West Virginia Democrat. [volume] (Charles Town, W. Va.) 1885-1890, 1888-08-03
WINE PURIFIED BY ELECTRIC
ITY.

= - = ~ =.
Captain Winchell, a well known
New York newspaper writer, lately
returned from a two years trip to
Florida, has been sojourning in Pas.
sale for the past week. He dropped
into Mr.. Alfred Speer's wine vaults
one day this week, and became en-
thusiastic over the purity and great
popularity Of his wines. Mr.. Speer
has achieved success that is mar
velous. and he is justly entitled to :
reputation well earned after long
and experienced career. Over 81
years ago Mr.. Speer, knowing the
famous reputation Of thegrape vines
of which the genuine port wine is
made from the Douro Valley, in Port
ugal, obtained at considerable ex-
pense, 5000 of the vines which he
set out. He had great trouble in
acclimatizing the vines, and finally,
after eight years of much trial and
labor got 200 under successful culti-
walton all the others having died.
From these he obtained layers from
which he has proposated and form
ed his 40 acres Of handsomely laid
out vineyards. The Oporto grape is
small black variety, very much in
the shape and appearance Of our ma
tive wild grape, sometimes called
frost grapes. They are only fit for
making wine, being too small for ta-
BILE use, as they contain iron and 9TH
er medicinal properties, giving the
wine dark color and body, it has
become valuable to physicians, who
have always recommended it to in
valids and others, when iJ-could be
obtained pure. An article, labelled
Port Wine, is extensively sold, but
it is a dangerous liquid, and more
injurious than beneficial, when adul-
terated with logwood and a Hundred
other drugs that are used to counter
felt the genuine article. Mr.. Speer
also makes speciality ofunferment-
ed dgrapejuice from this Oporto grape,
for communion purposes, which he
refines by electricity-a recent dis
covery of his own-which destroys
the germ, that scientists decide is
the cause of fermentation. and the
means by which alcohol is produced
i'm wines. He also fumigates his
barrels with sulphur, and BY his pro-
cess produces pure, nutricious, un-
fermented wine, that has neither the
taste nor smell OF alcohol. His
wines are sold in Dresden, Vienna
and other parts OF Europe, and are
recommended by all leading physi
clans in this country. ID. Cyrus Ed
son, Sanitary Superintendent of New
York city, recommends it as one of
the best and purest brauds Of vine
that he uses. Doctors ID. w. Bliss
OF Washington; our late President
Garfeld's physician, j. G. Amber,
A. S. Conner and others speak of it
in the highest terms. Mr.. Speer,
while showing Capt. Winchell
through his vaults, brought him to
musty looking department, from
which the cobwebs hung in such pro-
fusion as to almost impede locomo-
ton. Here choice wines, thirty
years old, were sampled from dingy
and dirty looking bottles. While
tasting some 20 year old Port, Mr..
Speer told story about the late la
mented Horace Greely, who had re-
ceiyed some bottles of Scupernong
wine, made from the native grape in
South Carolina, which Mr.. Greely
asked Mr.. Speer to open and give
his opinion of. Mr.. Speer in drawing
out the plugs, as the bottles were
stopped with plugs instead ofcorks,
saw they were made of pitch pine,
and knew that the pitch would de-
stroy the flavor. Handing a glass
of the wine to Mr.. Greely, the latter
smacked his lips, and said, "Speer,
what funny taste it has. Take it
away / want nv turpentine pure"