FOOD AND DRUG INSPECTION. 31 



CIDER VINEGARS. 



The analyses of cider vinegars collected are given in the table 

 on page 36. It will be noted that quite a number of country- 

 vinegars ran below the standard strength of acid. Investiga- 

 tion indicated that apparently in every such case there was no 

 attempt at fraud but that from different causes they were poorly 

 made cider vinegars. In these cases affidavits were obtained 

 both from the dealer and maker that the vinegars had never 

 been watered and that previous to our analysis they believed 

 them to be of standard quality. 



There are many reasons that account for these poorly made 

 country vinegars. The trade as a whole is pretty generally 

 informed now relative to this class of goods and it will be as 

 necessary for domestic country made vinegar to be up to stand- 

 ard as manufactured vinegars which are brought in from out 

 of the State. 



The cider vinegars were examined for total acidity, total 

 solids and ash. For the most part the nature of the solids and 

 ash were not studied. All vinegars which carried the requisite 

 amount of acid, solids and ash and had the general appearance 

 of cider vinegar have been passed as straight cider vinegar 

 although it may be that in some instances these were skilfully 

 adulterated goods. It is possible to so skilfully adulterate and 

 blend vinegars as to render the detection difficult; ordinary 

 adulterations are very readily detected. 



There is more or less general opinion among some of the 

 manufacturers and large handlers of vinegars that there are 

 on the market spurious cider vinegars which are sold in com- 

 petition with the genuine article. A few brands which were on 

 sale in Maine were pointed out as being probable instances of 

 these skilfully manipulated vinegars. 



In order to give this something of a test, special examinations 

 were made relative to the ash and solids and sugars in a bunch 

 of country vinegars selected somewhat at random, and a group 

 of cider vinegars made outside of the State which ran pretty 

 close to the standards relative to the percentage of acetic acid. 

 Among the samples of vinegars made outside of the State, there 

 are several suspicious samples but the data at hand does not 

 give sufficient evidence to enable us to positively state that the 

 samples are other than genuine. With the most of these sam- 

 ples, if they are not genuine, they are very skilfully made up. 



