1094 



EXPERIMENT STATION RECORD. 



The following comparative statistics are considered of interest in 

 this connection : 



Beet sugar production in Sweden, Germany, and France, 1891-96. 



•At 3 of the factories only the juice was extracted, which was then sent to the other factories for 

 the remaining processes of manufacture. 



— F. W. WOLL. 



An experiment in generating vinegar, W. B. Alwood ( Virginia 

 Sta. Bui. 71, pp. 123-128). — This is a continuation of the work reported 

 in Bulletin 57 of the station (E. S. 11.. 8, p. 077). The object of the work 

 was "to determine the feasibility of manufacturing vinegar by modern 

 methods on the average farm." The vinegar generator used consisted 

 of a 4 by 8 ft. wooden tank rilled with beech shavings. The tank was 

 provided with holes near the bottom for the admission of air, and fitted 

 1 ft. from the top with a wooden disk perforated to allow the entrance 

 of the cider, which was distributed evenly over it by means of a dumper. 

 The vinegar was drawn from the tank by means of a siphon of glass 

 tubing inserted in a hole near the bottom. The temperature of the 

 fermenting cider in the mass of shavings was controlled by regulating 

 the supply of air, some of the air holes being shut off when the tem- 

 perature rose too high and opened when it fell too low. 



In order to acidify the shavings and start the process of fermentation, 

 the generator was charged with strong vinegar and again with vinegar 

 in which some concentrated grape juice was dissolved. The stock solu- 

 tion, a mixture of weak vinegar and fermented cider, was then run 

 through the generator at the rate of 20 gal. per day (24 hours). The 

 resulting product was a very good vinegar, ranging from 4.05 to 5.87 

 per cent acid. A mixture of half vinegar and half fresh cider failed 

 to produce good vinegar without being run through the generator twice. 

 Better results were obtained by allowing the cider to ferment for some 

 time in casks before running it through the generator. The tempera- 

 ture within the generator 2 ft. from the bottom ranged from 88 to 106°. 

 The higher temperature caused a loss of alcohol and lowered the acidity 

 of the product. Temperatures below 00° did not give good results. 

 The optimum is thought to be about 05°. 



It is believed that this method of manufacturing vinegar might be 

 used with considerable profit if it were not for the cheap vinegars made 



