732 Agricultural Journal of Victoria. 



DRY RED WINES AND THEIR TREATMENT. 



By M. d'A. Burney. 



Part II. 



At the time of first racking, under ordinary circumstances the 

 cellar will contain Avines of different grades, characters, colours, etc., 

 owing to the difference in the variety of grape and differences in 

 the soil and situation of the vineyard. The wine maker who aims 

 at producing an export wine should endeavour to produce a wine of 

 a given and standard type. He should be able to show to the buyer 

 an even lot of wines of the one type and character. Owing to the 

 cost of labour it is not always feasible to pick different portions of the 

 vineyard at once, so as to blend the grapes in the fermenting vat, 

 and consequently wines of different types have to be graded and 

 averaged afterwards and blended into the one even export type of the 

 vineyard. This type should be a heavy wine of good colour, dry. 

 but fruity, and if rough and heavily charged with tannin it is no 

 fault at this stage. It must not be sweet, nor must it contain more 

 than a small percentage of fixed acids. More important still, it 

 must not be a thin, hungry wine, lacking body. The wine maker 

 should endeavour to produce this type as soon as possible, beginning 

 at the time of first racking. Having noted the alcoholic strengths 

 of his wines as they are maturing, he will blend his thinnest wines 

 with his heaviest, and so on, so as to produce an even sample. 

 Often a wine containing an excess of sugar when fermented to say 

 27 per cent, proof spirit will lose that excess if blended with a 

 perfectly dry wine containing 24 per cent. The wine maker must 

 draw samples and attempt to copy his previous vintage as far as 

 possible with the material at his disposal. It is not possible to 

 explain accurately on paper how he is to arrive at this desired 

 result, as much depends upon the knowledge of local conditions and 

 the results of' previous experience. In the North-East District of 

 Victoria the wines from the Malbec grape, if picked when they 

 contain up to 14 deg. Beaume, will almost always ferment out dry, 

 producing a wine containing between 26 per cent, and 27 per cent, 

 proof spirit of good colour and character. Cabernet Sauvignon is 

 sometimes a trifle deficient in colour, but of great flavour and distinct 

 character. Shiraz of fine colour and body does not always ferment 

 out as dry as could be desired. The method to be employed is self 

 evident. The Malbec must be used to reduce the excess of sugar 

 in the Shiraz, and the Cabernet to improve the flavour and character. 

 If, however, a wine of whatever kind of grape contains 1 deg. or 

 2 deg. Beaume of unfermented sugar with an alcoholic strength above 

 26 deg., it must not be put in with the blend, except in small pro- 

 portions, for fear of having an excess of sweetness that would be 

 detrimental to the type of wine desired. Buyers for the London 

 market like a fruity wine, but it must not be sweet, even though the 



