212 On the Cultivation of the Vine, 



and colour to the weak colourlefs wines of the cold and damp 

 countries. 



Though wine may work at all times, there are certain pe- 

 riods of the vear at which fermentation feems to be renewed 

 in a particular mnnner ; and, above all, when the vine begins 

 to bud, when it is in flower, ov when the grapes begin to 

 become coloured. At thefe critical moments, wine ought 

 to be watched with particular care; and every movement of 

 fermentation may be prevented by drawing off, and fulphur- 

 ing it, as above indicated. 



When wines are completely clarified, they are preferved in 

 calks, or in glafs. The largeft veffels are the beft, and they 

 ought to be well clofed. Every body has heard of the enor- 

 mous capacity of the tun of Heidelberg, in which wine is 

 preferved for whole centuries, always improving in quality ; 

 and it is allowed that wine keeps better in very large cafks 

 than in fmall ones. 



The choice of (ituation in which veffels containing wine 

 ought to be depofited, is not a matter of indifference : on this 

 fubjeel: we find among the antients ufages and precepts which 

 deviate for the mo ft part from our common methods, but which, 

 in part, are worthy of attention. The Romans drew off the 

 wine from the cafks to fhut it up in large earthen veffels glazed 

 in the infide : this is what they called dtffujio vmorum. It 

 appears that for containing wines they had two forts of veffels, 

 which they called amphora and cadus. The amphora was of 

 a fquare or cubical form, had two handles, and contained 

 twenty gallons of liquor. This veffel terminated in a narrow 

 neck, which was flopped with pitch or platter to prevent the 

 wine from exhaling. This we learn from Petronius, who fays, 

 Amphora vitrete diligenter gypfata allata: Junt, quarum in 

 eervicibus pittacia erant affixa cum hoc tltulo — iC Falernum opi- 

 manum annorum centum" The cadus had the figure of the cone 

 of a fir-tree; it contained one-half more than the amphora. 



The moft generous wines were expofed to the open air in 

 veffels well clofed; the weakeft were prudently placed under 

 cover : Fortius vinum fub dio locandum, tenuia vero fub teclo 

 reponenda, cavendaque a commotione ac jlrepitu viarum, fays 

 Baccius. Galen obferves that the whole wine was put into 

 bottles, after which it was expofed to a (Irong heat in clofe 

 apartments; and in fummer it was expofed to the fun on the 

 tops of the houfes, that it might fooner become mellow, and 

 fit for drinking. Omne vinum in lagenas transfuvdi, pojlea 

 in claufa cubicula multd fubjecla J/amma reponi, et in tcda 

 tedium a>jlate infolari, undc citius maturefcant ac potui idonea 

 evadant. 



That 



