A Fnv Hints on Wine Making. 



223 



will never be able to make as good 

 wine from them as those livingin lati- 

 tudes where they can thoroughly ripen 

 and shrivel on the vines. 



Other varieties we have which con- 

 tain aroma in excess, and where it is 

 desirable to have it in as slight a de- 

 gree as possible, and to develop bou- 

 quet instead. We can best attain this 

 by gathering the fruit when not so 

 ripe, as the aroma is not so fully de- 

 veloped. Should the must not contain 

 sugar enough it must bo added ; and 

 should the grape contain a surplus of 

 acid, we can ameliorate I)}' adding 

 water. 



Among the varieties Mduch will 

 make the best wine, if treated thus, 

 we will name the Concord, Cassady, 

 Catawba, Cunningham, Delaware, Di- 

 ana, Hartford Prolilie, Ilerbemont, 

 Ives, Louisiana, Maxatawney, Martha, 

 Goethe, Massasoit, Wilder, Lindley, 

 Agawam^ Merrimack, Salem, Eogei-s' 

 Nos. 8 and 12, Eulander, Taylor and 

 Telegraph. 



This may appear rather startling to 

 some of our readers, and lor a long- 

 time we believed that it was necessary 

 to ripen all grapes thoroughlj' to 

 make the best wine from them. But 

 ''experience is the mother of wisdom." 

 We never made better Concord, Ca- 

 tawba, and Herbemont, than in the 

 esason of 1865, when the summer was 

 somewhat similar to the present one, 

 \vhen no grape ripened thoroughlj^, 

 and our Concord must did not average 

 more than G5°, Catawba not over 60°, 

 and Herbemont not over 75°. By add- 

 ing a gallon of water to the gallon of 

 must, and sugar enough to bring the 

 whole mixture to 80'^, -xq made a wine 

 which we have not been able to sur- 



pass since, nor come up to it. The 

 Herbemont was pronounced by the 

 best judges in the country the finest 

 American Avhite wine they had yet 

 tasted. (Jur Norton's Virginia, how- 

 ever, made that season, though a fair 

 article, was much inferior to the vin- 

 tages of 1866 and '67. Delaware made 

 that season^ from half ripe grapes, 

 was valued at 66.00 per gallon within 

 six weeks from the time it was made. 

 It was a perfect wine then, clear and 

 fine, and with an exquisite bouquet. 

 The Concord was without the offensive 

 foxiness, and contained acid enough 

 to be a very palatable wine : the best 

 we have been a!)le to make of that 

 grape since. 



In wine making we must always 

 I'emember, that we have no perfect 

 grape as .yet; that grapes will, in dif- 

 ferent seasons, yield entirelj^ dilYerent 

 products, and that only thinking, prac- 

 tice and experiment will teach us how 

 we can best improve it. 



In making the wine Ave think it liest 

 now, afier out' experience of last sea- 

 son, to ferment each vai-iety on the 

 husks until the wins becomes perfecth' 

 clear and finished. Fermentation will 

 draw out all wine-making ingredients, 

 as acid, sugar, tannin, flavor, etc., and 

 the husks be perfectly tasteless. We 

 shall therefore leave it in the ierment- 

 ing vats until the beginning of De- 

 cember, then draw it olf and press the 

 husks. We can not give the propor- 

 tions, as they will vary with the 

 variety of grape we have to deal with, 

 and iis inherent qualities. 



Fermentation should be rapid and 

 thorough, and the fermenting room 

 be kept at an even temjDerature of 65'^ 

 to 70''. Should it not be warm enouich 



