ioo THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



Too much fusel-oil is even more destructive of quality than none 

 at all, and produces a crudeness and roughness which no lapse of time 

 can remove. There is plenty of whisky made with just these charac- 

 teristics, but not even by courtesy can it be called good ; some of it, 

 indeed, is so bad that, after a very limited time, it grows worse in- 

 stead of better ; such a result can come only from the carelessness 

 or incompetence of the manufacturer, or from lack of suitable appa- 

 ratus. 



The great aim of the intelligent distiller is, first, to prevent ex- 

 cessive development of fusel-oil ; and, secondly, to so arrange the 

 details of his distillation that just the proper quantity shall appear in 

 his distillate, and in the proper proportions. Theoretically its con- 

 stituents should be possible of removal from the ethyl alcohol by ordi- 

 nary distillation, in consequence of their higher boiling-points. In 

 fact, however, certain portions are carried over mechanically at lower 

 temperatures, and it is this fact which makes it possible, by the shape, 

 arrangement, and manipidation of the distilling apparatus, to so con- 

 trol the process that, practically, none of the constituents of the fusel- 

 oil shall be in injurious excess or deficiency, but all harmoniously 

 proportioned to further the development of the aging-process. This 

 partial control, however, does not relieve the fine- whisky distiller from 

 the necessity of close attention to the preliminary steps. Good grain 

 is absolutely necessary for the production of good whisky. Good- 

 water, scrupulous attention to cleanliness, and the most careful per- 

 sonal supervision, guided by long experience, are equally imperative ; 

 for, unlike the rectifier, he has no universal remedy after distillation 

 for all defects. His product, once imperfect, must either remain so, or, 

 by rectification, lose its character altogether. 



Mr. Dawson says, either directly or by implication, that most good 

 whisky-distillers either rectify their product themselves or that it is 

 done in a rectifying-house. Such a gross mistake could only come 

 from want of discrimination between the distinctive characteristics of 

 fine whisky and rectified spirit, the former being either excluded en- 

 tirely from his consideration, or else confounded with the lower grade 

 of goods. As a matter of fact, no fine whisky is ever rectified, and 

 from the previous description it is easily seen why such treatment is 

 not only unnecessary, but would be positively destructive to its proper 

 development. Neither is it ever offered for sale as one-stamp goods ; 

 uhy, will be easily understood when it is known that the best brands 

 of fine whisky are worth, when new and in bond, from two to three 

 times as much as one-stamp or rectified goods, the disparity in value 

 increasing with age. 



Explanation of the cause removes the mystery ; and to the judg- 

 ment of the reader, in view of the facts set forth, I leave the consid- 

 eration of the propriety of using one-stamp alcoholic spirit twelve 

 months old. 



