hippocras

Definition

A cordial, made from a spiced wine mixed with sugar and spices, usually including cinnamon, which are strained out by a cloth before the drink is consumed.

Etymology

From Middle English ypocras, from Old French ipocras, ypocras (“Hippocrates”), after Medieval Latin vinum Hippocraticum (“Hippocrates's wine”), due to the fact that the wine was filtered through a Hippocratic sleeve.

Example Sentences

• "It is long since that disorderly potentate [the Lord of Misrule] went the way of the Dodo, and hippocras has become almost as mythical as ambrosia; but, once upon a time, they played a prominent part in legal education."
• "Spiced wine, sweetened with sugar or honey, perhaps the original of the modern liqueur, was employed occasionally under the name of hippocras."