Indeed, it is as cruel to leave an opened bottle of gin in some persons' way, who are as a rule perfectly honest, as it would be to leave a child three years old alone in a room with a pot of jam. One of the most important points to be remembered in the management of beer is to ensure its being bright. Beer should always be kept in a cool place, though in winter care should be taken that it is not exposed to too severe a frost. A cask of beer should always be ordered in at least a week befoi-e it is wanted, in order to give the beer time to settle. Beer is often allowed to get flat and dead through the carelessness of servants, who forget to put in the vent-peg ; conseqiiently a tap requiring no vent-peg is to be preferred. When a cask requires tilting, a very little common sense will often prevent the whole of the beer left in the cask from becoming cloudy. First, it will be found advisable to have a beer-stand that will tilt by simply turning a handle. However, when bricks or lumps of wood are used for the purpose, bear in mind to first choose your time : say you have drawn enough beer for supper, tilt the cask then, so that you have the benefit of the night's settling. Too often, from carelessness and procrastination, servants will draw ofi" the beer till the last drop runs level, and will then tilt the cask while they draw a jug full, letting the cask drop again, thereby clouding the whole of the remainder. Whenever you have room for two casks in your cellar, side by side, always act as follows. Have two casks in together, and directly one runs out tap the other, and on the same day order in a fresh cask. By making a fixed rule of this description you will always ensure your ale being bright. With regard to bottled ale this same quality of brightness is even more important than ale on draught. The difierence not merely in appearance but in taste between a bottle of Bass's ale that sparkles like cham- CASSELL S DICTIONARY OF COOKERY. pagne when held up against the light, and one that is thick and cloudy, is patent to every one. When kept for any length of time, beer should be laid on its side, but to ensure the beer being bright it only requires being kept upright for a short time before it is opened, in a moderate temperature. If bottled ale is kept too warm it is too frothy, and by no means invariably bright. On the other hand, beer exposed to frost is sure to be thick. Bottled beer consequently in summer-time should not be placed in an ice-chest, except for ten minutes or a quarter of an hour before it is opened to cool it, but not freeze it. When, therefore, you have bottled beer in quantities, always stand six or eight bottles upright, and as these are used i-eplace them by others. Good beer will generally get bright in bottle if stood upright for a week, though a longer period should be allowed if the beer is only just brought in. In pouring out beer always have three glasses ready together, so that you can continue to pour without tilting back the bottle, as when this latter is done too often it will be found that the first glass is the only one that is bright. With regard to spirits, but little care is required in keeping them, as they are quite unaffected by variations of temperature, the greatest amount of cold failing to influence them.

AI-modernized reading of the original text

Indeed, it is as cruel to leave an opened bottle of gin in some persons' way, who are as a rule perfectly honest, as it would be to leave a child three years old alone in a room with a pot of jam. One of the most important points to be remembered in the management of beer is to ensure its being bright. Beer should always be kept in a cool place, though in winter care should be taken that it is not exposed to too severe a frost. A cask of beer should always be ordered in at least a week before it is wanted, in order to give the beer time to settle. Beer is often allowed to get flat and dead through the carelessness of servants, who forget to put in the vent-peg ; consequently a tap requiring no vent-peg is to be preferred. When a cask requires tilting, a very little common sense will often prevent the whole of the beer left in the cask from becoming cloudy. First, it will be found advisable to have a beer-stand that will tilt by simply turning a handle. However, when bricks or lumps of wood are used for the purpose, bear in mind to first choose your time : say you have drawn enough beer for supper, tilt the cask then, so that you have the benefit of the night's settling. Too often, from carelessness and procrastination, servants will draw ofi" the beer till the last drop runs level, and will then tilt the cask while they draw a jug full, letting the cask drop again, thereby clouding the whole of the remainder. Whenever you have room for two casks in your cellar, side by side, always act as follows. Have two casks in together, and directly one runs out tap the other, and on the same day order in a fresh cask. By making a fixed rule of this description you will always ensure your ale being bright. With regard to bottled ale this same quality of brightness is even more important than ale on draught. The difference not merely in appearance but in taste between a bottle of Bass's ale that sparkles like cham- pagne when held up against the light, and one that is thick and cloudy, is patent to every one. When kept for any length of time, beer should be laid on its side, but to ensure the beer being bright it only requires being kept upright for a short time before it is opened, in a moderate temperature. If bottled ale is kept too warm it is too frothy, and by no means invariably bright. On the other hand, beer exposed to frost is sure to be thick. Bottled beer consequently in summer-time should not be placed in an ice-chest, except for ten minutes or a quarter of an hour before it is opened to cool it, but not freeze it. When, therefore, you have bottled beer in quantities, always stand six or eight bottles upright, and as these are used replace them by others. Good beer will generally get bright in bottle if stood upright for a week, though a longer period should be allowed if the beer is only just brought in. In pouring out beer always have three glasses ready together, so that you can continue to pour without tilting back the bottle, as when this latter is done too often it will be found that the first glass is the only one that is bright. With regard to spirits, but little care is required in keeping them, as they are quite unaffected by variations of temperature, the greatest amount of cold failing to influence them.

Cassell's dictionary of cookery