Hock (wine)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Hock is an English word for German wine, short for the now obsolete word hockamore (hochheimer), after the German town of Hochheim on the Main. Hochheim is a traditional vineyard site in the Rheingau region where wine shipments to England used to originate for many years.

Because of the famous taste and its supposed healthiness it is a British saying that "A good Hock keeps away the doc!" Today the term "Hock" is occasionally seen on bottles of (mostly cheap) wine in the United Kingdom, in a similar way to claret.

In Australia, it is still known as the main ingredient of an old-fashioned but cooling summer drink named 'hock, lime and lemon'.

[edit] Cultural References

A stanza from Don Juan by Lord Byron mentions hock:

"And for the future - (but I write this reeling, / Having got drunk exceedingly to-day, / So that I seem to stand upon the ceiling) / I say - the future is a serious matter - / And so - for God's sake - hock and soda water!"

Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray also mentions the wine:

"He was really very devoted to me and seemed quite sorry when he went away. Have another brandy-and-soda? Or would you like hock-and-seltzer? I always take hock-and-seltzer myself. There is sure to be some in the next room.""

A line from Only Fools and Horses, when Del Boy has to pawn his jewellery in order to gain money:

"These rings know more about hock than a German wine taster."