Ingredient & Craft Advisory

Ingredient families in the archive

Sugars and syrups

Raw cane sugar forms the base of every collection, with glucose and spring water used to control the thread stage. Honey-lemon lozenges add wildflower honey gathered in the Potomac valley; anise squares use a dark molasses fraction for depth. No artificial colours are used in any collection, which is why violet pastilles read as a soft grey lavender rather than a bright purple.

Botanical oils and infusions

Violet and rose pastilles carry a steam infusion of candied violet petals and a measured rose geranium oil. Wintergreen mints use a distilled wintergreen leaf oil. Anise squares combine black anise seed with a small fraction of licorice root extract. Honey lozenges use pressed lemon peel oil and a lemon verbena infusion.

Finishes and dusting

Pastilles are rolled in fine cane sugar; lozenges are polished in a pan with a thin beeswax film; mints are pearl pressed without any starch dusting. Paper cartons are lined with waxed paper, and brass tins are packed with a food grade paper doily.

Shared equipment and cross contact

• One copper pan, one marble slab and one set of brass dies serve every collection in rotation.
• Tree nuts are not used as ingredients, but almond and walnut biscuits are served in the front tasting room, not in the kettle house.
• Sesame, peanut and wheat are not used in any pastille, lozenge, square or mint in the archive.
• Beeswax polish is used on lozenges; pastilles and mints are finished without it.
• Pan cleaning between batches uses hot water and a food grade citric rinse, with no scented sanitisers.

What handmade texture actually means

Hand poured confections are not identical. A pastille from the edge of the slab may carry a paler bloom; an anise square may sit a fraction heavier than its neighbour. These variations are the visible record of the fold and the cure, and they are expected rather than faulty.

• Chalk soft pastilles may arrive with a faint sugar haze on the surface. It brushes away and does not affect the melt.
• Glass bright lozenges can craze slightly in a cold room. Bring the tin to room temperature before opening it.
• Pressed squares occasionally show a light star impression rather than a deep one, depending on the temperature of the die.
• Pearl mints may settle in transit. A gentle shake of the tin restores the dish presentation.

Sending a tin with confidence

Share the ingredient families with the recipient before a gift is sent if there is any doubt. Paper cartons travel best in warm months, brass tins are better in cool weather, and tasting flights should be kept out of a hot car. Storage is simple: cool, dry, closed, and away from the stove.

Nothing on this page is medical advice, and no collection is offered as a remedy, a treatment or a substitute for professional guidance. These are sweets, described the way a confectioner describes sweets: by ingredient, by texture and by the batch line printed on the lid.