Sept.] THE VINEYARD. 495 



If besides it be desired to have a heady or intoxicating wine, add 

 some tartar and sugared matter to the must, which will produce a 

 greater portion of spirit 



If the wine be required to have a great deal of body, add, after 

 the ceasing of the fermentation, a fresh sugared matter, such as 

 strong must deprived of its tartar. 



It has been suggested to me, that exposing the casks of weak 

 wine to the winter frost till the watery particles contained in the 

 liquor are converted into ice, and then drawing off the pure wine, 

 would be the best method of giving it a sufficient body. If this 

 answers the end, and it is very probable it may, as pure wine 

 requires a much greater degree of cold to freeze it than water, the 

 middle and eastern states of the Union possess an advantage in that 

 respect over most of the wine countries of Europe, as the cold of 

 their winters is not sufficiently intense to answer that end. 



Should the wine be required with much, little, or no colour, let 

 it be remembered that this quality resides exclusively in the skin 

 of the fruit, so that you may conduct the process according to your 

 desire. 



Different flavours and fragrancies are communicated by the dif- 

 ferent kinds of grapes, and also from other ingredients; the odour 

 of Muscatel, for example, is given with the flowers of elder and 

 other herbs; some use peach flowers, and consider them to com- 

 municate an agreeable flavour to wine. 



The absolute and essential qualities in wine are to have no 

 defect, nor be liable easily to contract any, to be able to keep long, 

 and bear transportation. 



An essential article in the preservation of wine is to keep the 

 air totally excluded out of the vessels, for which purpose Davanzati 

 advises to "take off the rind of a piece of dried bacon, and leave a 

 little fat adhering to it in the centre, after that make use of it in the 

 manner of a bung, and cram it in with might, that the cask may be 

 well stopped up: extend out the rind afterwards over the cask after 

 having done it over with ashes; then cover it over again with very 

 dry ashes; and that they may not fall oft", nail a piece of stuff over 

 the same. The cask being then sufficiently shut up, the air will not 

 penetrate into it, and the wine cannot change its nature." 



I mention this to show the necessity of the casks being kept air- 

 tight and bunged effectually, not doubting but many other methods 

 may be used equally effectual, perhaps much more so than that 

 recommended by Davanzati. 



A wine cellar should be dry, so deep under ground as that the 

 temperature of its heat maybe nearly the same winter and summer: 

 it should be at a distance from streets, highways, workshops, sewers 

 and necessaries; if arched over the better. 



Of all other methods wine is best preserved in bottles, well 

 corked and sealed; but this should not be done till it is clear and 

 fine, and all fermentation subsided. 



Tartar and the lees of wine are the principles of its destruction, 

 and none but sweet wines can bear the existence of them; by often 

 drawing it off in order to purge it of these, there is too great a 



