No. 151.] 547 



shade them, and thus shield them from too much heat. The French 

 grow them as we do corn, in hills, and cut them close to the ground 

 •when they trim, having two objects to accomplish; the one to ob- 

 tain fire-wood, and the other, to expose them to the reflection of the 

 sun's rays upon the earth. 



In Spain, the vines are trained along the ground. I was reading 

 some book the other day, in which it was stated that the " same 

 climate, soil, and mode of culture often produce wines of very diffe- 

 rent qualities. Situation and aspect alone, all other circumstances 

 being the same, make a very great difference. The same vineyard, 

 according as its different parts, have a northern or southern aspect, 

 will produce wines of opposite characters; as also will the same hill 

 at its summit, middle and bottom. In cold countries, the southern 

 slope of a rising groxmd is the most favorable situation, and in warm 

 climates, the last is found to be generally the best." This accounts 

 for the vast varieties of wines; the same vineyard may produce 

 wines having distinct properties. 



In some parts of France, the wine growers imagine that vines 

 should not be matured at all, as they say it affects the flavor of the 

 grape. In Alto Douro, the port wine district of Portugal, there ex- 

 ists a law forbidding the use of manure on grape vines. In this 

 country, unfortunately, too little attention has been paid to the culti- 

 vation of this most important of all fruits; there is no other in ex- 

 istence capable of making wine, for the reason that it contains in 

 a larger proportion than any other fruit, tartaric acid; which, com- 

 bining with potash, forms bitartrate of potash, usually known by the 

 name of tartar, which is always held in solution in the juice of 

 grapes; if you taste grapes when half ripe, this tartar predominates 

 to a great degree, and has a disagreeable flavor; as the fruit ripens, 

 the saccharine increases and overcomes it. Gooseberries and cur- 

 rants contain acetic, citric and malic acids, which, being soluble even 

 in water, remain in the liquid made from those fruits, and are injuri- 

 ous to many constitutions; therefore, it cannot properly be denomi- 

 nated wine. Dry wines are so called when the saccharine matter 

 and fermenting matter decompose each other by their combined ac- 

 tion, and sweetness cannot be perceived; these wines are considered 

 the best, such as port, Burgundy, &c. 



Sweet wines are those in which saccharine predominates to such 

 a degree as to render it impossible for the ferment to decompose it. 

 Wine is called brisk, when the fermentation is stopped by being bot- 

 tled, before the carbonic acid has escaped; when -confined, the fer- 



