2/6 mainli agricultural experiment station. i906. 



Vinegars. 



When alcohol is placed under favorable conditions it takes up 

 oxygen from the air and is converted into acetic acid, — the add 

 that gives the sour taste to vinegar. Whatever the source of the 

 vinegar, and however it is made, the acetic acid is the same. 



Besides acetic acid, vinegar always contains more or less of 

 other substances which vary widely with the source from which 

 the vinegar was made. It is because of these foreign matters, 

 characteristic of vinegar of the same kind, that it is possible for 

 the chemist to quite readily distinguish one variety of vinegar 

 from another. The sour taste of a vinegar is due to its acetic 

 acid, the other flavors are due to foreign matters in solution. 

 The standards which have been adopted for Maine take these 

 other foreign matters into account. The standards for vine- 

 gars * will be sent to anyone desiring them. 



RESULT OF THE INSPECTION. 



Samples of vinegar were taken from the stock of retail 

 dealers in several cities and large towns in the State in the 

 months of September and October, 1906. These vinegars were 

 examined for^otal acidity, volatile acids, total solids and ash. 

 The nature of the solids and ash were not studied, except in a 

 few special instances. For this reason it may be that an occa- 

 sional sample of vinegar has been passed as a straight cider 

 vinegar when it was adulterated. Ordinary adulterations would 

 be detected by the methods employed by us. A skillful adultera- 

 tion might have escaped detection. 



The results of the analyses are given in the table on page 279. 



While the inspector found the vinegar situation much better 

 than it was a year ago, still the analyses shows that vinegars 

 were on sale in the State that were not correctly branded. Cor- 

 respondence has developed two things, — great readiness on the 

 part of the manufacturers and wholesalers to meet the require- 

 ments of the pure food law ; and considerable misunderstanding 

 as to the requirements and how they are to be met. With the 

 present attitude of the trade, both wholesale and retail, there is 

 little reason to doubt that as fast as the requirements of the pure 



• Bulletin 135 Maine Station page 249. 



