
medium degree of strength; whilst strong Koumiss is produced by assiduous
agitation of the milk for two or three clays, when it is said to be slightly
intmdcating.
A good imjtation of tills very high-priced luxury can be produced as follows:
Into a champagne or syphon soda bottle place a cube of fresh compressed
yeast (if this cannot be procured two ounces of fresh yeast will answer the
purpose) and three tablespoonfuls of bar sugar. (This may appear to be too
much sugar, but considerable sweetening
jg
necessary to overcome the taste of
the yeast). Fill the bottle with good, sweet milk, ancl if a champagne bottle is
used, tie the cork securely. Lay the bottle down in a warm place for a day,
then lay it in a cool place for four days before using. Should a syphon bottle
be used, sufficient gas will generate in the -bottle to cause the Koumiss to flow
like soda.
478
MADEIRA WINE.
To forty gallons of prepared cider acld one-quarter pound of tartaric acid
four gallons of spirits ancl three pounds of loaf sugar. Let
it
stand for
te~
clays, draw it off carefully, fine
it
clown and then rack it again· into another
cask.
479
MEAD.
The following is a good recipe for mead : On twenty pounds of honey
pour five gallons of boiling water; boil, and remove the scum as
it
rises; add
one ounce of best hops, and boil for ten minutes; then put the liquor into a tub
to cool; when all but cold add a little yeast spread upon a slice of toasted
bread; let it stand in a warm r oom. When fermentation is set up, put the
mixture into a cask, and fill up from time to time as the yeast runs out of the
bunghole ; when the fermentation is finished, bung it down, leaving a peg-hole
which can afterwards be closed, and in less t han a year it will be fit to bottle.