96 VINEGAR, CIDER, AND FRUIT-WINES. 



The heating of the alcoholic liquid, of course, can also be 

 effected by heating one portion more strongly than necessary and 

 reducing it to the required temperature by mixing with cold fluid. 

 In working, however, with a fluid containing living vinegar fer- 

 ment and such, as will be explained later on, is claimed to be 

 already contained in freshly prepared alcoholic fluid care must 

 be had not to heat the fluid above 120 F., this temperature being 

 destructive to the ferment. 



CHAPTER X. 



OPERATIONS IN A VINEGAR FACTORY. 



Acidulation of the Generators. 



THE object of acidulation is to completely saturate the filling 

 of the generators with vinegar and to cause the development of 

 the vinegar ferment upon the filling material, shavings, char- 

 coal, etc. The generators are first filled with shavings, wooden 

 blocks, pieces of charcoal, etc. ; the false bottoms or spargers are 

 next placed in position and the temperature of the workroom 

 brought close up to 86 F. Acidulation, i. e., saturating the 

 shavings with alcoholic liquid, is then commenced, vinegar of the 

 same strength, i. e., with the same content of acetic acid, as that 

 which is to be manufactured in the generators being used for the 

 purpose. Every cubic meter (35.31 cubic feet) of the space filled 

 with shavings or charcoal requires for complete acidulation the 

 following quantities of vinegar : 



Shavings loosely poured in 230 to 270 liters ( 60.75 to 71.31 gallons). 

 Shavings piled up alongside 



each other 340 to 400 " ( 89.8 to 105.65 " 



Charcoal the size of a walnut 540 to 800 " (142.6 to 211.3 " 



The value of this vinegar used for acidulation has to be con- 

 sidered as dead capital. 



The first vinegar miming off from the generators is not only 

 considerably weaker than that used for acidulation, but, notwith- 

 standing the previous lixiviation of the wood, has a disagreeable 



