Plate XIV · section 12 of 13
Before chemistry: water in the old treatises
The oldest advice Ukers reports comes from a 17th-century London merchant: some make coffee with spring water, but it is not as good as river water or Thames water, because the first makes it hard and unpleasant, while the other makes it smooth and agreeable, gentle on the stomach; and to clarify a cloudy coffee, a spoonful or two of cold water that precipitate the heavy parts to the bottom.
Two centuries before measurement, the observation was right: limestone spring water is hard and alkaline, river water softer. The same merchant's rule of proportions, two ounces of powder per quarter gallon, about 50 grams per liter, also says how strong the coffee of 1660 was.
Ukers 1922, ch. XXXVI, pp. 691-692, citing a 17th-century English manualRead nextPreparationsSteeping: cloth bag, French press, tasting cupWhat we throw awayMucilage and wash water
In this plateThe 13 sections
- 01What water does, and why
- 02Alkalinity and hardness, and the words that mislead
- 03Units
- 04The standard, and the zones that do not coincide
- 05Salts, and the hydrate trap
- 06Getting pure water
- 07Making a concentrate
- 08Published recipes
- 09The profile calculator
- 10Measuring your water
- 11Water in machines
- 12Before chemistry: water in the old treatises
- 13Today
The table of contents, with the first sentence of each section