| Fish-House Punch There's a little place just out of town, Where, if you go to lunch, They'll make you forget your mother-in-law With a drink called Fish-House Punch. |
| An early-known print reference to Fish-House Punch is in "The Cook" (1885)[1] |
Fish House Punch is a strong, rum-based cocktail containing containing rum, Cognac, and peach brandy. The drink is typically served over an ice block in a punch bowl and garnished with lemon slices.[2]
Contents |
This most venerable of American flowing bowls is held to have been first concocted in 1732 at Philadelphia’s fishing club, the Schuylkill Fishing Company,[3] also known as the "Fish House". The Fish House was an august gentlemen's society devoted to escaping domestic tribulation, but also to cigars, whiskey, and the occasional fishing foray upon the Chesapeake or the Restigouche River in Nova Scotia. Another version states that it was created in 1848 by Shippen Willing of Philadelphia, to celebrate the momentous occasion of women being allowed into the premises of the "Fish House" for the first time in order to enliven the annual Christmas Party.[4] It was supposed to be just "something to please the ladies' palate but get them livelier than is their usual wont".
This punch, which contains rum, Cognac, and peach brandy, is potent, so it is normally diluted with cold black tea, a common mixer for this particular punch, or with seltzer water. Some punch bowls may not be large enough to accommodate the large ice block called for, and though the block is a classic part of this recipe, it can, of course, be simply served in a pitcher over ice cubes.
Stir together sugar and 3½ cups water in a large bowl or pot until sugar is dissolved. Add lemon juice, rum, Cognac, and brandy and chill, covered, at least 3 hours. Put half-gallon ice block in a punch bowl and pour punch over it.