GRAPE VINES. 55 



wFlees. Wine hardly i-etains any mucilage when clear; 

 it ought to be precipitated in the process of fermentation 

 and clarification along with tartar and potash. 



16. Tannin, or the astringent principle, is communi- 

 cated to wine by the peduncles, husks, and seeds, whence 

 rough wines are made, such as Port. Delicate wines 

 ought to have no perceptible astringency or roughness, 

 and the seeds ought not to be bruised in mashing the 

 grapes, nor allowed to fall in the Must, nor the husks 

 neither. 



17. The arome, or peculiar taste and smell of wines, 

 also called flavor and bouquet, is produced by a fixed 

 oil, different in almost every kind of grape and wine. A 

 peculiar grateful flavor and scent enhances the value of 

 wine many fold, (witness Tokay) and all excellent wines 

 ought to have this quality. 



18. To preserve the arome of wines, it is needful to 

 stop the fermentation before the natural end of it; and to 

 procure it to deficient grapes, some peculiar flavored 

 substance must be immersed in the Must while ferment- 

 ing. In this depends the art or secret of making valua- 

 ble wines, worth from gl to 5 a gallon, instead of 5 to 

 25 cents. Each celebrated vineyard has a peculiar secret 

 process. Time and experience alone can teach us this 

 secret art to its full extent. 



19. Yet we know the substances employed ; they are 

 oil of best grapes, vine blossoms, Reseda, or Mignonette, 

 cowslip blossoms or Primula, elder blossoms, violets, 

 oris root or Iris florentina, raspberries, strawberries, 

 &c. In Cyprus, they are Smilax blossoms. In Xeres, 

 Madeira, and Marsala, bitter almonds are employed. 

 These substances are suspended in the casks in bags, 

 while fermentation is proceeding. 



20. Our best native grapes give to our wines a peculiar 

 grateful flavor similar to raspberries. Our fox grapes, 

 with a musky or foxy taste, impart to their wine a Mus- 

 catel flavor, somewhat similar to Constantia. Our fine 

 scented vine blossoms, even when dried, give a rich 

 grateful flavor and scent to our wines. To currant wine, 

 which is made when the vines are in bloom, these fresh 

 blossoms may give a flavor near to Tokay wine. 



