7° 



journal of Agriculture . 



[lo Feb., 1910.. 



jNI. Leenhardt answers the second question and shows what happened; 

 to the wine produced in France in 1907 in the following table: — 



Disposal of Wine. 



Gallons. 

 Waste (lees, evaporation, &c.) ... ... ... ... ... 99,000,000 



Quantity consumed in France (having paid excise dntv* during 190(i) 



(otticial figures) ... .. ... ... ' ... ... 1,034,000,000 



Private requirements of individual French proprietors, tjuantities 



consumed duty tree (approximate estimate)... ... ... 330,000,000 



Algerian consumption ... ... ... .. ... 44,000,000 



Exportation... ... ... ... .. ... .. Oi;, 000, (100 



Distillation under State supervision ... ... ... ... 60,000,000 



Free distillation (6om7te<rs fZe tTH)t ... ... ... ... 33,000,000 



1, 672, 000, 000 

 Several intei'esting facts are here revealed. The loss bv natural waste- 

 (lees, evaporation, &c.) amounts to about 6 per cent, of the total wine 

 handled. The quantity distilled is practically equal to this figure. It 

 must be remembered that nearly all the wine distilled is made into^ brandy ; 

 the quantity of fortified wines made in France being insignificant. Algeria 

 consumes about ten times as much wine as we produce in all Australia. 

 The smallness of the export as compared with the total yield is very striking. 

 In 1906, it amounted tO' 66,000.000 gallons, or only about 4 per 

 cent, of the total production of the country (including Algeria). This 

 small proportion consists almost exclusively of choice wines and forms- 

 part of the 206,000,000 gallons, we have seen to be produced in the districts 

 of Claret, Champagne, Burgundy, &c. 



But by far the most remarkable fact shown by this table, is the enor- 

 mous consumption of wine within the country itself. The 1,364,000,000 

 gallons consumed in France in 1906 amount to very nearly 35 gallons 

 (a large quarter-cask) for every man, woman and child of the population, 

 and this in addition to a large quantity of cider, as well as beer and other 

 fermented drinks, and ^et the French are one of the most temperate people- 

 on earth. I 



In order to understand this seeming contradiction it is necessary to ■ 

 have lived for a time in France or one of the Latin countries. To most 

 Australians it will probably appear quite incompatible with usually ex- 

 pressed temperance views. In France and the other Latin countries, wine- 

 is not a luxury, but one of the ordinary daily necessaries of life, as it 



* The duty here referred to is what is known in France as " droit de circulation " ; it must be paid before 

 wine can be moved from one place to another. This duty varies from 1 fr. per hectolitre (le.ss than \A. per 

 ffallon)to i fr. per hectolitre (not ipute Id. per jrallon) accordintf to tiie department in which it is grown. 

 This duty is only charged once. 



+ What is known as the in-ivilege of bouilleurs de cru is the right given, by a French law, to vine 

 and fruit growers to freely distill, without interference of any kind, any wine (including by-products), or 

 fruits, grown on their own land. The resulting spirit is only lia>)U' to excise supervision and payment of 

 duty on its removal from the farm of the growei'. ■« .',:; ' '• ._ 5 



J The following table shows the annual consumption of wine, beer, and spirits per head of population- 

 in a few typical countries. These figures are from the Viotorian Year-Book for 11.08-9. The figures for ■ 

 France differ somewhat from the French estimate: — 



