Claret Cup

What survives here is an ingredient list rather than a method, and the claret itself has dropped out of the line — treat this as a proportions note for a standard summer cup rather than a complete recipe.

• The missing bottleThe missing wine -- The title implies a base of claret that has dropped out of the line; a claret cup is built on a bottle of dry red Bordeaux or a similar light red, and everything listed here is flavouring for that base. The original quantity is not recoverable from what survives.
• "Claret"In American and British books of this period the word means red Bordeaux, not a sweet blush wine. A dry, lightish red with decent acidity is what the drink was designed around.
• Sugar to tasteGranulated sugar will sit at the bottom of cold wine. Dissolve it first in a little hot water as a syrup, or use caster sugar, and sweeten after the orange juice is in so you are not chasing the acid.
• The cucumberThe slice is not a garnish; cucumber is a recurring signature of nineteenth-century cups. Steeped too long it goes bitter and vegetal, so it is best fished out before serving.
• Why it sits in "Frozen Dishes"Chilling -- Cups were cooled with ice dropped straight into the bowl. Modern practice is to chill the wine and the bowl beforehand and add ice only at the table, or the drink waters down.
• Sherry proportionA cup of sherry alongside a bottle of wine is a firm hand by current taste; a dry amontillado or fino suits the drink better than a cream sherry, and halving the sherry gives a lighter result.
• Finishing and yieldMany cups of this kind were lengthened at the last moment with chilled soda or seltzer, though none is listed here. Reconstructed with a bottle of wine and a pint of soda, it fills roughly six to eight cups.