444 



FARMERS' REGISTER. 



grapes were by no meang in realily decayed. This 

 shook my faith in scuddiness beinortlie result ol' 

 the employment ofdecayed grapes. On the whole 

 I think if a more perlect lermentaiion were etfccted 

 in the first instance, little scuddiness would ever 

 afterwards be found in the wine. I think you will 

 find in Chaptal, that the graisse, which 1 take to 

 be the same thing, most frequently shows iiself in 

 wines which have undergone little lermentatiori ; 

 that is, where, in order to preserve the bovquet, the 

 fermentation is stopped. He says elsewhere also, 

 that it had been usual at Orleans to liirmenl the 

 must with stalks and skins and all. At one time, 

 however, they thought of relieving their wine of 

 a degree of harshness, by not suffering the stalks 

 lobe fermented, but it was found that the vvine 

 was much more subject lo graisse, and they return- 

 ed to their old practice. He says, that in various 

 parts of France they deprive the grapes, i.e. the 

 must, more or less of tfie stalks, accordmg as the 

 season has been fiivorable or otherwise (or matur- 

 ing the grapes. In a very fine season they leave 

 all the stalks, considering it necessary to produce 

 a perfect fermentation. In no part of Sjjain, as 

 iar as 1 can find, do they ferment even the skins of 

 the grapes.* Were I concerned in the business 

 I should certainly attach much importance to, and 

 expect important results from, a trial of the S3S- 

 tem of large vats, and the fiermentation ofthe skins 

 in order at once to effect a thorough fermentation. 

 In most cases I think you would have an Amon- 

 tillado ; that is, if you allowed ihe grapes to be as 

 ripe as they are allowed to be at present, dried 

 them in the sun, and assisted their natural dryness 

 Gtill further by addmg gypsum. (By-the-by, may 

 the gypsum not contribute, by absorbing the 

 existing acid, to produce scuddiness?) But if, as 

 is tiie practice at SanLucar, you make the vintage 

 before all the grapes should attain the perfect ripe- 

 ness they do at present, and were less particular in 

 deprivingthemof moisture, then I think you would 

 have a vvine something between the Manzanilla 

 and the Amontillado ; not so dry as the latter, but 

 addmg much of the mellowness and richness of 

 Sherry lo the lightness of the Manzanilla. The 

 fatter is, in fact, the natural wine ofthe country on 

 the ordinary soils. If the produce ofthe albarizas 

 ■were treated in the same manner, you would have 

 a wine of the same character, but probably sur- 

 passing it in quality as much as the real wines of 

 the Chateau Margaux and Hant Brion surpass 

 the ordinary growths of Claret. Add to this what 

 I cannot but think would be a certain, and to the 

 merchant the most important result, you would 

 have a wine as ripe in eighteen months as it now 

 is in three or (bur years. 'J'here are two or three 

 other little points, about which I should like to 

 inquire. Domecq said, a number ol his grapes 

 had rotted this year, in consequence, of the wet 

 weather and luxuriant vegetation. This he would 

 prevent in similar seasons in ILiiure, by stripping 

 off the leaves to give the grapes sun and air. 

 Pray is this practice not gencridly known in the 

 country? In the south of France it is a regular 

 part of the labors of the vineyard, unless in re- 

 markably dry seasons. Another query is, do they 



never take the lop off the branch after the grapes 

 are (brtned? — I should like to know Pedro Do- 

 mecq's ideas about ihe agua pies. In many sea- 

 sons, Cormack says, the agua pies is belter than 

 the first pressing, — now this can only be owing to 

 the over-ripeness of the grape — to its comaimng 

 loo much saccharine matter in proportion toils 

 moisture. Would it not be better to make the 

 vintage earlier '? and, instead of adding foreign 

 moisture, you would then have enough of the 

 natural juice ofiheliuit, and enough also of saccha- 

 rine mailer, seeing its excess is the most general 

 fiiult. But this would not suit the hot mouths of 

 your English customers. If you have an oppor- 

 tunity, give me some particulars of the relative 

 value ofthe albarizas and arenas. I am confident 

 Cormack must be mistaken. I think it is barely 

 possible but that the albarizas must be double, if 

 not treble, the value ofthe others.'' 



TTiursday, lOth November. — After encountering 

 a succession of contrary winds and calms, we this 

 day came to an anchor in the bay of Rosas, in 

 Catalonia, the north wind blowing so strongly nut 

 of the Gult'of Lyons, that it was impossible to 

 double Cape Creux. 1 was now on the verge ol 

 one of the most interesting wine countries in 

 France, and was glad of this opportunity of quit- 

 ting the vessel belbre her arrival at her destina- 

 tion. But on touching the beach we were inform- 

 ed that we must be put under quaraniine, owing 

 10 a report that the yellow fever had broken out at 

 Gibialiar. 



Rosas, like most of the other towns I have seen 

 on the east coast of Spain, is backed by steep hills, 

 which are clothed with vines and olives to the 

 very tops. In the distance are the Pyrenees, 

 capped with snow. If one might judge from the 

 slate of these hills, contrasted with that ofthe rich 

 plains of Andalusia, we might draw the conclu- 

 sion, that wherever nature hnd been bouniilul, 

 man had been indolent ; but where she had been 

 niggardly in her gilts, the deficiency had been 

 more than compensated by the industry of man. 

 The fjills above Rosas, as well as those in the 

 south, exhibit every where an appearance of the 

 most careful cultivation, and in general are covered 

 with habitations, while it was rare that a detached 

 house was met with lor many miles on the plains. 

 (To be continued.) 



*Ttie red win^s of Catalonia, and of other provinces 

 wliich produce red wine, are of course an excpption 

 to this observation, as it is nocepsary to tcMUient flie 

 skins in order to ^ive the wine a color. 



INSECTS. INDIAN CORN. MILLET. 



For tlie Farmers' Regi.^ter. 



I have noticed, in a late Register, that one who 

 is known to be a good liirmer, and intelligent, has 

 deieimined to graze liis lands for the purpose of 

 destroying insects; will he permit me to inform 

 him that this course will not answer his purpose. 

 A (ew years past 1 grazed my lands very close, 

 and cropped them severely; nevertheless, the in- 

 sects increased so rapidly that with a microscope 

 I could see on a smaii space thousands, of per- 

 ha|)s all shapes and colors. My corn lias been 

 more damaged by insects than other crops, but all 

 have suflereil ; so that I liave had at least an acn; 

 in a body, without a productive stalk standinflf. 

 At my place of residence I now graze my fields 

 very lightly ; indeed some are not grazed at all, 

 exce[il in winter and early spring; yet my crops 



