Am.  Jour.  Pharm  ) 
Feb.,  1883.  / 
Reviews,  efx'.. 
Ill 
tory,  historical  or  otherwise  useful  notes  of  general  or  special  interest, 
before  the  various  proce.'-ses,  ajjparatus,  etc.,  are  described  and  explained; 
a,  number  of  wood-cuts  serve  to  render  the  description  of  api)aratus  ])er- 
fectly  clear. 
Passing  to  the  different  subjects,  we  observe  that  Soenimering's  process, 
recommended  over  seventy  years  ago,  for  depriving  alcohol  of  water,  is 
described.  It  consists  in  filling  a  bladder  with  the  spirit,  and  suspending 
it  in  a  dry  locality.  Many  years  ago,  we  have  repeatedly  experimented 
with  this  process,  but  with  such  ill  success  that  we  have  abandoned  it  ever 
since;  a  contrivance  described  for  keeping  the  bladder  always  full  may 
probably  produce  [more  favorable  results.  The  synthetical  production  of 
alcohol  from  olefiant  gas,  and  its  preparation  from  glacial  acetic  acid, 
though  interesting  to  the  chemist,  cannot  compete  with  the  manufacture 
of  alcohol  from  starches  and  sugars.  The  alcoholometric  methods  and 
tables  are  clearly  exiDlained,  with  the  view  of  their  jDractical  application. 
In  the  chapter  on  beer,  the  process  of  malting  is  well  described,  and  a 
practical  process  of  testing  malt  is  given  ;  likewise  descriptions  of  the  dif- 
ferent kinds  of  beer,  and  of  the  various  methods  of  brewing  them. 
We  learn  that  sugars  are  extensively  employed  in  brewing,  that  invert 
sugars  are  preferred  to  glucose  for  giving  a  full  or  "  round  "  flavor  to  beers, 
and  that  unmalted  barley,  maize,  rice  and  other  grain  is  now  largely  used 
in  brewing,  much  of  it  in  a  "gelatinized"  or  "peptonized  "  condition  or 
torrefied.  The  substitutes  for  hops  are  merely  mentioned  as  other  bitter 
materials. 
For  the  purpose  of  checking  fermentation  in  cider,  a  common  practice 
in  Devonshire  was  to  add  a  stuff  called  "  stum,"  sold  by  the  wine  coopers, 
or  an  article  called  "  antiferment  "  obtained  from  the  druggists  ;  of  neither 
of  these  the  composition  is  given.  The  method  of  sulphuration  is,  however, 
much  to  be  preferred. 
A  large  number  of  formulas  is  given  for  the  preparation  of  liquors  and 
cordials,  mostly  by  infusion  and  solution. 
Alcoholic  liquors  are  distilled  from  malted  and  unmalted  grain,  from 
potatoes,  artichokes,  beetroot,  beetroot  molasses,  carrots,  cherries  and  other 
fruits.  Koumiss  is  likewise  briefly  mentioned,  and  the  removal  of  fusel  oil 
is  described.  The  finer  qualities  of  arrack  are  distilled  from  the  fermented 
juice  known  as  toddy,  palm  wine  of  the  cocoanut  tree,  Palmyra  tree  and 
other  palms ;  another  variety  is  made  in  large  quantities  from  malted  rice. 
Brandy  is  the  distilled  spirit  of  wine,  and  eau  de  vie  de  marc  which  is  dis- 
tilled from  the  lees  of  wines  or  the  marc  of  grapes,  is  chiefly  used  for  mixing 
with  other  brandy  or  for  flavoring  plain  s^Dirit.  British  or  malt  brandy  is 
malt  or  other  clean  spirit  with  various  additions.  Gin  is  distilled  from 
clean  spirit  and  newly  rectified  oil  of  turpentine  with  or  without  other 
additions ;  turpentine  conveys  a  plain  gin  flavor,  juniper  berries  or  oil 
gives  a  Hollands  flavor,  creasote  imparts  a  certain  degree  of  smokiness  or 
whisky  flavor,  lemon  and  other  aromatics  a  creaminess,  fullness  and  rich- 
ness. Hollands  gin  is  made  by  fermenting  malted  bigg  and  unmalted  rye 
and  distilling  after  the  addition  of  juniper  berries,  sometimes  fennel,  cara- 
way and  other  materials  being  also  added.  Rum  is  obtained  by  distillation 
from  the  fermented  skimmings  of  the  sugar  boilers,  the  drainings  of  the 
