The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1907-11-16
COURTS MUST SAY
WHAT IS WH|SE[Y
Straight Whiskey Contains Small
Proportion OF Poisonous
Fusel Oil.
-------------.
WHICH is PURE WHlskEY7l
--------------.
Blenders Contend That Their
Product Is Best Entitled
to Be Called SO.
WHICH G; is PURE WAlsKEY7I

| r.
WASHINGTON. D. c., November db.--
Whether the whiskey which confirms
the largest amount OF fusel oil or the
whlskey which contains the smallest
proportion of fusel oil shall be- the
whiskcy to be given official approval
under the p,re-tood law. is tho ques.
ton which tho courts are to decide In
the several test cases which Attorney
General Bonaparte Is preparing to have
brought. - ..s
Fusel oil, according to DR.. Wiley,
the chief chemist of the Department.
| OF Agriculture, and according to all
other PSYCHOLOGISTS. is deadly poison:
yet II is an ingredient OF some dis.
titled spirits In the form In which 1T
comes from the dlstiller. and In some
Instances In the proportion OF sevo1.
tenths of ] per cent. az. !.
Some distlllers. however, carrynuU
distillatton and purifying methods
little further. and remove the greater
part OF. this tusei oil.
contention has arisen between, the
makers OF different kinds of wlisKey
over the label to be adopted for the
product under the Federal pure.food
law What has heretofore been re
ferred to as straight whiskey'--anA
this kind is the kind that is bottled
IN bonds manufactured by those ats-
illers who leave in their distilled sspir-
Its all OF the fusel oil. .ss., &
The pure food law does not define
what Is or what IS not whiskey, but
DR.. Wiley desires to read into the law
ME definition OF whiskey. which has
been made so that II fits the product
only OF those distil1ers who leave In
all the fusel oil, and cuts out the pro.
duct OF those distillers who take out
most OF the fusel oil, and he declares
that such a distilled spirit Is not en-
titled to be called "whiskey.,' 8
The nlender contends that neither of
these Two distilled spirits is as good
by itself as when they are mixed with
each other. The distiller. as distiller,
cannot mix distilled spirits. and IL he
wants to mix them he must qualify
az as rectifier and a blender under
the internal revenue laws.
Practically all of the whiskey which
the public has been receiving for thu
past forty years is mixture OF the
product of these two classes OF. dis
tillers. The mixture Is In varying pro-
portions and with sometimes aislittM
sherry wine added for coloring AM.
flavoring. The adding Of the sherry
vine takes the place OF the oId-fasf1-
|
spirits in an empty sherry cask.
Blended whiskey manufacturer.
argue that they are better entitled to
the pure whiskey label than those dis
tillers whose product contains all tho
fusel oil which is produced during
the fermentation of the n1ash,ssand
which is said to be congeneric With
ethyl alcohol.
They make the point that the terms
straight whtskey" and bottled In
bond are misnomers. in that, they
the product contains. They are wilma
to mark their product blended. but
contend that instead OF making an
Imitation whiskey by this processrthey
are IN reality producing a beverage
which is superior to the straight
whtskey. In that the greatest amount
OF the objectionable fusel OIL possible
Is extracted: All this has led to the
question. What is whiskeY2'' 7Dr.
Wiley contends that straight whiskey
Is vhiskey, despite the presence of
fusel oil. Aging the product in charred
barrels. 1t Is asserted does not. re-
move the oil, although 1t does add a
flavor which destroys the taste Of the
poison. 1t is said that by far, the
greater amount of whiskey consumed
Is the blended goods, and even though
1t contains far less quantity OF gfusel
oil than the so-called straight soods,
DR. Wiley In his interpretations Of tl,s
law. insists that 1t must be marked as
imitation whisky. for the reason tliat
II does not contain all the fusel oil.
When the cases are called In court
It Is the intention OF the blended whis-
Key manufacturers. II they are. per-
mitted to do SO. to give an exhibition
III court Of the process of wlliskey-
making to demonstrate their corten-
lions. Millions OF dollars are involved
IN the decision which the courts are
70 be asked to render in determining
the question. What Is, whiskey?... and
whether two kinds of distilled spirifs
mixed together are entitled to be Gu tte,1
"a blend" * 49,,