164 



IT A R M E R S ' REGISTER 



seeds be not broken. The 7nurk or pomace is 

 thrown into a vat, which is covered wilh one or 

 more blankets, to confine the heat and hasten fer- 

 mentation. A portion is Gornetimea warmed and 

 added to the mass, to give it a start. The pomace 

 rises on the top, and the whole will continue lo 

 rise and ferment upwards lor four or five days. 

 When it begins to sink, the fine liquor, as clear 

 as oil, maybe drawn by a tap from near the bottom 

 of the vat, as lonff as it will run clear. This iTiakes 

 the best wine. The pomace is then pressed in any 

 convenient mode, and all the juice extracted. 

 The liquor is then called must, and in this state 

 it is when any addition may be made, such as su- 

 gar or brandy. Nothing will incorporate well un- 

 less added before fermentation. I added in differ- 

 ent casks from one to three pounds of sugar per 

 gallon, but I would advise the adding of '.he three 

 pounds per gallon in all cases, and I am not cer- 

 tain that a less quantity will preserve the wine from 

 running into the acetous fermentation. If pro- 

 perly made the wine does not require brandy, nor 

 any other spirit, and is much better without it. 



After the sugar is added in due proportion to the 

 must, It is put into casks in a moderately cool 

 place, and just filled to the open bung, and al- 

 lowed while fermenting to overflow. It will work 

 briskly for a month or more, and when it sinks in 

 the cask, must be filled up, so as to continue to 

 overflow. It is best to stop the fermentation be- 

 fore it quite subsides, in order to preserve the fine 

 aroma of the wine; and this is done by repeated 

 rackings, or drawing off" into casks previously 

 Bmoked wilh sulphur, by burning in them rags 

 dipped in melted brimstone. If any particular 

 flavor is desired to be communicated artificially, 

 it must be done while the must is in early stages 

 of fermentation. It will probably continue to Fer- 

 ment after this first sulphuring and racking; and 

 it may then be fined, or clarified. Many sub- 

 stances may be employed in this. Whites of 

 eggs — milk and sand — fish-glue, sometimes called 

 isinglass, may be stirred into the wine, which may 

 be racked ofl' in a week or ten days afterwards. 

 At every racking a quantity of sediment is re- 

 moved from the bottom of the casks, and these 

 rackings and finings must be continued until the 

 wine is perfectly pure. 1 commenced my wine 

 making in October, and considered it fit for bottling 

 in the JMarch following, when it was put into bot- 

 tles, demijohns, and tight casks. 



Even when new, the wine is exceedingly good 

 and palatable, and diffuses an inward glow, grate- 

 ful, cheering and healthful. The taste and aroma 

 are difl'erent iroin any wine that I have ever 

 known, and 1 cannot compare it with any. 



1 ascertained that a measured bushel of grapes, 

 as they came from the vines in clusters, weighed 

 thirty-eight pounds. I also weighed one hundred 

 pounds ot' grapes and crushed them, and obtained 

 a little more than nineteen gallons of juice ; it 

 thus requires eleven or twelve pounds of grapes 

 lor each gallon of wine. 



The location of my vineyard being considered 

 unhealthy, I have given it no personal attention 

 since 1832, but many persons in and about Brook- 

 lyn have made good wine from the Isabella grape 

 since that lime; and I do not doubt that others 

 will follow their example, until the Isabella wine 

 shall become a favorite at the tables of our best 

 connoisseurs. 



There is much to be learned concerning the cul- 

 tivation of the vine, and I-look to the correspon- 

 dents of your excellent agricultural journals, for 

 information on this as well as other branches of 

 these interesting pursuits. In this town last sea- 

 son the Isabella grapes did not come to perfection, 

 and were sour and worthless ; yet I had excellent 

 grapes from the fine vineyard of my liiend, Jo- 

 siah J>ow, Esq., of Brooklyn, which is twenty 

 iTiiies west of this place. I should like to know 

 whether manuring is desirable? what kinds, and 

 to what extent 1 what protection is best? and 

 whether my mode of trimming is, or is not, well 

 adapted to perpetuate the vine? 



In conclusion, I would remark, that the Isabella 

 grapes are eatable, and often in the market long 

 before they are ripe; and consequently many peo- 

 ple are ignorant of their excellence when in per- 

 fection. I give it the preference to any grape I 

 have ever tasted, and the vine is the greatest 

 bearer I have ever known. 



Alden Spooner. 



Hempstead, Long-Island, Feb. 15, 183S, 



From Hie Soutliem Cabinet, 

 NOTES ON EUROPEAN AGRICULTURE. BY A 

 CHARLESTONIAN. 



NO. IT. 



I stated in a former number that, in my opinion, 

 England was in a higher state of cultivation than 

 any other country in Europe. This is in parJ 

 owing to the industry of its inhabitants — to the 

 intelligence of those under whose direction the 

 lands are cultivated — and not a little to the climate 

 itself. The persons connected with agriculture in 

 England may be divided into three classes. First 

 — the owners of the soil. These are, in the ma- 

 jority of instances, composed of the wealthy no- 

 bilitj7. The property is usually entailed, and the 

 laws of primogeniture assign it to the eldest son. 

 He seldom cultivates his lands, but hires them out 

 in large tracts to the second class — the farmer. 

 This individual leases the land, commonly for a 

 term of nineteen years. He is usually well-edu- 

 cated and intelligent, and is able to introduce those 

 improvements in agriculture which the lights of 

 science, and the experience of others encourage 

 him to adopt. The manual labor is performed by 

 a third class — the peasantry. These are usually 

 poor and ignorant, and have scarcely any hope of 

 rising beyond the condition of serfs. They are 

 the cultivators of the soil from generation to gene- 

 ration, and the sons and daughters in nearly all in- 

 stances, follow the condition of their parents. 

 This is the class which, above all others, is most 

 benefited by a removal to America. In England 

 provisions are high, and the price of labor cheap ; 

 in America, it is, in general, the reverse. Here, 

 the industrious husbandman is soon rescued from 

 a state of dependence and poverty. Lands in our 

 new settlements can be purchased at a less cost 

 than the taxes would amount to in England. 

 Hence the dilBculty of obtaining laborers on our 

 American liirms will, for a long time, present a 

 serious obstacle to our improvements in agricul- 

 ture. Man every where struggles lor independ- 

 ence, anil he will not labor for oihera when lie has 



