USE AND NECESSITY OF ALCOHOL. 



With reference to the above noticed practice of 

 adding spirits to foreign wines, in particular to the 

 strong wines of Portugal and Madeira, it is averred, 

 that the intent is to secure them from the acid fer- 

 mentation, and to ensure their keeping ; yet the lighter 

 wines of France have no such need, nor is such addi- 

 tion customary in that country. The native strength 

 and extreme durability of the German wines, puts 

 all such aid out of question ; but the case, I appre- 

 hend, to be different with regard to the wines of our 

 own country, even the grape, which, to enable them 

 to keep through any considerable length of years, 

 must be fortified by the addition of spirit, essentially 

 brandy, even otherwise requisite, to impart to them 

 that body and tone, which else they would want, from 

 their deficiency in native alcohol. Dr. Me Culloch, 

 indeed, denies this necessity in our home-made wines, 

 but his argument would have been more satisfactory, 

 had it been backed by a twenty years' experiment. I 

 have indeed known, on the best authority, British 

 wine, after thirty years' keeping, in the highest state 

 of preservation, yet our wines are undoubtedly at 

 their utmost perfection of body, strength, and flavour 

 at the age of eight or ten years. With regard to such 

 practice, it is highly probable, that an addition of 

 spirits was made on actual experience of its necessity, 

 both for their preservation, and the improvement of 

 strength and flavour in our wines. 



It must nevertheless be acknowledged, that some of 

 the Continental wines, Sherry and Madeira particu- 

 larly, are too often over-dosed with alcohol, rendering 

 them inflammatory to the stomach, and conducive 

 more to the production of the gouty material. In 



