THE CHERRIES OF NEW YORK 5 



lation. This liqueur is imported in America in considerable quantities to 

 flavor preservatives in which the home-grown cherries are prepared for use 

 in various drinks and confections. No attempts have been made to grow 

 the Marasca cherry on a commercial scale in America but undoubtedly it 

 could be grown and, with the process of making maraschino discovered, an 

 important use wotild be developed for cherries — aU the more to be desired 

 since the foreign maraschino is now grossly adulterated and imitated in 

 this country. Both the fruits and seeds of cherries, especially of the 

 Mahaleb, are steeped in spirits for food, drink and medicinal purposes. An 

 oil used in making perfumes for scenting soaps and confectionery is also 

 extracted from the seeds of the Mahaleb because of which use this species 

 is often called the " Perftmied Cherry." 



In the old herbals and pomologies much is made of the value of cherries 

 for medicinal purposes. The fruit was supposed to be a sovereign remedy 

 for various ailments of the digestive tract as well as for nervous disorders 



as have become public seem to agree that the liqueur is a distillation of a compote made from the fruit 

 and young leaves. When ripe the cherries are picked early in the morning and sent at once to the distillery 

 where the stones are extracted by machinery. The leaves are cut, pressed and added to the fruit with 

 sugar and alcohol. This mixture is allowed to ferment for six months or thereabouts and from it is then 

 distiUed maraschino. It is then stored in cellars for three years before being placed on the markets. 

 In both Europe and America there are many imitations of the maraschino liqueur in which neither fruit 

 nor foliage of the Marasca nor any other cherry has any part. 



According to the Dalmatians all attempts to improve the Marasca cherry by culture have failed. 

 They say, too, that it will not thrive elsewhere than in Daknatia. Under culture, the fruits and leaves 

 lose their distinctive aroma and taste as they do on any but the native soil of the variety. The poorer, 

 sparser and more rocky the ferruginous soil, the wilder the tree, the smaller and sourer the cherries, the 

 better the maraschino liqueur — so the present makers say. 



Since considerable quantities of cherries are put up in America in maraschino, or its imitation, and the 

 manufacture of such products is a growing industry, the following ruling by the Board of Pood and Drug 

 Inspection of the United States Department of Agriculture, taken from Pood Inspection Decision 141, is 

 of interest to growers, canners and users of cherries: 



" In considering the products prepared from the large light-colored cherry of the Napoleon Bigarreau, 

 or Royal Anne type, which are artifically colored and flavored and put up in a sugar sirup, flavored with 

 various materials, the Board has reached the conclusion that this product is not properly entitled to be 

 called ' Maraschino Cherries,' or ' Cherries in Maraschino.' If, however, these cherries are packed in 

 a sirup, flavored with maraschino alone, it is the opinion of the Board that they would not be misbranded, 

 if labeled ' Cherries, Maraschino Flavor,' or ' Maraschino Flavored Cherries.' If these cherries are 

 packed in maraschino liqueur there would be no objection to the phrase ' Cherries in Maraschino.' When 

 these artificially colored cherries are put up in a sirup flavored in imitation of maraschino, even though 

 the flavoring may consist in part of maraschino, it would not be proper to use the word ' Maraschino ' 

 in connection with the product unless preceded by the word ' Imitation.' They may, however, be labeled 

 to show that they are a preserved cherry, artificially colored and flavored. 



" The presence of artificial coloring or flavoring matter, of any substitute for cane sugar, and the 

 presence and amount of benzoate of soda, when used in these products must be plainly stated upon the 

 label in the manner provided in Food Inspection Decisions Nos. 52 and 104." 



