Notes and Gleanings. 293 



Californian Wines. — Air. Charles L. Brace, in his recently-published book, 

 "The New West," speaks very plainly about the wines and vineyards of Califor- 

 nia, and tells some truths which are not much to the credit of the Californian 

 vignerons. He says that most of the vineyards are cultivated by small growers, 

 who have seldom if ever tasted a good wine, and who imagine their own the 

 very best wine in the world ; that the wines have suffered from being over- 

 praised ; that instead of being weak, and of a high aroma, they are deficient in 

 aroma, and altogether too rich in alcohol ; that they do not compare favorably 

 with the good and light table-wines of Europe ; that in fact, on a broad scale, 

 wine-making in Calii'ornia has been a failure, shown by the fact, that, with a pro- 

 duction of three million gallons, only sixty-three thousand dollars' worth were 

 exported in the last six months of 1S67, or thirty thousand dollars' worth less 

 than in the same period of 1866 ; and finally, that, in many places, the price has 

 fallen to one-tenth, and even to one-thirtieth, the price of French claret. 



Mr. Brace further says, that the fault does not inhere in the grapes, the soil, 

 or the climate, all which are extremely well adapted to wine-making, but is to 

 be found, in his opinion, in a lack of honesty and thoroughness, both on the part 

 of the manufacturers and on the part of their agents. He says that the Port is 

 doctored, and the Angelica is prepared for us (at the East) by adding sixteen or 

 eighteen per cent of brandy ; that the casks are often carelessly coopered, thus 

 injuring the wine at the start ; that the wine is often not old enough, and fer- 

 ments on the passage ; that it is re-doctored in New York, and then palmed off 

 on the public for pure Californian wine. Then there are other difficu'ties. Mr. 

 Brace says he saw one wine-cellar occupied half as a stab!^, and half as a wine- 

 store; and he jusdy adds, that any one who knows any thing of the sensitive 

 nature of fermenting wine can judge of the effect of the stable-odors on its 

 quality. Too much dependence has been placed upon one variety, the Mission 

 Grape, which the writer says is the favorite, because they tried it first, and it 

 happened to succeed. 



Vines are planted about six hundred and eighty to the acre, trained low, and 

 seldom, staked. The yield is from four hundred to a thousand gallons per acre. 



The Zinfindal, White Muscatine, and White Riesling are among the kinds 

 grown for wine. 



Innumerable experiments have been made at great cost, and countless failures 

 experienced, in making Champagne wine ; but success seems now not far 

 distant. 



It is curious to learn that the Catawba Grape is a great favorite with some 

 growers in a climate where the Black Hamburg and the Muscat of Alexandria 

 can be grown to sell for eight cents per pound. 



Such is the bad reputation of the Californian wines at home, says Mr. Brace, 

 that, out of four hundred thousand gallons made by the Anaheim Colony, two 

 hundred and fifty thousand are still in bond, and the ruling price is twenty-five 

 cents per gallon. 



In spite of all these mistakes and crudities, the writer we quote makes the 

 safe prophecy, that California will come out all right, and be as vast a vine-grow- 

 ing and wine-making State as France herself. 



