CELLAEING. 121 



cleansed outside and inside, and new corks must be 

 put into the bottles, even when the old ones are 

 unhurt. If the inside of the cork be covered with 

 rosin or sealing-wax, the entrance of air is cut off, and 

 the formation of mould hindered, though not pre- 

 vented. 



Wines which have been long in bottle often acquire 

 an unpleasant taste from this mouldiness ; they are 

 brought out to do honour to a guest, and praise is 

 expected which cannot honestly be given. 



It really seems strange that in this age, when so 

 many other means can be employed, cork should still 

 be made use of to stop bottles. 



Poumier recommends, and Boullay and Chevallier 

 are of the same opinion, that a small quantity of a 

 fatty oil * be stirred into the wine, in order to free it 

 from the unpleasant smell it sometimes acquires from 

 the cask. Many kinds of wine are improved by time 

 and warmth, and cold in some cases imparts superior 

 qualities to wine. Yergnette Lamotte, and Boussin- 

 gault f have given us some statements respecting the 

 manner in which the improvement of wine is effected 

 by the action of cold. Lamotte, who tried experi- 

 ments with Burgundy, observed, that the wine became 

 turbid before the point at which ice melts was reached, 

 and he found it deposited tartar, colouring matter, 

 and a nitrogenous substance. Wine begins to solidify 



* Geiger's Mag. fur Pharm. Bd. 27, s. 172. 



t Bulletin de la Societe d'Encouragement, 1848, p. 220. 



