Litchfield enquirer. [volume] (Litchfield, Conn.) 1829-current, 1856-12-04
cincinnasi 0asette, Nov. II.
Miniature ef Whiskey In Ohio.

IN ana 0f0u0O ZIG ivy 4uO SVAUuAuo VI DbuSn
smoke that roll mp night and day, and in some
cases every day and night in the week, the
acres of hog-pens and the contaminated atmos-
pheFe, make all acquainted with this fact. But
few people. comparatively, have taken the
trouble to make themselves acquainted with
the extent Of this business, Or Of the modss OPP
e7usdi Of converting corn into whiskey. This
is probably to be attributed to the fact that q
prejudice exists against the business
Der city, however, having become the great
EFT whiskey market in the world. and the Ohio
valley the greatest whiskey-producing region on
the face Of the earth, it may be worth while
TO devote single article to this subject.
Notwithstanding the fact that little is known
outside Of those Immediately interested in the
business, Of the various improvements connected
with the distillation Of liquor, no branch Of
business has drawn more heavily upon the in
ventive genius Of the cge than this, and it has
been as favorably affected by modern improve
ments ~ any other. The latter have vastly
increased the capacities of distilleries, and Gu
! Iargcd the margin fer profits, by increasing the
relative yield of grain, and improving the quail
ity OF the article produced. Distillcries may
therefore be said to have attained as near to d
point Of perfection as it seems possible to bring
them, inventive genius having apparently ex-
hausted itself in this line.
This certainly would be the impression re-
ceived upon visiting one Of the extensive dis
tilleries in the vincinity of this city Steam is
made to perform nearly all the labor. Few
men are employed, and they do little else than
look at the machinery as it performs the work.
The dstillery that We propose to notice partic-
ularly is situated convenient to the Miami canal.
A railroad connects the distillery with this
canal, whence the supplies of corn arc obtained.
The latter is transferred from canal boats into
large boxes set upon cars, and thus conveyed
TO huge bin where stocks are kept. This bin
Is also connected by railroad with the d.sti.lery,
and the corn on being conveyed from the former
TO the latter is thrown into the hopper of
large corn-sheller, which separates the grains
from the cob with great rapdity. The corn
being shelled, is carried by elevators to the
second story of the building and emptied into
the hoppers of mills, by which it is ground, and
the meal deposited in the first story. The cobs
are taken by machinery from the shelter and
thrown in the vicinity Of the boilers, where they
are used for fuel
The meal as it is ground, is carried by ele-
vatOrs into the upper part of the building, and
tuCuSS ~ IN COuSCICu w tHC uuCN puIt vi tnc
establishment and deposited in large tanks on
the FIRST floor. Here the distillcrs make what
they call mash. The cooking" is performed
entirely by steam. From these tanks the mash
Is drawn of into other tanks Of equal di,ncn-
sions, situated on either side, where it goes
through the cooling process, and receives the
yeast. In the latter tanks the mash remains
two or three days, until it becomes thoroughly
worked by by the yeast. Here it frequently
spoils, in consequence Of bad yeast or unfavor-
able weather, but when no accident of this
lind happens, it is drawn of and run into the
still. The latter is about thirty feet high and
FIVE or six feet In diameter. The mash is boiled
In the lower part Of this still, and the steam
escapes through pipe connecting the upper
end of the still with the worm. The latter is
set In large cistern filed with cold water, and
here the steam is condensed, and from this
worm the whiskey is drawn in the lower story,
and thence 1t is run into cistcrn in the "whis-
key,hcu se" where it is barrcllcd and made
ready for market.
What remains in the still after extracting
the whiskey is called "still-slop." This is
drawn off into tanks which stand out Of doors.
and it is upon this that distillery hogs are fed
This is in brief, the process of manufnctur.
ing whiskey. 1t is q simple and rapid one It
requires on an average about four days to con-
vert the corn into wniskey, and a distiller's
capital ia therefore termed over once every week
corn aud whiskey being both cash articles.
The quantity Of corn consumed in this distil-
lery is about one thousand buhels per day, from
which about four thousand gallons of whskey
IS produced This gives for this single estab-
lishment consumption Of 800, 600 bushels of
corn per annum, and production of l24s,-
900 gallons Of whiskcy.
There are other distilleries in this vicinity,
the capacities Of which IRE severally two or
three times greater than the one we have de-
scrbed.
We have not the data upon which to base
an estimate Of the quantity Of whiskey pro-
duced in the Ohio valley. The quantity sold
in this market annually is about a2o, 900 bar.
rels, or nine million gallons. This is probably
not more than cne-half the aggregate pruduc,
ton of Ohio and Indian alone, PRESENTING
that the production is eighteen million gallons,
end we find the consumption Of corn to be -four
and q half million bushels, to produce which
requires million and quarter acres of good
land. Its probable the production Of whiskel
Ia the Ohio valley is fifty million gallons pl
annutn, involving consumption Of twelve ant
half million bushels corn, the average valu,
of which is 1--WE million dollars.
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The UPPER right hand corner of the letter i
the place for the stamp. There, it il rcadil
80. ,,,l,an tho clark il runnino nver HE milo :,