Chap. XIL O F T H E V I N E. -r /^ 397 



*' Dr. Burnet in his travels; and I have heard the fame from feve- 

 ft-'r-al gefitkfnen w^ho have travelled that road fince. 



" But with all the care that can poffibly be taken, either in the 

 <' culture of the vines, or in making the wine, it will not be near 

 *t,fo good while ihe vineyard is young, as it will be after it has been 

 *' planted ten or twelve years; arid it will be conftantly mending, 

 ** until it is fifty years old, as is attefted by feveral curious perfons 

 " abroad, asalfo by the moH fkilful wine-coopers at home, who can 

 */ tell the produce of a young vineyard, from that of an old one, 

 i^ by the colour of the wine, after it is brought to England. This 

 ** difference is veiy eafily accounted for, from the different ftrudlure 

 ** of the veflels of the plants : thofe of the young vines being larger, 

 *' and of a loofer texture, eafily admit a greater quantity of grofs 

 ^5'nourilhment to pafs through them; whereas thole of old vines, 

 *' which are more woody, are more clofely conftridled, and thereby 

 ♦' the juice is better flrained in pafling through them, which muft 

 " confequently render it much better; though the grapes from a 

 ** young vineyard will be larger, and afford a greater quantity of 

 "juice: fo that people lliould not be difcouraged if their wines at 

 " firfl are not fo good as they would whh ; fince afterward, when 

 ** the vineyard is a few years older, the wine may anfwer their ex- 

 ** pedtation. 



" The vineyard, being now arrived to a bearing ftate, fhould be 

 ** treated after th-j following manner: firft, in the pruning, there 

 *♦ fhould never be too many branches left upon a root, nor thofe too 

 " long: for although by doing of this, there may be greater quan- 

 *' tity of fruit produced, yet the juice of thefe will never be fo 

 " good as when there is a moderate quantity, which will be better 

 ** nourifhed and the roocs of the plants not fo much weakened ; 

 <' which is found to be of fo bad confequence to vineyards, that 

 ** when gentlemen abroid let out vineyards to vignerons, there is 

 *• always a cl lufe inferted in their leafes to diredl how many fhoots 

 " fhali be left upon each vine, and the number of eyes to which 

 " the branches mufl be fhortened ; becaufe were not the vigfiercns 

 " thus tied down, they would over bear the vines; fo that in a few 

 " years they would exhauft their roots, and render them fo weak as 

 *' not to be recovered again for feveral years; and their wine would 

 ** be fo bad, as to bring a difreputation on the vineyard, to the great 

 '* lofs of the proprietor. 



•* The 



