The Cheinlstry of Wine. 



201 



and to curtail its life. The more a tree grows, 

 the more it prodiu-es buds, wood and fruit, 

 until it lias reached its limit of arborescence 

 according to the soil and climate. Then it 

 remains stationary — in the adult state — pro- 

 ducing regularly the same wood and the same 

 fruits for a long time — for centuries, perhaps — 

 if the soil is propitious. But in whatever lo- 

 cation, and all things being equal, generous 

 pruning will always jirove more remunerative 

 than restrictive pruning. * « ♦ 



The soil, in the locality where the new 

 method has best succeeded, is a rather poor 

 quality of sandy clay, and ranges as third rate 

 Wheatland. On poor soil it will always suc- 

 ceed better than closely pruned vines, the size 

 attained by the plants giving a corresponding 

 strength to the roots. * * * ^(. 



The chief points gained may be summed 

 up as follows : 



1. With the '"trailing chain culture" the 

 amount of labor has been reduced one-half. 



2. The costly outlay of setting up and keep- 

 ing in order trellises, stakes, or poles, is dis- 

 pensed with. 



3. Any intelligent farmer can master the 

 whole system easily. 



4. No special or peculiar implements are 

 used; common farm instruments only are 

 needed. 



5. The distance between the rows affoi'ds 

 to wagons, carts, etc., free access to every 

 part of the vineyard, for all purposes. 



6. The danger of spring frosts is hardly to 

 be dreaded . 



7. The yield is one-third and frequently 

 one-half greater than with the old process. 



The new system is being extensively followed 

 wherever known; and large numbers of French 

 vintners not only set out their new vineyards 

 on this plan, but have the old ones remodeled, 

 by pulling up three rows out of every four, so 

 as to have about 16 feet between the remaining 

 rows. This speaks volumes in favor of the 

 "trailing chain," when we consider the price 

 of land and the long standing of the old sys- 

 tem in France. ♦ ♦ * * 



THE CHEMISTRY OF WINE. 

 By Chas. H. Frings. 



{ConHnued .) 



These peculiar flavors, however, are 

 not indispensable ingredients of wine, 

 but only characterize certain varieties 

 of wine ; but the general flavors are 

 indispensable, and those liquids which 

 are without them cannot be called wine. 



The juice of all varieties of grapes 

 and fruit will develop these general 

 flavors during fermentation, by the in- 

 fluence of stearic acid on the alcoholic 

 properties of the fiuit or its juice, and 

 the appearance of the so-called Oenanth 

 ether. These stearic acids are con- 

 tained in the wax-like coating of the 

 skin of berries and fruits, which give 

 them that peculiar gloss we so much 

 admire. 



Those ingredients which are the 

 cause of aroma in wines, will be more 

 strongly developed in fally ripened 

 than in imperfectly ripened fruit. The 

 riper the fruit the more aromatic will 

 the wine become. They are generally 

 etheric oils ; while those substances 

 which develop bouquet are generally 

 contained in larger proportions in tin- 

 ripe fruit, and mostly consist of those 

 organic acids which are either already 

 contained in the juice of the fruit, or 

 are developed during spirituous fer- 

 mentation, and thus form manifold 

 etheric flavors. 



The effects of those substances which 

 develop bouquet., are manifold and dif- 



