676 Journal of Agriculture, Victoria. [10 Nov., 1916. 



As regards its high acidity, the following extract will prove of 

 interest: — * 



It is, of all the varieties of the Douro which are largely cultivated, that which 

 presents the highest degree of acidity, being from this point of view even 

 phenomenal. The following are analyses showing the acidity (expressed as 

 tartaric acid per cent.) of a few Portuguese varieties in different vintages : — 



Vintage. 

 Touriga 



Tinta Francisca 

 Tinta Carvalha 

 Souzao ... 



The high acidity of Souzao explains the important part it plays as regards 

 colour in JJouro wine making. 



Sr. Cincinnato da Costa says of it, in Portugal V inicola : — 



Souzao IS, in my opinion, the blackest of all the grapes cultivated in Portugal. 

 It is, at any rate, the darkest in colour of the 94 varieties I have more specially 

 studied. Like Espadeiro de Basto, Souzao is one of the few Portuguese grapes 

 which nave black pulp ; it is even blacker than that of Espadeiro. The flesh is 

 entirely of a blood red colour, and the must is deep ruby, very deep, as is no 

 other must. 



It is a curious fact that, whilst the must of ftiost sorts is cloudy, even after 

 filtration, that of Souzao, passed through cotton wool, is without matter in sus- 

 pension, almost as limpid and brilliant as a finished wine This 



peculiarity is also shown by another variety, viz., Sercial or Esgana Cao, but in a 

 less striking degree. 



Souzao IS cultivated as Basto (Korthern Portugal) ; it helps to give to these 

 wines (light dry red) their brilliant colour and the roundness (Suivadade) which 

 is characteristic of them. It is also grown in several other Portuguese dry-wme 

 districts in order to deepen colour. 



Thei'e are two distinct varieties of Souzao — S. de pe verde (green foot or stalk) 

 and i'. de pe vermelho (red foot) — the last is the most esteemed; it is the one 

 with dark-coloured pulp, and which produces the most highly-coloured wine ; the 

 shoots are tinted with scarlet. This is the only type which I examined. 



At tlie close of tumultuous fermentation, Souzao deposits a thick layer of 

 yeast at the bottom of the cask. 



Sr. Duarte de Oliveira, in the article on this vine in Ampelographie , 

 gives much information, quoting at considerable length from several of 

 the authorities mentioned above. He states how Souzao was used to 

 replace the Bagos de Scthagueiros or elder berries which were largely 

 used as a source of colour on the Douro over a hundred years ago. This 

 is an interesting subject, which will be again referred to in a future 

 issue. The following additional information is abridged from his 

 article : — 



Souzao does well in all soils; on deep moist soils it bears very heavily. On dry 

 hillsides it sometimes suffers from sunburn. In Douro and Traz os Montes (port 

 wine region) it is pruned short. On the deep granitic soils of Minho it must be 

 pruned long, owing to its tendency to run to wood at the expense of the fruit. 

 In this last district, where vines are trained to trees and on fiigh overhead 

 trellises [em forcado and remadas) it does splendidly and yields heavily; by 

 nature it is a vigorous climber suited for great expansion, but the setting of the 

 fruit is sometimes uneven {millerand^) . It comes into leaf a little after most 

 varieties, so that it rarely suffers from spring frosts. It ripens ratlier late, being 

 only quite ripe towards the second or third period {Piilliat). 



It yields heavily on Rupestris du Lot, but if the wealher be very hot at complete 

 maturity the bunches suffer from sunburn. Ripaira Gloire and especially .3309 are 

 to be preferred. 



• Vinificacdo Moderna, bj' Pedro Bravo aiul Duarte de Olivicra. p. 529. 



