110 GRAPE CULTURE AND WINE-MAKING. 



left four years in the cask before tliej are bottled; and in two 

 years more they will be perfectly mellow and ready for the market. 



The Medoc district contains about 20,000 hectares of wine-land. 

 The average produce is at the rate of two tuns (say 18 hectoli- 

 tres and 2I litres) per hectare, amounting in all to 40,000 tuns. 

 Of this quantity about 4500 belong to the first class wines, an 

 equal quantity to the second but still superior class, and the bal- 

 ance to ordinary wines. 



The superior wines of the Medoc arc classified in the Bordeaux 

 commerce into five different qualities. The first class contains 

 only three wines, which are ranged as follows : 



1. Chateau Margaux, 100-110 tuns per year. 



2. Chateau Lafitte, 120-150 tuns per year. 

 8. Chateau Latour, 70-90 tuns per year. 



The vineyard of Chateau Margaux contains 80 hectares. The 

 soil consists of a gray gravel, with a substratum of "alios." The 

 greater part of the vineyard looks toward east and west, but the 

 best part of it inclines to south and north. The Cabernet-Sau- 

 vignon vine occupies about one half of this celebrated vineyard. 

 In a first-rate year the wine of Chateau Margaux surpasses by far 

 eyery other Bordeaux wine, even Lafitte and Latour not excepted ; 

 but in less favorable years these two wines are superior to their 

 great rival. The chemical composition of the soil of this famous 

 vineyard is as follows : 



Oxide of iron 3.341 



Alumina 1.590 



Magnesia 0.2G3 



Soluble silicates 0.380 



Phosphoric acid 0.147 



Potash 1.291 



Carbonate of lime 0.891 



Organic matter 6.670 



Insoluble residue .' 85.427 



100.000 



The vineyard of Chateau Lafitte contains 47 hectares. Its sit- 

 uation is various, but mostly northerly. The soil, and especially 

 the subsoil, is very rich in quartz pebbles. Chateau Latour con- 

 tains only 42 hectares. Its soil is very gravelly, and inclines 

 mostly toward south and north. 



The second class of Medoc wines comprises the following vine- 

 yards : 



De Branno-Cantenac 45 hectares, 



Cos-l)estourncl 28 " 



Duport dc Vivens 32 " 



Gruaud-Larossc 61 " 



Lascombe 21 " 



fLascases 65 " 



Lcoville -' Poyfero 30 " 



(Barton 25 " 



Mouton Rothschild 52 " 



Prichon dc Longueville 50 " 



Ranzan-Rauzan 51 " 



