Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1878-04-08
LETTER FROM NEW YORK.
Special Correspondence.

A-OAs>S - RiAi 1Of -.
In the course of the prolonged discus
sion in the New York Legislature over
various and sundry plans for decreasing
drunkenness, bill was under consider
alton few days ago, making it a mis-
demeanor for saloon keepers to sell IL
quor to certain class of persons. Be-
fore the vote, one assemblyman got up
and made vigorous speech in favor of
"pure whisky and liquors generally,
and protesting against their wholesale
condemnation by the temperance people.
Reading the report of these proceedings
set me to thinking about the 'pure" Ii
quors which this rural law-maker SO ell
oquently defended; and l soon recalled
few pertinent facts elected by a gen.
eral examination of drinks made in this
city last winter, and which perhaps fail
ed to come under the eye of this inno-
cent and elbow-crooking legislator.
In the first place, the foundation fact
established by the investigation referred
to is, that there is almost no such thing,
commercially speaking, as pure wine or
liquor; SO that the question, from the
very outset is, practically, as to how
much any specified tipple is doctored.
The existence of this state of things
supposed to be too generally known to
be commented upon but if man, and
an acknowledged drinker into the bar
gain. can get into the legislature of this
State, knowing as little of the facts as
the gentleman above named seems to, it
is probable that the following brief state
ment may find an occasional interested
reader:
The four kinds of liquor sold in New
York saloons are rum, whisky, brandy
and gin, or at least they 60 by these
names, though perhaps they are not the
same liquors as were originally so de-
scribed. Rum was originally made by
fermenting and distilling on small
scale, either rye or wheat or mixture
of the two. Brandy was made by dis.
tilling the wine of grapes, or by taking
the pulp and skin of the grapes, after
the juice was expressed for making wine
and fermenting them or distilling. Cir
was made by distilling alcohol through
juniper berries. All these liquors are
colorless when first made by these pro
cesses; they acquire color from being
kept for long periods in barrels, ant
they acquire tannln from the oak o
which the barrels are made.
So much for the old-fashioned, genu
inc liquors they were expensive to maxi
and expensive to keep; they lost b,
evaporation, and, of course, lost thei
makers the interest of their money.
The modern liquor-dealers, accordin!
to the most trustworthy authorities, hav
changed all this, and have discovered
much cheaper and simpler way of carry
ing on the business, namely, to make al
kinds out of corn, alcohol (the cheapes
produced), favoring it to initiate wha
they desire to sell. For example, a deal
er wishes to get up an assortment of Ii
quors. From some distiller or broke
he buys fifty or a hundred barrels G
highwines. To make his low grad
whisky he merely dilutes portion {
the stuff till 1t contains 40 per cent. c
alcohol. colors it with burnt sugar, an
it is ready for sale. For better quail
ty of whisky, the highwine is PARTIAL
purified, and beside the sugar for color
: ing, careful selection from the class c
= compounds chemically known as ether
: is added, since the discovery of which
= the art of favoring has been carried I
unheard.of perfection. How powerfr
these compounds are may be judged frol
the amount prescribed below in concoc
ing brandy. .
Rum is made by fltering the hig
wine and reducing it to the propt
: strength by water, favoring it with bu
yric ether, pine apple ether. ETC., addin
burned sugar and little molasses. I
make gin, the filtered highwine is dilu
ed to the proper strength, favored wit
J. the essential oil of juniper and sweeteI
IS ed with white sugar or rock candy.
h Brandy making is little less simpl
Y A purer alcohol has to be used, Gale
IS Cologne Spirits, Here is an approve
e recipe ITO forty gallons of cologl
IS spirits double distilled and free fro
e odor, and reduced to proof with distille
le water, add ome-sirteeath Of an ounce
s. scogniac oil, one and half pints
o burned sugar coloring, and one quart
re ounce of tannin." This artistic comb
IN nation results in one barrel of .Be
m French Brandy to be afterwards be
Y tied, handsomely labeled in French, ca
q. ed ten, fifteen or twenty years old. al
a. sold over the bars of hotels and frs
er class saloons at thirty or forty cents
ii glass The imitation is really very 60
t. when skillfully prepared, and lacks 4
SO even the peculiar flavor which is su
b. posed to be derived from age in the b;
rel. but which is really supplied by