Definition

Noun

  • A nickname for red wine.

Origin

Probably the 17th century. English. Royal Navy.

Comments

Has nothing to do with sacrificing a monkey aboard a ship. This nickname came about from the officers of the wardroom in the British Royal Navy. Wine was one of the beverages often drunk aboard a ship, along with beer and grog. Sailors in the Mediterranean would sometimes refer to a cheap (rather unpalatable) wine as “black strap” and to be stationed in the Mediterranean was to be “blackstrapped.” Another type of wine drunk around the area of Gibraltar was known as Malaga, a sweet port-like red wine.

References

King, D., Hattendorf, J.B, & Estes, J.W. (1997). A Sea of Words: A Lexicon and Companion for Patrick O’Brian’s Seafaring Tales (2nd Ed.). Owl Books.

Rogers, J.G. (1985). Origins of Sea Terms. Mystic Seaport.