MILK.
First Food of all Mammals—Skim and Butter Milk—Chemicals used in its Preservation—Condensed Milk—Syllabubs—Koumiss—Its Early Use—When first utilized in Medical Treatment—Koumiss from Cows’ Milk—Methods of Manufacture—Intoxicating Drinks made from Milk.
Milk is the first liquid food taken by man, in common with all mammals, after his birth; and this liquid is so happily ordered, as to contain all the elements of food necessary for him, at this period of his existence. The new-born mammal naturally, and directly after its birth, seeks the fountain of its nourishment, and even that most helpless of all created beings, a baby, is soon taught where to seek its food.
But we have to consider milk as a beverage, more than as a food, and, as a drink, it is comparatively a failure, as to most people it is indigestible, if taken in any quantity. It may, however, be taken with comparative impunity as skim milk, i.e. when deprived to a very large extent of its fat, and of a hot day, for a perfect thirst quencher, let us commend slightly acidulated butter milk. Milk has very great disadvantages as a beverage: first, that it will not keep good any time, unless chemicalized by salicylic acid, borax, liquor potassæ, or some other bedevilment, except as condensed milk, which is milk with much of its water evaporated, and sugar added. This, however good it may be as a substitute for fresh cow’s milk, where such is not attainable, can hardly be called a drink. Secondly, milk, in common with all fatty animal substances, has a tendency to absorb any odour which may come in contact with it, and is a ready vehicle for the seeds of disease, especially the microbes of fever or cholera.
It is singular that milk has not been made into more drinks. Of modern times we have soda and milk, or aërated milk and water, and in the pastoral times of the last century, the times of Corydon and Phyllis, Chloe and Strephon, it was de rigueur to indulge in “syllabubs” whenever the nearest approach to rurality, in the shape of a grass field, and a cow, presented itself. Whoever tastes a syllabub now? Ask fifty people—forty-nine at least, will answer that they have never partaken of the delicacy, and the vast majority will be totally ignorant even of its composition. It was made of milk, milked from the cow into a bowl containing mashed fruit, such as gooseberries, and sugar, or else, wine or beer. The great thing was to make it froth, as we may see in the following recipe for an Ale Syllabub, which our forefathers considered as the ne plus ultra of a syllabub.
“No Syllabubs made at the milking pail,
But what are composed of a pot of good ale.”
“Place in a large bowl, a quart of strong ale or beer, grate into this a little nutmeg, and sweeten with sugar: milk the cow rapidly into the bowl, forcing the milk as strongly as possible into the ale, and against the sides of the vessel, to raise a good froth. Let it stand an hour, and it will be fit for use. The proportion of milk, or of sugar, will depend upon the taste of the drinker, who will, after a trial or two, be able to make a delightful beverage. Cider may be used instead of malt liquor for those who object to the alcoholic strength of the ale, or a bottle of wine.”
The Dutch, who are naturally a pastoral people, make a syllabub of milk, sugar, etc., which they call Slemp; but this rustic delicacy has died out owing to the universal use of tea and coffee. Curds and whey used to be much drank, and white wine whey is not to be despised when one has a very heavy cold—but, of course, it can only be drank by the wicked and intemperate; good people confining themselves to hot milk, or treacle posset, either of which served the purpose nearly as well. So, also, the unregenerate have the solace of rum and milk in the early morning.
We have now exhausted all the milk drinks we know of, except “Koumiss,” which, although as old as the hills, is of very modern introduction into civilization, and comes to us heralded by a fanfare of medical trumpets as a panacea for many evils which the human body has to bear, especially consumption; but Koumiss is decidedly alcoholic.
As a drink made from mare’s milk, it has been known for centuries to the Tartars, Khurgese, and Calmucks of the Russian Steppes, and Central and South Western Asia. Perhaps the first mention of it may be found in the Ipatof Annals, published at St. Petersburg, 1871. “In 1182, Prince Igor Seversky was taken prisoner by the Polovtsky, and the captors got so drunk upon Koumiss that they allowed their prisoner to escape.” The old monk and traveller Gulielmus de Rubruquis, who travelled in Tartary in the middle of the thirteenth century, says: “The same evening, the guide who had conducted us, gave us some Cosmos. After I had drunk thereof, I sweat most extremely from the dread and novelty, because I never drank of it before. Notwithstanding I thought it very savoury as indeed it was.” And in another place, he thus refers to it: “Then they taste it, and being pretty sharp, they drink it; for it biteth a man’s tongue like wine of raspes,[154] when it is drunk. After a man has taken a draught thereof, it leaveth behind it a taste like that of almond milk, and maketh one’s inside feel very comfortable; and it also intoxicateth weak heads.” Ser Marco Polo speaks of it. “Their drink is mare’s milk, prepared in such a way, you would take it for a white wine; and a right good drink it is, called by them Kemiz.”
It remained as a traveller’s curiosity until 1784, when Dr. John Grieve, a surgeon, one of the many Scotchmen who have from time to time entered the Russian service, wrote to the Royal Society of Edinburgh (who published his communication in their “Transactions,” Vol. I., 1788). “An account of the Method of making a Wine, called by the Tartars Koumiss, with observations on its use in Medicine,” and, especially, he thought that, “with the superaddition of a fermented spirit, it might be of essential service in all those disorders where the body is defective either in nourishment or strength.” And he further proved the benefit of the milk-wine on three patients, two consumptive, and one syphilitic, sending them to the Steppes among the Tartars, whence they returned stout, and in perfect health. From time to time, until the middle of this century, phthisical patients were sent to Tartary to undergo this milk cure; but life among these nomad tribes, with its filth and privations, was hardly congenial to a sick man, so that although some returned cured, others came back only to die.
But, in 1858, Dr. Postnikof started an establishment for the cure of diseases by fermented mare’s milk, at Samàra, in Eastern Russia, and a similar establishment, about forty-five miles distant, was started by the late Dr. Tchembulatof, both of which have been extremely well patronised, as their places were well ordered, and the Koumiss was prepared in a cleanly manner. So successful were they, that the Russian Government, in 1870, started a place of their own for the cure of sick soldiers belonging to the Kazan district. Here are beds for 100 soldiers and 20 officers.
The curative effect of fermented mare’s milk set people thinking whether the milk of cows, which is much more easy to procure, would not answer the same purpose. It was tried, and a new drink was given to the civilized world, as also a new name, which was coined expressly for it—Galazyene, from γάλα, milk, and ζῦμη, a ferment. It can be obtained in London from the large dairies.
Dr. Polubensky gives the following formula for fermenting cow’s milk.
“An oak churn, such as is used for churning butter, has a bottle of fermented cow’s or mare’s milk, five days old, poured into it in the morning. A tumbler and a half of warm milk (of a temperature of about 90° Fahr.), in which half an ounce of cane, still better milk, sugar has been dissolved, and a bottle of skimmed cow’s milk, are then added.
“The addition of the sugar is made for the purpose of remedying the small amount of lactine in cow’s milk; the water is added to make the milk, which is rich in casein, thinner, and thus to facilitate its agitation and emulsion. Skim milk is used because it contains less fat, an excess of which interferes with fermentation. The mixture is then beaten up during half an hour, to prevent the curdling of the casein, and is then laid aside for three hours. (This is effected at an ordinary room temperature of 60° Fahr.)
“After the lapse of three hours, when the surface of the mixture is covered with a film (of casein and fat in a non-emulsioned condition), it is again agitated for half an hour, and another bottle of skim milk—with or without warm water, according to the thickness of the milk—is added; the whole mass is again churned for an hour and a half, or longer, until the casein is well divided, and small bubbles appear on the surface of the fluid. Then the mixture, having stood for half an hour, has a fresh bottle of milk added to it, and the stirring is again renewed, with short intervals, until the Koumiss is ready, which usually happens by 10 o’clock p.m., if its preparation was commenced at 8 a.m.
“The approaching completion of the Koumiss is known by a thick froth, which sometimes rises very high, forming on its surface; while the full completion of fermentation is recognised by a falling of the froth, and by certain signs detectable by the ear and hand; the process of churning becomes easier, and the splash of the drops during agitation presents a clearer and more metallic sound. The Koumiss is then poured into Champagne bottles, well corked, and left for the night at a room temperature of from 60° to 70° Fahr. Towards morning, the Koumiss is quite fit for use. Left in bottle till the next day, it becomes stronger, but is still drinkable; while, if placed in a cold room, it may be used even on the fifth day.
“In order that the preparation of Koumiss may be carried on successfully, it will be necessary to put aside two bottles of the Koumiss first prepared, and to keep them for three or four days, so as always to have a bottle of four days old Koumiss in store for fermenting new portions of milk, and of replacing the used bottles by new ones.”
This seems to be rather a long method of making Koumiss, compared to that given by Dr. Wolff of Philadelphia, which is excessively simple.
“Take of grape sugar ½ oz.; dissolve in 4 ozs. of water. In about 2 ozs. of milk dissolve 20 grains of compressed yeast, or else well washed and pressed out brewer’s yeast. Mix the two in a quart Champagne bottle, which is to be filled with good cow’s milk to within two inches of the top; cork well, and secure the cork with string or wire, and place in an ice chest or cellar at a temperature of 50° Fahr. or less, and agitate three times a day. At the expiration of three or four days, at the latest, the Koumiss is ready for use, and ought not then to be kept longer than four or five days. It should be drawn with a Champagne syphon tap, so that the carbonic acid may be retained, and the contents will not entirely escape on opening the bottle.”
Be wary in opening a bottle of Koumiss, or you may be thoroughly drenched, and have nothing left to drink, for it generates a large quantity of carbonic acid gas, so much so, indeed, that extra thick bottles should be used.
There is an interesting speculation abroad, that the milk which Jael gave Sisera was fermented, and highly intoxicating, which rendered him in a condition favourable for her purpose.
The Usbecks, Mongols, Kalmucks, and other Tartars not only make milk into Koumiss, but distil a very strong spirit from it, which they call araka, conjectured by some, from its high antiquity, to be the true source whence the Indian Arrack derives its name. The distillation is generally effected by means of two earthen pots closely stopped, from which the liquor slowly runs through a small wooden pipe into a receiver, which is usually covered with a coating of wet clay. The spirit, at first, is weak, but after two or three times distilling, it becomes exceedingly intoxicating. Dr. Edward Clarke, in his Travels in Russia, Turkey, and Asia, saw this process performed by means of a still constructed of mud, or very coarse clay, having for the neck of the retort a piece of cane.
J. A.
