182 



WINE, CIDER AND VINEGAR 



making, this is known as the must; in cider-making, 

 it is sweet cider. This juice may be nearly clear, or 

 it may be rather turbid, and contains, besides the 

 sugar, some acid, the natural acid of the fruit, 

 ethers, salts and other soluble matters. 



The alcoholic fermentation proceeds most rapidly 

 at a temperature of about 25° to 26° C. (77-79° P.), 

 or a few degrees above the ordinary temperature, 

 and is retarded by cold and entirely prevented if 

 the temperature is sufficiently high. With ordinary 

 temperatures, the first twenty-four hours after the 

 juice is expressed sees but little apparent change. 

 During this period, however, the yeast cells are 

 multiplying rapidly and the turbidity of the 

 solution increases. Then a change, beginning 

 slowly but increasing rapidly, takes place-; small 

 bubbles of gas rise to the surface, and ilecks of 

 foam are formed. Finally the solution seems to be 

 undergoing a mild " working " or ebullition (hence 

 the name fermentation, from fervere, to boil), and 

 the fermentation is at its height. 



The solution is now changed in taste as well as 

 appearance. The sweetness largely gives place to a 

 mild stinging taste as alcohol is formed. Gradually 

 the " working " ceases, as the sugar is used up or 

 the alcohol becomes sufficiently large in amount to 

 inhibit further action by the yeast. The yeast 

 settles to the bottom of the liquid and the fermen- 

 tation, except for a slow change, the after-fermen- 

 tation, which persists for several days after the 

 active period of change, comes to a stop. The 

 solution thus acted on cannot be further changed 

 by the same organism, but may be again fermented 

 by the acetic bacteria. [See Vinegar, p. 183.] 

 Generally, not over 10 per cent of alcohol may be 

 produced by yeast, and the ordinary ciders and 

 wines contain less than this amount. 



I. The Manufacture op Wine 



The preparation of wine on a small scale has 

 been practiced in this country since its settlement. 

 It is, however, only about one hundred years ago 

 that the first systematic attempt at grape-culture 

 for wine-making was made in North America 

 (except in California, which was not then a part 

 of the United States). The first really successful 

 attempt was made at Cincinnati, in 1825, by 

 Nicholas Longworth, who planted a vineyard with 

 cuttings of the Catawba grape, a native vine 

 taking its name from the Catawba river in North 

 Carolina. Owing to fungous diseases, the industry 

 had to be abandoned at Cincinnati about 1865, 

 but meantime it had been taken up in other parts 

 of Ohio, and in New York and Missouri. 



In California, wine-making has been conducted 

 successfully for more than a hundred years. The 

 introduction of foreign vines, which were not suc- 

 cessfully cultivated elsewhere, was here immedi- 

 ately successful, and, from the first attempt to 

 grow these vines at the Catholic missions in 1771, 

 the industry has developed, until now California 

 produces more than four times as much wine as all 

 the remainder of the country combined. 



The making of wine is a process requiring very 

 great care and watchfulness. From the moment 



the juice is expressed until the product is ready 

 for the market the wine must be treated with 

 scrupulous care. After the expressing of the juice 

 the first fermentation proceeds in vats or barrels, 

 after which the wine is "racked" into bottles, 

 where the finishing and the after-fermentation 

 take place. Deep-seated chemical changes, result- 

 ing in the formation of ethers, or substances giving 

 the pleasant aroma and flavor to wines, are brought 

 about during this period, which may be of long 

 duration. In most instances these changes proceed 

 very slowly, so that wine must be several years old 

 before it reaches the highest quality. Attempts 

 have been made to imitate' this aging, with its 

 interaction of alcohol, acids and ethers, by the use 

 of electricity and other agencies, but the naturally 

 ripened product is unapproachable in real delicacy 

 of flavor and aroma. 



While the principle underlying the manufacture 

 of wine is very simple and easily comprehended, 

 the actual process is one which requires years of 

 detailed study to master, owing to the effect which 

 minute variations in the quality of the grapes, or 

 in the environmental conditions, may exert. 



Classification of wines. 



Wines may be divided (1) according to color into 

 red and white ; (2) according to the amount of 

 unchanged sugar left in them at the end of the 

 fermentation process, into "sweet" and "dry"; 

 (3) according to the presence or absence of carbon 

 dioxid held in solution under pressure, into 

 "sparkling" or " effervescing," and "still" wines. 



Red wines are made from grapes with dark- 

 colored skins. The skins are allowed to remain in 

 the fermenting mass, and the alcohol as it is 

 formed dissolves out the red coloring matter. 

 White vines are usually made from light-colored 

 grapes and the skins are carefully eliminated. 



Sweet wines are those still containing a consider- 

 able amount of sugar after the fermentation is at 

 an end, while on the other hand, those which are 

 fermented out, or have the sugar exhausted in the 

 final fermentation, are called "dry." It is thus 

 possible to have red or white wines which may be 

 either sweet or dry, still or sparkling, and the 

 number of types or varieties is very large, includ- 

 ing champagnes, clarets, Sauternes, Rhine wines. 

 Burgundies, sherries. Madeiras and ports. Many 

 of the kinds are named for the province or locality 

 in which they originated. 



Champagnes are effervescing wines, so called 

 from the province in France where they were first 

 manufactured. In addition to being made from the 

 finest grapes, and fermented and handled with the 

 greatest care, champagnes usually have added to 

 them a euvee made from sugar, water, cordials and 

 the like (generally each maker has his secret for- 

 mula), and subjected, in strong bottles, to a final 

 fermentation in which the gas formed is absorbed 

 under great pressure, so that on opening the bottle 

 a marked effervescence results. They are classed 

 as sweet, dry and extra dry. 



Clarets are dry red wines, originating in the 

 region of Bordeaux, while Sauternes are dry white 



