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A knowledge of this fact is important, or it may be mistaken for magenta. The behavior of the amylic alcohol, thus colored red, with hydrochloric acid and ammonia is characteristic. If the red color is due to magenta, it is destroyed by both these reagents, while hydrocholoric acid does not decolorize the solutions of archil and cudbear, and ammonia turns their red color to a purple violet.
Hence the large expenses attending rectification, which produce fine alcohols necessarily at an elevated price. We may remark, in passing, that the toxic action of commercial alcohols is in great part caused by the presence of essential oils, amylic alcohol, and ethers, absolutely pure alcohol, as compared with these, being relatively innocent.
The most suitable methods for the detection of magenta are those given by Romei and Falieres-Ritter. If a wine colored with archil and one colored with cudbear are treated treated according to Romei's method, the former gives, with basic lead acetate, a blue, and the latter a fine violet precipitate. The filtrate, if shaken up with amylic alcohol, gives it in either case a red color.
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