Shrub: a pure, delicious drink for summer

Acidulated beverages, that is drinks made with vinegar, have a long and ancient history. They were drunk for refreshment during hot summer months, as a means for laborers to stay hydrated, as a medicinal drink, and as a way to preserve summer fruits. Although there is some evidence for acidulated drinks in Asia, the historical recipes most readily available come from the Mediterranean. Europe, and North America.

Ancient Greeks enjoyed oxymel, a drink made with vinegar, herbs, and honey. In Rome a similar beverage posca was imbibed only by lower classes, soldiers, manual workers, and slaves.

The first vinegar beverage I encountered was a Persian drink called senkanjabin. Members of the medieval reenactment group, the Society of Creative Anachronism, drink this as a kind of period-appropriate energy drink. A recipe for senkanjabin was included in An anonymous Andalusian cookbook of the 13th Century

Syrup of Simple Sikanjabîn (Oxymel)
Take a ratl of strong vinegar and mix it with two ratls of sugar, and cook all this until it takes the form of a syrup. Drink an ûqiya of this with three of hot water when fasting: it is beneficial for fevers of jaundice, and calms jaundice and cuts the thirst, since sikanjabîn syrup is beneficial in phlegmatic fevers: make it with six ûqiyas of sour vinegar for a ratl of honey and it is admirable.

In 18th and 19th century America switchel was a popular workingman’s drink, usually made with ginger and molasses. The reenactment supplier Townsends has an excellent video on the history of switchel and walks you through how to prepare it.

The Townsend video mentions shrub and this is the fruit and vinegar drink I’ve personally made and enjoyed. The word shrub is derived from the Arabic word “sharāb”, meaning “to drink. In addition to the vinegar shrubs, recipes for alcohol-based shrubs are quite common in 18th and early 19th century cookbooks. These are usually made with brandy or rum, although some recipes call for wine instead.

There are numerous modern shrub recipes online. To get you started on your own historical shrub-making adventures, here are a few 18th and 19th C. recipes of both the vinegar and brandy/rum variety.

The Compleat Housewife, or, Accomplish'd Gentlewoman's Companion, 1739