On Wine . 
487 
Your nex-t cask is Madeira. Is it London particular ? Is it 
bill wine or barter wine? Is it Cercial ? From the north, or the 
south side of the island ? The London particular, is the high- 
est priced wine for the London market : next to that is the bill 
wine, sold for bills of exchange : next to that is the barter wine, 
exchanged for goods. The wine of the south side of the island, 
as the Cercial wine, is much the richest : the northern side is 
comparatively harsh. Wine is made up in Madeira, by mixing, 
1st, a certain quantity of old with new wine: 2d, a certain quan- 
tity of Malmsey with the common wine : Sdly, a certain quantity 
of north side with south side wine. The more old the more 
Malmsey, the more south side wine, the better and dearer is the 
mixture. Clarified syrup is a frequent substitute for Malmsey. 
Teneriffe is, I believe, lately, introduced as an adulteration. 
All wines are vinegars as you say. But the older, the fuller, 
the richer the wine, the more wholesome is it, and the less apt 
to produce indigestion, heart-burn, and of course gout. 
Madeira should not be bottled : frequently the ullage is the 
best part of it. Madeira is adulterated, by Teneriffe, by Sherry, 
by Lisbon, by Malaga, by Fayal. Sherry hurts the quality of 
the wine least, but the Sherry flavour cannot be disguised. Tene- 
riffe spoils it in flavour, and in body. The twang of common 
Lisbon is detestable ; so is Malaga unless very old and very- 
dry. Fayal does not deteriorate the flavour, but it renders the 
wine meagre. 
The harsh, subacid Madeira commonly met with, is extremely 
unwholesome. A good judge, will prefer the smooth, full, silky 
wine ; though I confess this is a sensation frequently given as I 
have said before, by a slight admixture of clarified sugar. It 
approaches however nearest to the full rich south side wine ; and 
is less apt to disorder the stomach. 
The clarified sugar, should be of the best double refined, 
dissolved in clear pure water, boiled with the white of egg, and 
filtered through a flannel jelly bag. The isinglass addition. I 
suspect only, from my own observations and experiments, but I 
think I have detected it. A solution of terra japonica, will al- 
ways throw down isinglass or any other animal gelatine. 
You have Teneriffe there. Very old Teneriffe is drinkable. I 
have tasted none good for a sitting. Common Teneriffe ought 
not to find admittance, unless in the vaults of a professed wine 
merchant. If not the Vile Sabin um } a common homemade wine., 
it is not much better. 
