Farmer.

Wairarapa Standard, Volume XX, Issue 2017, 14 January 1887, Page 2 (Supplement)

Farmer.

GRAPE ECONOMY. ci'.'-i’iEn hi. M.r gigrn. Iv 0.1 i ■■■- ;;ri••«. th> economic value of iv c,'- i.o"« w.r.M even wine is some-l,:-.;a •' s-x/y - v.p’ng the grape in vst-r- far ervdi in i op-vtaioce the conI the n:- yr.-.po ini') bevel wine, la western •; wries t-.o u-e cf the dry grape is seso-.-l -ir.ly in imprrtir.ss to the conversion ft ; - rlts-i (trap;- into al-oholio wine, and : : :e i J some pp.-i e.-t of its hading here, too, a-* ii *.-.3 Tuc European, American, ar i Australian t.-ide in currants and vark-us i ns ■ f -shins i? anr.-Gly increasin'.- -I v.v o ar-i tv-md- of tons are an-r-idilv ma-.vuf-iCturel lor the various market .' T.-,e (.xperh-ncj of California aad South Ao.-'i’.h hj r.j h-.s been remarkable. Raisins in C.I fro; 1 , ere t.r.ssiy eeesned, and the steady in ;na:c of She home pro-loot, which ■ndjo in pr ’-v: ..nos to he superior in appears ten and quality to the foreign one, will prov.rly lead nefore long to the importation of ihn’ v ving ai;>-jr other. It is said ih-t l.i’i'i.'s) ft- w <•£ raisins ware imported into «.!:>; L’ . s'-vtes ir.st year, while the comparatively diminutive crop from California amounted to only oh(\KJ boxes. Yet event.---! 1.-' -V '' I'v.l / rl\ "ft r -marks, : J a deci.P-i Fain over previous seasons, though but a s-.-p; bg-stene to lie enterprise in this line winch M - State seems likely to develop. Toe intro iiur-'in cf to« A: lea dryers in this iidustry ::as shown noteworthy results, the difference in saver of this over the old methods of curleg ‘ciog, is i 3 claimed, dollars per ton ct rai ;■:!?. Visitors to the Cintcnnial Exhibit - i had opportunity to res the beautiful ra’-’pes o' sh-a preserved fruit in the California* collections, the superior quality Being recornised at a glance, and suggesting the famed “ layer" of ripain and Turkey. California is also becoming known for the fiaa Zante currants, a small grape now largely imported.

Of Svuth Australia, Dr. B. Schoxnbargh, curator of the Adelaide Ejtzmcal Gardens, writes “ It is a gratifying fact to observe that our first sample of Zsnte currants sent to Ifeibourne.are ccnsi lured by oar neighbors as of most exc-Went quality, superior. cleaner, and of better quality than that of the imported ones. And we in Siulh Australia till now hf.re thought little of them. The proverb, •A prophet la not thou/.t much cf in hia own country,’ is cere a;-;..icibie. Wa produce an article which is considered superior to that we import, and yet very iittla has been done in the culture of tho /.vote currant and raisins. If we consider th>: the annual import of dried irur. into the Au ■•tr'.Uan colonies is csv-rahy trior• t-.;n £12*0.1), and as wa know that our c-.i .m- 1 ;■ iu e-uy way favourable to the e ,ir. t.j.i-, is it not snrpririog that no mere nitration hi 0.0.0 paid to these sonraoi of nr.-.fi* ? I voi d strongly recommend all in-; -;e- -.eor.s, e-p -.a ly tus smaller one-, hov;:: r : fr m one t) :r.rf: acre- of v.aeyaris. to grvfi o l tl.' wjri.iTss kinds of r:-ae€3 w,th Z c:.: c -rrant, .ia’.taua, and other rai-in gr -.p-.-. It r- ,riu/t ir.g to me to have aid . i 1 .tning to ti.;s extensive branch of ino^itr' ay the iatfiductiou of the Sultana grip’, woich it regard.l by the vigneroas with extreme eviif&ction. I may say that from inf>r:aaii.-.n rcflvM. probably more than twt-thirds or too 1100 grafts I distri-h-r.c-l 1 v; year i;.rva gcowa; and this valuable raisin. Wuich ctmmani-s tiu highest prices in tu* C ..-.itwau market 3, maybe considered as estibUhol in the colony.” CURRANTS ANO RifSIN.-i. Tire p.-iaclpU ir? rf industry in these are tic c.i-'... - rom! -.hetvinof the M-idi-terran.va N . ..;ii ; is rs ;-ie» of preparing ih-.aa thu- -;ated by r.w best auluori;y co ; . y R'-isias are grapes ahow-. 1 1. ri;-.:; and dry upon the vine. S.v.-s-. fl 3 -by ars eflec.ud for catur--1 ag into ratsir.s, an 1 sucj a.so as grow where they are sh i.i.'td from coid winds. The buncoes are pruned, and the vine is stripped cf its leave. 3 , when the fruit has become rips; the sv.u then beaming fall upon the grapes, erjrn-.etej their Eaecharificition. and expeU the superfluous water. These are muscatels or blooms. The raisins called kti<tt are p'ncked, cleaned, and dipped for a few sjeonis in a boiling lye of wood-ashes and quicklime, at 12 deg. or 13 deg. of tkaume’a areom'-ter. Tae wrinkled fruit is lastly drained, dried and exposed in the sun upon hnrd-ts of bs-ket work during 14 or 15 days. The finest raisins are those of the eun. so called; being the p’umpes: tunehc?, which are left to ripen fully anon tbs vine, after their staiks have b°en half cut threngh. Talectia raisin 3 are prepr-red by steeping them in boiling witi", to which a lye of vine stems has been added. Corinthian raising, or currants (Corinth. 3 ), are obtained from aremark&blr small variety of grape, called the black Corinth. Timy are principally grown in V. inte, Cipbai i.-ij, and Patti-,. )l)r. Ure’s Dictionary c! Arts,” Ac. Gcspes and cur rants are a’-n dr; ■-! in those- parts in a kiln. American ir-cauiiy, how ver, has created labour-saving machines, which are transferring the seat! cf tha industry from old to new locaiiiic 3 . Tee ordinary mode of manufacture, derived from the c’d seats of the industry, bat been to thin the grapes when ripe and ali-ow th°n to remain exposed to the sun to drived! some of toe superfluous witm Teen the bunches are picked, cleaned, dip-- d for a Uw s conds ia boiling lye of won ashes and quicklime, and finally allowed to dry ia th-> vun on hurdles for 20 days or longer, ctr • b- irg taken to prevent the dews and insects from injuring the fruit. This process h.s been almost universally super-se-ieT u America hy the Kelly Fruit Drying proc ss, by the Alden or Poenmitio Process, and by Gardiner’s Universal Fruit Desiccator, By means of ilr Gardiner’s machine he claims that the fruit may bo dried and fitted fir the market ia one day, avoiding damage to which the fruit Is liable by the long sundrying proce 33 , and saving much labour. Toe m»s..i;;.;ry i- 3 a tin cylinder, ten or more feet lon. 3 , heat, i from the inside by steam. It D Ria-iu to r --. jive slowly, and the fruit, whica ha 3 firm t -a ground to a palp, rs sir- w.-d to ..rip oa it from a perfora; 1 trough pUc .d im.nvomuly abev-o it. The fruit dries ja a very perfect manner, preserving all tho <-- 3 ‘car, liivoar, and sweetness of the original. T:.i process may go on until the cylinder is coat-1 an inch or mere in thickness, when it can b- remove! by dividing it with a knife and p-.-ciing •" 2 as from an orange. It is then rolhl up, a m is ready for use or shipment. Fruit thus pr- served baa baen taken to sea, and expand in open bexej through the tropics noth ways, wi.hont any injury to its pte.ervaticn qualities or taste whatever. The utility of this maching is not restricted to the drying of fruit or berries, bat any vegatable can be ground to a polp, or any juice esn be condtu-cd in the most perfect manner. Vv'aen it is de-ired to use the condensed fruit, a little water is added, and allowed to stand a short time, then cooked as fresh fruit, when it will eontain almost its entire natural taste. The Hon V. P. Watson, President of the Oregon Agricultural Society, is joint owner, and eoptemplites viating California shortly |o indodoe* tin machine (0 the bait-

growers ef that state. One advantage it possesses ever any other machine is that the tizs of the trait is no obj ict, as it will use small as wcT as large fruit. The only object is that the Iruit should be ripe. Th2 hollowing account of the Aldeo process has been specially contributed to the columns ot an Australian journal, at the request of the writer of this work, conveyed through the journal, and it from the pen of a gentleman deputed by an Australian colony to America specially to note improvements in machinery, Ac.: — The pneumatic or Alden process may be briefly described as a method for maturing and preserving animal and vegetable substances iu part through evaporation, and in part througu chemical binding cf their organic moisture, by exposing the same to a current of heated and humid air, increasing in humidity and decreasing in beat as the evaporation proceeds, the current ot air moving in the same direction with the articles to ha treated.

Tue principal part of the apparatus as described consists of a verticil chamber or shaft, 20 to 20 fact high, and 3 to 5 feet square, containing a scries of frames, one above the other, four and one quarter inches apart, covered with wire netting, and moved up ward all together by endless chains. The beating stove is placed under this chamber, from which currents cf air, heated to any required temperature, pass up through and around the frames. On each frame is spread ten or twenty pounds of fruit; the lowest frame is first placed in the chamber directly over the beat at the bottom of the shaft, where it remains from two to six minutes. It is then moved up four and a quarter inches, and another frame of fruit is placed beneath it. At regular intervals, the whole series of frames arc moved upward four and a quarter inches, and a fresh frame is put on beneath them, until the frames are nil in, containing (if apples) 15 to 30 bushels of fruit. At this time, the shaft being fall, one frame is taken oS at the top, and another is put in at the bottom, at regular intervals, varying with the variety cf the fruit treated, and the thickness of the shoes ot pieces. Each bushel of apples contains about forty pounds of water, wmch is seized by the ascending air, and passes with it up, through, and around the fruit as the moisture is taken gradually from it, enveloping it to the last in a cloud of vapor. The pores ot the fruit are thus kept open, free for the circulation and exit of vapour, until ali the free water is removed, the remainder (18 per cent.) being held as hydrate. It is well known that fruit will not mature, ripen, or sweeten up in strictly dry weather, nor in cold wet weather. The Alden evaporated fruit follows the law of nature in this respect. It does not become, therefore, a diitd fruit in the ordinary acceptation of that term, but it is preserved in its own concentrated juices, and will keep for years in any climate. The flavour is retained, and the development cf glucose, cr grape sugar, is perfect.

The best form of halloing for working three to fire cf the Aldcn eve.porr.tors, is a balloonframed thm-fctory building, about forty by thirty feet, twenty-eight fed high. The fruits vegetables, its., arc received, prepared (peeled, diced, and put into tfco evaporators on the floor, and passed upwards through the machines to the third fleer, where they arc rc-mov. d and thrown down through openings to the second Etorv to be packed. In California, if a fruit grower has an evaporator cf his own ha receives the following returns Of grapes suitable for tba purpose imo raisins, each ion will bring ill! at sd. per lb far tho raisins. The best varieties of grapes for making raisins are the rmifeat, the larga, th» betides.-; er.hr.rs. Currants made by the Aidt-n ptoters are v-.ry lupciior to the eon-dn-.-.i Xante Kind ar.-.i - bey ore free from grit. F.v;- <:v;.uoia:cr« will turn cut 30001b. of j.o.f-ctt-j i*..-ius every 01 hc-ure. The Crii-vl price in California for one of the improved Alden evaporators is £2OO, including a very high royalty. If any teeponeible perron is willing to enter into the business of makiug there evaporators, he should communicate with the “ Alden Trait Preserving Company o' California,'' whose address is 426, Montgomery-street, San Francisco; and lam sure he can make most favourable arrangements. T: e invention has been patented in the Australian colonies. RAISIN FOOD.

In Oriental countries where so much travelling is done by moans cf csrav&na over thousands cf leagues cf land, raisin food—being iimtilj the ripe grape roughly dried and compressed—forms one cf tfi-i chief sources of sustenance. Hiidy Turkoman, Persian, Arab, and AUt>-n traders subsist on it, the meals itecrt&liy consisting of afewdates,ki3hnuth (raisin 3 ). End a little water. Nor is the ampler meal 0' any respectable Moslem at borne contuietea complete without the usual plate of kkhmi-h. Date food has gradually crept into the English market, and there is hardly a grocer without a supply of it. And it ia possible that the tasteful raisin food may also ba created by a good, though ordinary quality sold cheap. If an acre can produce so many thousands cf pounds of raisins, (from 3000 lbs. to 30,000 lbs., ese ante, Chapter 11.,j there is nc reason why the price of the article should not be very much lower than at pre&mt, and yet leave a handsome profit, Usa and custom restrict the common consumption of a nutritive article or die:, and to borrow an idea from an Arab, ale -bol itself is Arabic, and means the eycbeing a product of the laboratory 0. Arabian alchemists—or a Turkoman—may ec-.a folly to an Englishman or an Australian. The pernicious, as well as filthy practices however, of smr.kirg tobacco sva» obtained from dirty Indian savage?, while the mild and useful properties of tea came to ua from the detpired “heathen Chinee.” In lea, coffee, and dried fruits generally, we have borrowed from the East, why should wo not also in idkiir food. r.AISIN PICKLES.

Thcto are either hot, or sweet, and arc Indian preparations. They tro made both in the some wav, except that the hot has a handful cf ground chillies (red pepper) added. The tuf cV of preparation is sc follows: — Sflect tine plump raisins, wash them, and in every pound of hot spired Eogar syrup, put in a pound of mines. Boil the raisins well in tho syrup, then bottle with a due admixture of r-pices, tlioed airaomis, end pistachio nuts. This Is tho twe; t pickle. For the hot, add a handful of giound dry chillies. The pickle? are ready immediately for eating. It may also be mentioned here, that there is hardly one of the numerous highly-prized Indian chain, y? into tho composition of which rat.-ins do not enter largely. RAISIN SWEETMEAT. To’ n--j of mi--mil ia ormnary minces is well .known ;we prop-,ve, however, to place a purely Indian dish bi-i. ia cut readers here, who rnu-t be rather turd cf sweet minces from the e onfrciionar’.- shop;— M“lt 11 p.-iuoa of clarified butter in a saucepin on the. Crt. When the butter ia sufficiently hot, put in a coopUcith.hlcspoonfuls of flour, and stir bristly till the flour begins to brown. Add a pound cl t-piced sugar syrup, and a pound of ta;-ins, and stir about. * The raisin? must bo previously washed and cleared cf ftoner. Rut ( in the mass then in shallow dishes, and let- it osand to 0001. A pint cf milk may be added in the procass with the tfl ct cl improving t.b« flavour of the sweetmeat.

CONCLUSION. We litre ended our enumeration of the various urcs to which the fruit of the vine can ba applied, and its purity preserved, based upon scientific, historic-.!, and experimental (acts. We hare seen it in its green, in ripe, and its dried state; and find that several cf these uses are such that they may become popular creating industries which may profit both tbe vine-grower and the seller of the made articles, and add to tbe econoraia wealth of a country. We have ■penally directed attention to pure, unfer-

moated wines, and raisins, which both together are probably yet destined to take the plans ot fermented, alcoholic wine in the estimaviun of sober mankind. Some of the uses enumerated may bs such as to merely gratify the palate; but canscionsly or unconsciously th.es gratification ot the sense of taste is always very much sought after by the youug, while others older are probably not much wiser in this respect. At all events, they can appreciate a really well-made dish, relish a condiment, and sip a sherbet. We would only urge a trial on a proper scale of most of these uses, being assured that they will prove profitable to ail concerned in their production as well as consumption.