96 



The Grape Cvlturist. 



and evidence upon which it is based. 

 This defect might easily be cured. 

 Wine is a compound, and the elements 

 which combine to establish its qualit}' 

 are well understood and defined ; none 

 ought to escape the attention of the 

 committee; but each one of them to 

 I'eceive its proper share 'of such at- 

 tention in the order in which it pre- 

 sents itself. The order will be about 

 as tollows : The bottle is uncorked ; 

 if it is old wine, the air in the room 

 will be perfumed at once and eager!}' 

 Avill the nostrils inhale the sweet scent. 

 Here is 



1. Bouquet. It is a characteristic 

 of old ripe wines; in 3-oung wines it 

 is seldom if ever developed, nor in 

 inferior wines either. 



Xext the wine is poured into the 

 goblets ; the attention will be directed 

 to its 



2. Color and clearness. Wine which 

 is not perfectly clear and transparent 

 ought not to appear either in the mar- 

 ket nor in the committee room ; but 

 it is customary with us to exhibit wine 

 when only a few months old; it may 

 be perfectly clear when taken out of 

 the casks in the cool cellar, but after 

 it has been exposed for a few hours 

 to the warm atmosphere of the com- 

 mittee room, fermentation will set in 

 and the fluid will become more or less 

 turbid. Fermentation aifects not only 

 the clearness but also the flavor and 

 the color of the wine. 



The goblet is raised, first towards 

 the light or the sun to reassure of the 

 unclouded transparenc}' of the li(|uid ; 

 then to the nose, more fully and defi- 

 nitely to establish the bouquet; then 

 a sip or two are taken, a hearty draught 

 follows with an approving nod, and — 



3. Flavor and aroma are established. 

 If any doubts remain, the operation 

 may be repeated once or oftener ad 

 libitum. Alcohol (body) acids and 

 sugar condition the flavor and aroma, 

 and their harmonious combination, to- 

 gether with bouquet, color and clear- 

 ness, establish the qualit}' of the wine^ 

 and the proper place in the scale can 

 now be assigned to it accordingly. 



All this ought to appear in the re- 

 port, and it would be easy enough, if 

 the committees were furnished with 

 appropriate blanks, for every memljer 

 to note down his opinion on each of 

 the several elements ot wine, and 

 finally his judgment. 



Another requisite is, that the com- 

 mittee do not act in haste, but take 

 time to consider: an evening session, 

 say from 9 to 1 o'clock, would be 

 advisable I A very good time to taste 

 wine is also in the afternoon from 5 

 o'clock to about 11 o'clock p. m., con- 

 ditioned always, that it is not a ])ottle 

 or two that are to be tried, but a dozen 

 or more. If the time so occupied is 

 divided in about two equal halves by 

 the introduction of a little lunch of 

 bread and butter, a slice of cold meat, 

 ham and dried tongue, oysters and 

 the like, it will not hurt it, at least 

 not be considered a fatal defect of the 

 judgment, at which the committee 

 may arrive. X. 



[We have but little to add to these 

 suggestions, which we think timely and 

 judicious. It is certainly not enough 

 if the committee decides which wine 

 is best, but the public ought to know 

 why they found it so, and its promi- 

 nent qualities, which made it superior 

 to other wines exhibited, should be 

 mentioned. 



