226 GRArE CULTURE AND WINE-MAKI<2s^G. 



ing-room. The iron hoops weigh 110 cwt. It was constructed 

 ill the year 1664, and holds 2040 eimer of wine — 236,000 bottles. 

 In the same cellar is shown, as a contrast to this leviathan, a very 

 small keg, onl}^ holding a few drops. 



3. The big cask of Nikolsburg, in Moravia. It holds 2000 

 eimer, and has 22 iron hoops, each of which weighs 7 cwt. It 

 was constructed in the year 1643. 



4. The cask at Tata or Dotis, in Hungary. This holds 1500 

 eimer ; is 24 feet long, and 14 high ; has staves 6 inches thick, 

 and enormous iron hoops, held together by iron screws as thick 

 as one's arm. By means of a ladder the bung-hole is reached. 

 The cellar in which it is placed holds 50,000 eimers of wine, and 

 one may drive about in it with a coach and six. 



5. The cask of Kloster Neuburg. This holds 999 eimer. Be- 

 sides these, the bung-hole holds a full eimer. 



6. The cask in the castle at Tubingen, which is 24 feet long 

 and 16 high. Constructed in 1548. 



7. The casks on the island of Meinau, in the Lake of Constance. 

 The largest one holds 184,320 bottles. Besides this there are 

 100 others, each one capable of holding 5000 bottles. 



8. The cask at Groeningen, constructed by Michael Werner, 

 who built also the one at Heidelberg. It consists of 93 oak staves, 

 each one 80 feet long, and 8|- inches thick at its end. Each bot- 

 tom is 18 feet and 1 inch high, and has 3 bars. Each hoop is 9 



finches thick, made of oak, with iron bands and screws. On all 

 the hoops are 316 pairs of bands, and 955 iron screws, which 

 weigh together 123 cwt. 99 lbs. It is said that the weight of the 

 cask itself is 636 cwt. 18 lbs., and that it holds 161 fuder and 16 

 viertel, or 28,672 stiibchen of wine. Its cost, without including 

 the value of the timber, was 6000 thalers. 



The Bottles. 



In order to clean the bottles, common lead shot is usually used ; 

 but this may become detrimental to the health, because every 

 time they are used some lead remains on the glass, and even sin- 

 gle shots, that get dissolved and poison the wine. To extract 

 such pieces there is an instrument called the "lead extractor," 

 This consists of a steel rod with a handle, and at its lower end a 

 crooked or bent point to loosen the shot with ; and a little above 

 this, a hook to extract the pieces of cork that may be in the bot- 

 tle. It is, however, better to use common coarse sand or small 

 iron chains for the purpose of cleaning bottles. 



Bottles that have been used before must be cleaned very care- 

 fully before they are filled anew. If there has been pitch or wax 

 on them, these must be removed by a knife, or an instrument call- 

 ed the ^'' pilch remover y This is formed by two teethed steel jaws, 

 movable in a hinge, and held by a handle with one hand. This 

 is pressed asunder in order to get the neck of the bottles between 



