The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1884-02-24
TRICKS OF THE WINE TRADE.
Watering the American Product
How the Native Article is Trans
formed Into the Foreign.

81 will tell you q little personal ex-
perienoe of my own. In the neigh
borhood of the University buildings
and Washington square, in New
City, there are number of Frenct.
Italian cafes, attracted thither by TIE
large number OF bachelors who lodge
in the vicinity. 1 irequented one
kept by an Italian. The dinner, M
GLIDING a smsll bottle of red wine,
cost 81. The dinner was very good,
and the wine, which | knew was
American, was somewhat thir. The
prop rietor and myself being on ex.
cellent terms, I asked him one eveu>
ing with bold efrontry, how much
wster he put in his Wine, and in
borst of confidence, heightened by
liberal indulgence in his OWN wine,
which, By the way. be always drank
pure himeelf. he told me that the
vine he furnished his guests was
ooe.third water-a dilation of his
owr-he could not say bow much the
dealer had put in before it reached
him.
lone evening while l wac sitting
near the little pupitre whence tie
| vine was brought to the tables, q
pale-iaced young man with critical
sir entered and seated himself near
the window. The room being OF
limited proportions, all conversation,
save that carried on 10 an undertone,
can easily be heard. 1t was, there
fore. without any desire to listen, that
l heard the newcomer, after looking
very sharply at the unlabeled bottle
OF vim ordinsrie before MIN, and
thrueting it aside. ask the proprietor
il be would not fetch him a bottle OF
sound wine.
"'What quality do you wish p
said the latter.
st. Julien was the reply.
Certainly
''This answer was surprise to me.
for / knew tue proprietor had no
wine in the house save that in dilu-
ton. as We may say. and little pure
Italian wine which be occasionally
offered to his most cherished guests.
His method, however, Of supplying
imported wines OF almost every de-
scription was simple one, and had
DO hing whatever in common with
that old. fashioned and expensive one
OF cul.ivating the grape, extracting
the juice, etc. From little box he
selected handsome label with the
legend st. Julien-Edouard Champ.
lis Fills Bordeaux ct Rheims This,
which was gummed on one side, he
placed in a soup plate filled with
water. Then hs took from another
box silver gilded toll cork covering,
and taking up one Of his bottles Of
diluted wine be placed this de1ter-
ously over the cogk, pressing il
neatly down around the edges. Tax
the bottle up in his left hand he took
the label from the soup plate, and |
stuck it securely on to the bottle.
Il. was certainly neat Job, but |
wondered, as / knew he would be ex-
pected to pull the cork, how he would
be able to account for the absenos OF
the popping noise which in all cases
accompanies the nnsorking OF good
bottle of wine. But moderated his
genius. He supplied this as artisti-
cally as be did the label and cork.
Taking the bottle to his customer in
silver pail filled with ice, he in
quired if he ehould open it. to which
an affirmative reply being given, ne
turned the corkscrew in briskly,
leaned his head and shoulders 90 as
TO completely conceal his face, and,
a. the cork flew out, he, by placing
bis tongue to his cheek. drawing in
his breath and suddenly opening bis
mouth, made a noise which to the
ear, even where | sat. was almost the
exact counterpart OF that which is
produced by drawing very tightly
corked bottle. Yet the cork in this
bottle. like the corks in all the bot
ties in this cafe. was 80 loose that had
it not hsd metallic label oyer il. it
would have almost fallen out. The
young man drank the wine with evil
dent relish and was charged $1.5O
extra, while those around him were
drinking the same wine without extra
charge"
Such instances as that related
at owe are by no means rare. They
occur every day in New York and
Brooklyn, and doubtless in every
other city in the country Brooklyn