WINES, MALT-LIQTJOKS, ETC. Ill 



most highly prized, it is naturally most subject to adultera- 

 tion and imitations. 



Various other liquors distilled from the fermented prod- 

 ucts of grains or fruits are in common use. The most 

 important of them are whiskey, which is made from rye, 

 corn, wheat, or oats ; gin, made from various grains rectified 

 with turpentine and juniper; rum, made from molasses; 

 and apple or peach-brandy, made from the juices of these 

 fruits. Liquors are also sometimes made from the potato. 



As a rule, the distilled liquors contain a little more than 

 fifty per cent., by volume, of alcohol, specific gravity, *825. 

 Alcohol is undoubtedly more injurious taken in this form 

 than in any other, as its quantity is large, and it is unmixed 

 with the tonic and nutritive principles contained in many 

 wines and malt-liquors. The gravest effects of the abuse of 

 alcoholic beverages, which are, unfortunately, so common in 

 countries where spirit-drinking prevails, are almost unknown 

 where the light wines are the ordinary drink of all classes. 



Wines, Malt-Liquors, etc. The fermented juice of the 

 grape furnishes an almost infinite variety of wines. These 

 are called full-bodied or light, as they contain more or 

 less alcohol. The stronger wines, such as port, madeira, 

 and sherry, contain from fifteen to twenty-five per cent, of 

 alcohol; while the lighter wines, such as claret, sauterne, 

 and hock, contain from ten to fifteen per cent. Every dis- 

 tinct variety of wine contains peculiar flavoring and aro- 

 matic principles, either characteristic of the grape or pro- 

 duced in the process of manufacture. 



As wine contains a variety of principles, chiefly non- 

 nitrogenized matters, with organic acids and salts, its effects 

 upon the system are somewhat different from those of alcohol 

 or the distilled liquors. The following are the constituents 

 found, in variable proportions, in most wines : 1 



1 PEREIUA, A Treatise on Food and Diet, New York, 1843, p. 202. 



