j82 Journal of Agriculture. [9 March, 190S. 



the drainage is excessive, unless the ground has been first broken up to 

 a depth of 5 or 6 feet. It has been found futile to plant American vines 

 on the Douro. unless this deep preliminarv cultivation is thoroughly 

 carried out. 



Varieties Cultivated. — Unlike Burgundy and Hermitage, in each 

 of which districts one variety alone is culti\ated, or Bordeaux where one 

 {the Cabernet Sauvignon) forms the basis of all the best vineyards, Port 

 IS made from a large number of distinct " cepages " differing widely 

 from one another in such important matters as the colour, body, &c., 

 of the wine made from them. Some of these sorts predominate in one 

 vineyard and some in another, yet the wines of different vineyards do not 

 differ so greatly as one might expect. They are further equalized after- 

 wards, and it is largely owing to the skill with which the merchant blends 

 and handles the wines of different vineyards that the uniformity of high 

 class Port, turned out by any of the well-known firms, is due. 



If any one variety is more generally prevalent in all the different Douro 

 vineyards it is probably the Touriga, though one meets almost as fre- 

 quently with the following kinds: — Tinta Cao, Tinta Amarello, Mourisco 

 PretO', and Alvarelhao, in varying proportions. The following additional 

 sorts are also to be met with in many vineyards, and are considered, 

 together with those already mentioned, among the best Port \-arieties : — 

 Bastardo, Souzao, Donzellinho do Castello, Tinto Carvalho, Tinta Fran- 

 cisca, Tinta Roriz, and Cornifesto. The above are all red varieties ; 



White Port is chiefly made from the Codega or Malvasia Grossa and Mal- 

 vasia Rev. These last two are white grapes. No Muscat is ever mixed 

 with the above in the making of Port Wine. The Muscat flavour is quite 

 foreign to Port, and would destroy its character. The well-known bouquet 

 and flavour of Port seem to be solely due to the varieties above named, 

 and to the unique soil in v.'hich thev are grown. In some vineyards a 

 certain area of Muscat grapes is grown, but the wine from these is always 

 made separately. It usually finds its way to Brazil, where there is a re- 

 gular demand for this type of wine. 



Some very fine table grapes are also grown on the Douro, notably, the 

 Formosa., and several varieties of Ferral. The Mourisco Preto, men- 

 tioned above as a wine grape, is, strange to say, also a good table grape. 

 Another peculiarity it possesses is a partial resistance to phylloxera — too 

 slight, however, to be of any practical use. 



Methods of Pruning, Training, and Cultivation. — The distance 

 apart of the vines varies greatly, depending a good deal on 

 the width of the terraces, which in turn depend on the slope of 

 the hill. As a rule, the rows follow the direction of the terrace, the 

 vines being about 4 ft. apart in the row. Where the terraces are nar- 

 row, there are two rows of vines, or sometimes even only one, on a ter- 

 race, but where these are wide enough the vines are planted more regularly, 

 the rows being from 6 ft. to 8 ft. apart. The vines are long pruned 

 one, twO', and even three rods being left on a vine, according to its strength. 

 L'suallv a few spurs are left as well, but the '■ Guyot method '' does not 

 seem fro be regularly practised. The rods are generally bent round and 

 ^.upported by small stakes or bamboos — as many as six of these are some- 

 times allowed to one vine. They are in many cases only pine twigs, or 

 anything else that comes handy, for wood is scarce and expensive in Por- 

 tugal. Some growers are now training their vines on wire. In a good 



