The Grape-Vine 



253 



themselves with having originated and perfected schemes for treating the grapes, which are 

 now attracting the attention of wine-growers in all parts of the world. 



The progress of wine-growing in Victoria has been slow but sure, and in spite of many 

 vicissitudes the production of wine promises at the present day to become one of the greatest 

 industries of the colony. In 1860 the area under vines was about 2,000 acres, and some of the 

 vines had already made their way abroad and obtained favourable recognition. But about 

 this time a great rush for establishing vineyards took place, and in four years over 2,000 acres 

 more were planted by people, the majority of whom had little or no experience of viticulture. 

 The result was inevitable. The wines, made by the most unscientific methods, rapidly came 

 into bad repute, and the trade almost completely died out. Not completely, however, for a few 

 persevering men in the neighbourhood of Melbourne and other large towns, by careful and 

 diligent work, were gradually improving their vintages, and in 1881 created the greatest 

 sensation by winning at the Melbourne International Exhibition the grand prix offered by the 

 late German Emperor " to an exhibitor in one of .the Australian colonies as an acknowledgment 

 of the efforts in promoting art and industry as shown by the high quality of the goods manu- 

 factured by such exhibitor." From that day colonial wine was no longer thrown under 

 general condemnation ; it was seen that with careful scientific methods of cultivation and 

 manufacture Victoria could produce wines which were not to be ignored, with the result that 

 the colonists once more 

 turned their attention to viti- 

 culture. The most striking 

 testimony to the excellence 

 of Victorian wines has been 

 afforded by some of the most 

 famous growers of Europe— 

 whose names are household 

 words to the connoisseur — 

 who have been forced to 

 admit, generously enough, 

 that many of the Australian 

 wines are to be placed among 

 the best that can be produced. 



The manufacture of cham- 

 pagne has engaged the atten- 

 tion of three or four growers 

 in Victoria and New South 

 Wales, and much experience 

 has been gained as to the 

 requirements of the industry 

 under local conditions. Per- 

 haps the best champagne has 

 been produced by the Great 

 Western Vineyard, about 139 

 miles from Melbourne, where 

 the owner has been assisted 

 in overcoming the great diffi- 

 culty of regulating the tem- 

 perature by the possession of 

 huge caverns which have 

 been hewn out of decayed 

 granite rock twenty-five feet 



A COOPER S WORKSHOP 



