The Portland daily press., 1867-06-29

The Champagne District.

IsODeIt loues written 4 DOOA entitled
"The Champagne Country" Mr. Tones was
consular agent of the United States in au
ancient city OF Rheims, the chief commercial
centre of the Champagne district. This dis
trict is remote from the usual lines of Ameri.
can travel but its famous wine attracts foE-
eign tourists, as all want to try the pure artl-
Gle at its fountain head. Now there is an oc-
can of liquor, called Champagne, drank in this
| country which was never nearer the Cham
| pagne district than New Jersey and some other
| localities in the United States. Mr. Tones
/ throws good deal of light on this subject and
| we wish to let our readers a few OF Its
IN 'Nsse is . vast deal of cheating and
- "a the manufacture and sale Of
nuniousS'ns a0ubt 1t is quite az.sas-
liquors no one can "saspt judges of alec,
ing 70 see now many exo> >aoppyl Hun
hoiic liquors We have in this >.os their
dreds and thousands pride themsely, u
Judgment and taste, and their power 10 eis-
criminate between pure and adulterated Ia, :,
uors, and yet it is quite easy to yitiat. a
mans taste as it is to adulterate liquors We
once knew young man of excellent talents
and fine culture; who became an inveterate
Of bad liquor.
Gin was his principal drink, and of course it
was poor liquor; but then it had the "fuddle"
In u, and that was all he was after. Some of
his friends one day procured bottls OF pure
Holland gin from sea Captain for tho pur-
pose OF testing the question touching this cor
ruption OF a mans taste. This pure gin was
given to a bartender with special instructions
TO set the bottle on the counter when the young
man called for his liquor. 1t was at a saloon
he was IN the habit OF frequenting Presently
the young man stepped into the saloon and
called for his usual dram. This bottle was sat
upon the counter and he turned into a tu1p-
bier the usual quantity. Taking one swallow
or rather filling his mouth prepare tory to
swailowing-he spat it out upon the floor.
and at the same time dashed the glass inta
pieces, exclaiming with an oath, "Giye me
some gin and not such id stuff as this"
While d Jing this he made up q terribly look
ing face US ii his tongue was not sufficient to
express his utter contempt of what he suppos-
ed was adulterated liquor. His friends raised
shout OF laughter, but they could not con-
vince him of the mistake he had made
Some of the hotels and liquor shops in New
York and other Large cities employ acifle-tasters
whose duty it is to select liquors, and more Wit
lated palates cannot be found than these pro-
fessional wine-tasters possess. Their palates
are not only yitiated 50 that their opinions of
liquors are not reliable; but their hearts arc Of
ten corrupted by the brides OF the liquor sell
eIs. A New York wine merchant once told
US that the quality of wine often deter
mined by the price asked for it, especially
.l,o f.L A
liquor dealer in Montreal once informed us
that his principal stock consisted in adultsrat-
ed liquors, manufactured expressly ior him
he said lie was often amused TO see tine Yam
KEGS drink Canada liquors and smack their
lips with such gusto. The general impres.
sion has been that pure liquors are Sold in
great abundance i'll Canada. But that Is q
mistake. Any quantity OF aduiterateu liquors
are imported into CANADA and sold there, and
Yankees are generally sold themselves when
they purchase and drink them.
Mr. Tones gives very tuu statements in re-
gard to champagne and his remarks are in
structive The United States receives about
two millions of bottles out OF the thirteen mil
lions sent annually to market from Rheim,
and its vicinity. Tue CHIEF exporters state. ac-
eording to this author, that the wine sent to
the markets OF the world is not of the first
quality. They keep that for their own use.
In speaking OF his drinking the pure cham
pasne, Mr.. Tones says:
now found, instead of tossing off nv glass
and swallowing lis contents wl.n a gu,n as
mad been wone 10 DO order to seen ~ ,ba
svanescent sparkle and htsten the expecrad
exniiaraIion, That the WINE lrickIed slow,v
drop ny urop, over tue .ratined palate. NV
t.lsle had recognized, tue firsI time in =
glass or champagne, the flavor OF fine WINE
and was hnsering IN the enjoyment OF ITS mel.
low richness. My host causn the expression
of my salIsiaction, and salu: ~ ou aon't oct
such wine IN America;" adding, with u royuish
twinkle OF his eye, we keep mat IL ourselves
and friends.
So we see that only two millions of bottles
OF champagne are imported into this country
annually, and those not of the first quality
How many bottles are used in the United
States annually we dare not conjecture. but
we may safely say the nunlber vastly exceeds
those imported. Millions upon millions OF
bottles drank under the name of cham
pagne. The two millions imported are COM
paratively but drop in the great bucket, and
yet our people are everywhere drinking cham
pagne! The truth is, not once in q thousand
times do drinkers OF wine get what the article
purLorts to be. 1t is nearly all spurious aud
never came from grapes that grow in foreign
countries, nor from grapes that grow any
where. We sometimes think that he who new
er drinks alcoholic liquors has palate not vi
tiated and Is the best judge of liquors. True,
it may be that experience is the best school
master, but drinking adulteratsd liquors is q
poor school for the palate and disqualifes one
to judge of the article.