1868 The complete Practical Distiller

THE COMPLETE PRACTICAL DISTILLER.

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MODE OF MAKING ENGLISH VINEGAR

This is generally made from malt. By mashing with water, 100 gallons of wort are extracted, in less than two hours, from 1 bushel of malt. When the liquor has fallen to the temperatui;e of 75° Fahr., 4 gallons of the yeast of beer are added. After thirty-six hours it is racked off into casks, which are laid on their sides, and exposed, with their bung-holes loosely covered, to the sun in sum- mer, but in winter they are arranged in a stove-room. In three months this vinegar is ready for the manufac- ture of the sugar of lead. To make vinegar for domestic use, however, the process is somewhat different. The above liquor is racked off into casks placed upright, hav- ing a false cover, pierced with holes, fixed at about a foot from their bottom. On this a considerable quantity of ropey or the refuse from the makers of British wine, or, otherwise, a quantity of low-priced raisins, is laid. The liquor is turned into another barrel every twenty-four hours, in which time it has begun to grow warm. Some- times, indeed, the vinegar is fully fermented as above, without the rope^ which is added at the end to communi- cate the flavour. Good vinegar can be made from a weak syrup of 18 ounces of sugar to every gallon of water; yeast and rye are to be used as above described. Vine- gar obtained by the preceding methods has more or less of a brown colour, and a peculiar but rather grateful smell.