KUMISS

or Kumy , or Koumi , a fermented milk which is distinguished by a double fermentation—a lactie acid and an alcoholic. It is a beverage of very ancient usage among the Tartars, made by them of either mare’s or camel’s milk and constituting an important part of their daily diet. The native formula calls for the addition to the fresh milk of a small quantity of the previous making and then frequent agitation during fermentation. Lactic acid fermentation sets in first. Twenty-four hours produces a moderately sour liquid with only traces of alcohol. About thirty-six hours gives the finished beverage—sour, effervescent, and very mildly aleoholie (from 1 to 2%) —a product particularly valuable in that it can be kept for a long time without deterioration. The ‘‘kumi ’’ that we drink in America is a similar double fermentation of cow’s milk—skimmed and sweetened to bring it to about the same composition as mare’s —and fermented by means of lactic acid and yeast cultures. It is a beverage hoth refreshing and nourishing, much liked by many people of the most robust health and valuable also in the sick room, the casein being finely divided and some of it econverted into very easily soluble products. It is most palatable if poured a few times from gla to gla when drawn from the bottle—this producing a thick, creamy consistence. Cow’s milk must be skimmed for kumi manufacture — otherwise butyric acid (a stomach irritant) may be developed from its larger fat content; and sugar, or its sirup, must be added to provide sufficient food for the aleoholic fermentation. Fermented milk of this character similarly manufactured in Hngland is known also as ‘‘kephir,’’ taking its name from a Caucasian preparation of cow’s milk (or to a Je extent of that of goat’s or sheep’s) fermented with ‘‘kephir grains,’’ a mixture of fungi and bacteria, which resemble pieces of cauliflower. See also the subhead of Mermen ted milk in the article on Miux.