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Manufacture of Vinegar

The shelf or false bottom also has four 1-inch holes, in which are inserted four open glass or reed tubes as air vents, each having its ends projecting above and below the shelf, one end projecting at least 1½ inches above the top E, and the other end penetrating the contents of the generator. CC is a horizontal row of four holes at one-third the height of the generator, equi-distant and an inch in diameter, bored in a vertical or slanting direction from the outside downward inside. It is essential to the success of the process that a current of air should pass through the tub. In order to establish this circulation, the above holes are made, and the air enters by them, and passes out through the tubes in the false bottom above. Dis a stop-cock, or faucet six inches from the bottom of the generator, the discharging capacity of which must be controlled by the size of the generator. Never draw off the vinegar below this faucet.

How to Pack a Vinegar Generator.

Having made the generator, the next part of the process of making vinegar consists in packing or charging it; this is done in the following manner: Fill the tub half full with corn cobs cut in pieces of from 1 to 2 inches long, and let the cobs remain in the tub just as they are thrown there, without further arrangement. Then fill up the balance of the generator with beech shavings, and arrange the shavings so that those which touch the false bottom are more strongly pressed than the rest, as the degree of pressure should increase as you pack from the bottom to the top of the generator. The generator being filled, the false bottom must be fitted in and rest level upon the shavings, and great care must be taken not to have the tubes stopped up, or the cobs packed too solid in the vicinity of the slanting holes. The generator may also be entirely packed with beech shavings or entirely with cobs.

Mode of Acetifying the Shavings.

The next step in the process of manufacturing vinegar consists in acetifying the shavings and cobs; and this is accomplished in the following manner: Preserve a temperature of between 75° and 85° Fah., and pour over the shavings and cobs every hour, 2 gallons of vinegar and + gallon of common whiskey, * until there is 10 gallons in the generator above the faucet, but not more. Then draw off from the generator every hour two gallons, and add it again at the top: continue this until the fermentation commences; this usually begins at the top of the generator in the course of 4 or 5 days. The contact of the air with the minutely divided liquid promotes the acetification, which consists essentially in the oxidation of the alcohol. As the oxygen is absorbed, the temperature of the liquor rises to 100° or 105° Fah., and when the thermometer indicates that temperature when placed at the opening of the cover, the generator is ready, and in proper condition for the manufacturer. Pay special attention to the fermentation, for that is the principal point to be observed. It is scarcely necessary to say that the vinegar used for acetifying the shavings should be pure, or at all events free from the mineral acids.

Mode of Fabricating.

Keep your vinegar room at a temperature of from 75° * This liquid should first be heated, to hasten fermentation. to 85 Fah., and maintain the temperature of the generators at 95° to 100° Fah. Then make up a mixture or wash composed of the following ingredients: 3 gallons common whiskey, 4 " 33 “ manufactured vinegar, pure water. 40 gallons, or a barrel.

The water if not clear must be filtered through charcoal. Draw off every hour four gallons of vinegar from each generator, and add four gallons of the above wash with an additional quart for waste in manufacturing, and pour the vinegar into another generator as soon as it is drawn. Vinegar is thus made by being passed only once or twice through the shavings according to the quality and degree of strength you wish to produce. Keep a large tank to hold the vinegar when made, and put gallon of molasses into it every day until you get a bed two or three inches thick. The molasses will improve the vinegar and give it a fine color. This is the quickest process which has yet been obtained, and the vinegar made in this way finds ready sale.