PEPPER. The Black or White powdered pepper used as a condiment is the ground fruit of the Piper nigrum L., a perennial climbing shrub, native to the forests of western and southern India but for centuries cultivated also on the Malay Peninsula and in Sumatra, Java, Ceylon and Siam, and to a limited extent in Borneo and various other tropical countries. The fruit is a small, round berry, the "peppercorn," grow ing in loosely packed clusters of from twenty to thirty, closely attached to a common fruit stalk (see Color Page opposite 468), a good vine producing an annual average of from one to two pounds. Pieces of the stalk may often be found in whole black pepper and examination will show the depressions formed where the berries were attached. The shrub or vine grows to a height of eight to twelve feet and is supported either by poles or trees. The peppercorns are exported in bags of 64 or 128 lbs.
Among the principal commercial varieties listed in a recent government report are Malabar ( Mangalore, Tellichery, Alleppey, etc.), Singapore, Penang and Trang, Acheen (or Sumatra or West Coast) and Lampong (or East Coast), named either from the place of cultivation or that of shipment.
Malabar Peppers are those from the Malabar Coast of India. "Mangalore" peppercorns are very large, twice the size of ordinary pepper, of a deep black, very clean and uniform, giving when ground a powder of greenish-black appearance. "Tellicherry" and "Alleppey" are sun-dried and light-brown.
Sinapore Pepper is that grown on the Malay Peninsula, principally in the southern extremity known as the State of Johore. It constitutes a considerable por tion of all the pepper raised and, because of its dark color and fairly uniform quality, is a product of good appearance. It is not, however, so highly regarded for grinding purposes because of its smoky odor. The pepper and gambier plantations of Johore
are usually under one management, and the pepper is dried by placing it on mats suspended over the kettles in which the gambier is boiled down to make the vegetable extract. The smoke from the furnace underneath dries the pepper but at the same time imparts to it a distinctly smoky smell, which is retained to a considerable degree even after the pepper is ground. It is, indeed, one of the tests by which the pepper mer chant determines whether a given sample is Singapore or not.
Trang and Penang Pepper, shipped from Penang, is grown in either Java or Sumatra. It is of especially rich color.
Acheen, Sumatra or West Coast, are names applied to the pepper obtained from Acheen, the western extremity of the Island of Sumatra.
Lampong Pepper or East Coast, is grown on the east end of the Island of Sumatra, near the Straits of Sunda.
As a general rule, the heavier the peppercorns for size, the better the grade. They should be firm and round, clean and uniform in appearance and not too much furrowed.
Acheen Pepper has been standardized by general agreement and the four chief grades are now determined by their specific gravity.
"A" grade weighs at least 4 lbs. 13 oz. to the imperial gallon or 481 grams per liter.
"B" grade weighs at least 4 lbs. 5 oz. to the imperial gallon or 431 grams per liter.
"C" grade weighs at least 3 lbs. 13 oz. to the imperial gallon or 381 grams per liter.
"D" grade weighs at least 3 lbs. 5 oz. to the imperial gallon or 356 grams per liter. (Dust not to exceed 3% in any class.) The many advantages of this method will probably result in its extension to all Black Peppers in the near future. The other varieties described in this article are gen erally superior to Acheen and give much higher results on the weight test. Alleppey, for example, sometimes goes as high as 6 lbs. 12 oz. to the Imperial gallon and con tains practically no dust ; Tellicherry ranges from 6 lbs. to 6 lbs. 12 oz. and is equally clean ; Lampong averages about 6 lbs., with a dust percentage of to 3%, and Singapore from 5 lbs. to 5 oz. to 5 lbs. 8 oz., the dust though ranging up to 4%.