IO 
AVoyageto JAMAICA 
Of tbe 
Wines of 
Madera. 
nut Trees grow. The greateft part of the Ifland is one very high Hill, reckoned 
four Miles from bottomto top, which for the moft part is clouded, the defcent 
of which being very fteep, makes the {mall Rivers very rapid, and their Cliffs 
or Banks very perpendicularly high. ‘This Ifland is very fruitful, having for- 
merly furnifhed great quantities of Sugar which was here planted, and was at 
firft excellent, and yet what they have here is extraordinary but very little ; 
the Reafon of which is, that there are fo many Sugar Plantations in the 
Weff-Indies, tis not worth their while to make ir, although being once refin’d 
or clayed ‘tis very White, and one Pound of it will do as much as a Pound 
anda half of any other; fo that although they make fome which is dearer, 
yet they find fo much more Profit in manuring their Vines, that they fcarce 
make what is fufficient for their own Spending in their Families and Sweet- 
meats, but buy that of their own Plantations in. Brafl for that purpofe. 
The greateft part of this Ifland is at prefent planted with Vines, the Soil 
being very proper, for it is rocky and fteep; they keep their Vines very low 
with Pruning, in that agreeing with the Culture of the Vines in France, as 
alfo in that thefe Wines grow on the fame Soil with thofe moft efteemed there, 
asthe Hermitage Wines, which grow on the rocky fteep Hills on the fides of the 
Rhofne. The Grapes are of three forts, the White, Red and great Mufcadine, 
or Malvafia ; of which three the firft are moft plentiful, for out of the White 
is made the greateft quantity of Wine, which is made Red by the addition of 
fome Tinto, or very Red Wine made out of the Red Grapes, which gives ita 
deeper Tincture than that of Champagne, and helps it to preferve it felf much 
better. It is fufficiently known that White-Wines, generally {fpeaking, perith 
very foon, and that Red ones are much eafier preferved, the deeper their 
Tin@ture be; fo in France they fuffer the Husks or Skin, and Juice of the 
Grapes to lie longer or fhorter time inthe Cyve together after bruifing, ac- 
cording to the Stipticity or Tinéture they defire, or which is all one, the time 
they would have their Winesto keep. The Virgin Wine, or that made of the 
Juice running of the Husks immediately without ftanding or preffure, is foon 
ready to drink, fine, and very foon perifh’d, the Husk impregnating the Wine 
with fomething equivalent to Hops inBeer. The fame likewife happens in Oil 
Olive ; for it is to be obferved, that that fort of Oil void of all manner of 
Taft and Smell, call’d Virgin Oil, which runs off the Olives without preffing, 
will without the addition of Salt, in two Months turn rancid, whereas that 
which has by ftrong preffing and ftanding been impregnated with fome {mall 
parts from the Rind, or Stone of the Olive and Kernel, isable to keep fora 
very long time without any addition. The Malvafia or Wine made of the Muf- 
cadine Grape, does not keep, but Pricks very foon, and fois made in very {mall 
quantities. The great quantity of Wine here made, is that of the White 
mixt with a little Tinto, which has one very particular and odd Property, 
that the more ’tis expos’d to the Sun-beams and heat the better it is, and in- 
ftead of putting it in a cool Cellar they expofe it to the Sun. It feems 
to thofe unaccuftomed to it to have a very unpleafant Taft, though fome- 
thing like Sherry, to which Wine it comes near in Strength and other Pro- 
perties. It is Exported in vaft quantities to all the We/-Jndia Plantations, 
and now of late to the Zaf ; no fort of Wine agreeing with thofe hot Places 
like this. 
They have herefome Corn of their own growth, about as muchas may main- 
tain them four Months of the year, but moft comes to them from Daztzick, 
Ireland, New-England, &c. in Exchange for their Wines to be carried to the hot 
Eaft and Weft-Indies, and fome few Sweet-meats, as-Marmelade of Quinces, 
Citron-Pills,éc. which they here make up with Brafl Sugar, or that of their 
own Ifland. ‘The Sea round this Ifland is very deep, (as it is in moft places 
where the Land is high) within a Mile of the Shore ’tis Fifty Fathom sea 
an 
