Occupations > British wine-maker, and domestic brewer

THE BRITISH WINE-MAKER. 15
biting the beautiful dark-coloured and fine crys¬
talline crust as an indubitable proof of the age of
the wine; a practice by no means uncommon, to
flatter the vanity of those who pride themselves
in their acute discrimination of wines.”
Various other deceptions of a more culpable
nature are practised by fraudulent dealers, the
most dangerous of which is the admixture of lead
employed in the adulteration. Every intelligent
and disinterested reader must concur with Mr Ac-
cum in his just observation, “ The merchant or
dealer who practises this dangerous sophistication
adds the crime of murder to that of fraud, and de¬
liberately scatters the seeds of disease and death
among those customers who contribute to his emo¬
lument.”
These sad details must certainly convince a dis¬
interested reader that there is at any rate a very
great risk of procuring a genuine article in foreign
wine; for if it is correct, that five-eighths of the
wine brought into this country are spurious, and
that every one of the pipes imported may be con¬
verted into three, it is next to impossible to ob¬
tain it. Notwithstanding all that has been written
on the subject of adulteration of wine, I do really
believe that genuine wine may still be got by
going to a respectable merchant, and giving him
his price, instead of purchasing from those who
advertise Good Old Port at 20s. to 24s. per doz.