214 'AMEKICA^ GBAPE GKOWIXG 



far as it is the best means of improving otherwise imper- 

 fect must, not as an indiscriminate means of increas- 

 ing the quantity at the expense of quality. Only so far 

 as by the additior of water and sugar, an imperfect must 

 can be made the most perfect, is Gallizing not only justi- 

 fiable, but a necessity. As soon as it aims only at in- 

 creasing the quantity without regard to quality, it is rep- 

 rehensible, and should be frowned down. This may be 

 called gaUonizing, not Gallizing ; and that these gallon- 

 izers have done a great deal of mischief by bringing their 

 trash before the public, and calling it wine, can not be 

 denied. But those who, from a mis-taken idea that a 

 wine to be good and healthful, must be natural, as they 

 call it, have made it as Nature gave it, and have, there- 

 fore, disgusted the palates of refined wine connoisseurs by 

 their pure, but weak, foxy, and acid Concords, and Ives, 

 etc., thus doing even more to bring American wines into 

 discredit than the gallonizers. Both of these, the natural 

 wine-makers and the gallonizers, have been the curse and 

 bane of our wine markets ; those who, in the inno- 

 cent belief that they were tasting fair samples of Ameri- 

 can wines, swallowed their compounds and were disgusted, 

 and when they met with good productions, were de- 

 terred from tasting again. The true course lies in 

 the middle, as usual. The wine-maker has certain un- 

 erring guides, which teach him, with a little practice 

 and experimenting, "thus far shalt thou go, but no 

 farther." 



Having thus defined what we intend to do, which is 

 simply to improve our must, if deficient, let us, to see 

 our way clearly before us, examine as to the consti- 

 tuent parts of must or grape juice. A chemical analysis 

 of must shows the following result : 



Grape juice contains water, sugar, free acids, tannin, 

 gummy and mucous substances or gluten, coloring mat- 

 ter, fragrant, or flavoring substances (aroma, bouquet). 



