Adulterated Wine Exposed
By Editor
THE following story from a foreign journal (Galignani) gives an impressive view of the components of some of the mixtures sold as wine. Stuff like this, and even viler, is what some churches innocently persist in buying for the celebration of the Lord's Supper: 'In our last issue we gave an account of a meeting of the Paris retailers of wine, in which they endeavored to show that they were the victims of intolerable oppression. They would have the public believe that they are more ‘sinned against than sinning.’ The following story, however, told by M. Scholl in the Evenement, goes far to prove the contrary: ‘Breakfasting at home recently,’ he says, ‘I ate a certain rognon saute, which I shall not soon forget. At the third mouthful I stopped. My palate and lips were on fire. ‘What have you put into this sauce?’ I asked my modest cordon bleu. ‘Sir, as I had not the key of the cellar, I bought a bottle of Chablis at the grocer’s for fifty cents.’ ‘Is there any left?’ ‘Yes, about half.’ ‘Bring me that Chablis.’ I poured a spoonful into my glass to taste this new sort of wine. It had no taste. There was no trace even of raisins, nor of brandy. But I burned my tongue with it, and that horribly. I had the stuff analyzed by a chemist. It was merely water mixed with sulphuric acid. The maker had not even gone to the expense of a bunch of raisins or a few drops of alcohol. This composition is sold openly at fifty cents a bottle, under the name of Chablis Superieur. What must inferior Chablis be?’ —Sel.