Compliments of the King — Grog in the Royal Navy18th and 19th century military rations are not

Compliments of the King — Grog in the Royal Navy18th and 19th century military rations are not always the most appealing consumables; hardtack biscuits harder than tile and crawling with maggots, old pieces of pork covered in pounds of salt, beans and grains mashed into a porridge, and of course the old navy tradition of drinking grog.During the 18th and 19th century European navies had a dilemma.  Drinking water often could not be trusted, as water stored in casks tended to grow bacteria or algae.  As a result sailors often mixed alcoholic beverages with the water to kill off anything growing in it, most commonly beer, wine, or brandy.  By the mid 1600’s England had conquered Jamaica and as a result rum became the spirit of choice for the Royal Navy.  British sailors were issued rations of rum to drink with their water.  However, it was not uncommon for sailors to brave drinking the stagnant water, then drink the pure unwatered rum in order to get drunk.  A drunk sailor is a tremendous liability on a warship.  By the early 1700’s the Royal Navy had created a concoction called grog.  Straight rum was mixed with four parts water.  Then lime juice was added to give the drink some flavor as well as to stave off scurvy. Sometimes other flavorings may be added such a cinnamon, sugar, fruit juices, honey, or ginger. Another concoction called 6 parts grog (made with 6 parts water per 1 part rum, no flavorings) was also made, though only issued as a punishment to unruly sailors.The grog came pre-mixed so that sailors would not have to be trusted with mixing their own grog. Issuing of grog involved an elaborate ceremony.  At 11am the boatswain’s mate would pipe “spirits up” and the petty officer of the day would unlock the spirit room where the grog was kept.  The men would line up based on rank, with the officers getting the first share, followed by NCO’s, and enlisted sailors.  Laddling of the grog was conducted by the sergeant of the marines, supervised by the petty officer of the day.  The grog itself was laddled from a special cask with the words “The King/Queen, God bless him/her”, so that the sailors were reminded who they were serving and where their grog privilege came from.The issuing of rum was most common in the British Royal Navy, but soon became a tradition of the US navy and others.  By the 1860’s the US and most other countries discontinued the use of grog.  In the Royal Navy grog remained a die hard tradition until 1970, when it was abolished due to concerns of men under the influence operating machinery.Make your own grog.Authentic Royal Navy Recipe (16 servings)1. Pint Rum (bottom shelf cheap swill)Remember that this is the rum used by the Georgian and Victorian Era Royal Navy.  It would have been absolute swill.  To recreate the taste of Royal Navy Rum I would recommend buying the cheapest swill you can find.  Then take a weeks worth of dirty socks and underwear.  Soak in the rum for at least a week. 4 Pints of water½ lb brown suger (optional)Juice of 16 limesMix water and rum together.  Then mix lime juice with brown suger, add to rum water mixture. Laddle into copper or tin cup.  Drink as is, no refrigeration, no ice.Good grog recipe (1 drink)1 oz of quality dark rum4 oz’s of hot water1 teaspoon of brown sugarSlice of orange and cinnamon stickMix the rum, lime juice, brown sugar, and hot water in a mug. Garnish with an orange slice and a cinnamon stick. -- source link

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