WINE. 



fniall anti-cellar, built before all large cellars, would b? a 

 coiifiderable defence and improvement. 



The ancients were fond of giving their wines an artificial 

 flavour, and for this purpofe they introduced pitch, turpen- 

 tine, and different herbs into the mujl ; a practice ftill fol- 

 lowed by the modern Greeks. Plin. ul'i fupra. 



Such are the principal fafts known refpefting the cele- 

 brated ancient wines, which, as Chaptal jultly remarks, 

 appear in general to have rather deferved the name of extralis 

 or fyrups than wines. They muft have been fweet and little 

 fermented, and confequcntly have contained a very fmall 

 proportion of alcohol. Indeed it is difficult to fuppofe how 

 they could contain any fpirit whatever, or pofiefs in confe- 

 quence any intoxicating properties. 



The above remarks, however, can be only applicable to 

 thofe wines which the refinements of luxury or caprice had 

 rendered valuable, from their uncommon occurrence, or the 

 difficulty with which they were procured. It is certain that 

 the ancients were well acquainted vsdth the fermentative pro- 

 cefs, and ordinarily took advantage of it in the formation 

 of their wines : hence it is extremely probable that the wines 

 ufed in the primitive ftates of fociety, and perhaps at all 

 times by the common people, confifted fimply of the fer- 

 mented juice of the grape, and therefore differed in no 

 refpefts whatever from the wines in common ufe at the pre- 

 fent time. 



General Principles of IVine-making. — We fhall confider this 

 interefting fubjeft under two principal points of view : 

 ift, The manufafture of wine from grapes ; and 2d, From 

 other fruits. 



I. The manufafturing of wine from grapes is liable to be 

 influenced by a great variety of circumil;ances, fuch as cli- 

 mate, foil, afpeS, Jeafon, &c. ; of fome of the moft important 

 of which we (hall take a curfory view. 



The vine is a native of the middle regions of the temperate 

 zone, that is to fay, between the latitudes of 25° and ^0°, 

 and here only does it flourilh and mature its fruit in abfolute 

 perfeftion. Indeed a belt comprifed between the latitudes 

 of 40° and 5o\ may be faid to include all the moll cele- 

 brated vineyards of the northern hemifphere ; thofe, namely, 

 of Spain, Portugal, France, Italy, Auftria, Styrla, Carin- 

 thia, Hungary, Tranfylvania, and part of Greece. The 

 vine grows beyond the latitude of 50°, but its juices 

 are auilere, and without the requifite degree of faccharine 

 matter to form good wine. The fine aromatic odour and 

 flavour of its fruit alfo are not developed much beyond this 

 latitude. In the foulhern hemifphere, which is colder than 

 the northern, the vine flourifhes fomewhat nearer the 

 equator. 



The vine grows in every foil, but that which is light and 

 gravelly is bell adapted for its cultivation. It flourifhes ex- 

 tremely well alfo in volcanic countries. Thus fome of the 

 befl wines in Italy are made in the neighbourhood of Vefu- 

 Vius. The famous Tokay wine is alfo made in a volcanic 

 diftrift, as are feveral of the befl French wines ; many parts 

 of the fouth of France bearing evident marks of extinft 

 volcanoes. The vine alfo flourifhes well in primitive coun- 

 tries, and efpecially among the debris of granite rocks : thus 

 the celebrated Hermitage wine is made from a foil of this 

 defcription. 



The fame climate, foil, and mode of culture, however, 

 often produce wines of very different qualities. Pofition and 

 afpeft alone, all other circumflances being the fame, make 

 a prodigious difference. The fame vineyard, for example, 

 according as its different parts have a northern or fouthern 

 afpecl, will produce wines of oppofite charafters, as will 

 alfo the fame hill, at its top, middle, and bottom. The 



afpeft mod favourable for a vineprd is upon a rifing 

 ground or hill facing the fouth-eafl, and the fituation fhould 

 not be too confined : 



Bacchus amat coUes." 



apertos 



If the foil be not favourable for the vine no art can make 

 it fo. Manure of different forts will indeed render the fruit 

 more abundant, but the wine will fuffer in quality. Tht; 

 befl manure is flated to be the dung of pigeons or poultry. 

 Burnt fea-wrack alfo is a favourite manure with fome. Fai 

 and putrid manures are abfolutely to be rejefted, as they 

 defliroy the wine altogether, by vitiating its flavour. 



The qualities of wines are very much affedled by the fea- 

 fons. In cloudy and wet feafons the wine is always inferior. 

 Rain is mofl to be dreaded at the feafon of the vintage. 

 Moderate rains jufl after the feafon of bloom are of great ad- 

 vantage, and caufe the fruit to fwell very rapidly. Rough 

 winds are very prejudicial to vineyards. Mifts are ftill more 

 fo, efpecially during the feafon of bloom, as they are apt to 

 deftroy the flower, and confequently the fruit : the reafon 

 of this is perhaps not very evident, but it feems to depend in 

 part upon the rapid evaporation of the moifture left by the 

 fogs, when the fun breaks through them, and the great and 

 fudden change of temperature which takes place in conie- 

 quence. Too great a degree of heat is injurious to the vine ; 

 the perfeftion of their fruit, as well obferved by Chaptal, 

 depends upon a due equihbrium between the quantity of 

 water affording aliment to the plant, and the degree of heat 

 neceffary to elaborate this water into its juices. 



Towards the northern limits of the vine country, the 

 plants are always fupported on poles, and in cold and wet 

 feafons they fometimes ftrip off the leaves, or twift the ftalks 

 of the clufters, in order to fupprefs vegetation and facilitate 

 the ripening of the grapes. The latter praftjce was not 

 unknown to the ancients : " Ut dulcia praeterea fierent, af- 

 fervabant uvas diutius in vite, ^fffifu/o in^or/o." Pliny. But 

 in warmer climates, on the contrary, the earth requires to be 

 fhielded from the heat, and here the vine is generally left to 

 fpread over the ground, and thus by its foliage to protect 

 the foil, as well as its fruit, from the direft rays of the 

 fun. With refpeft to the beft methods of pruning and train- 

 ing vines, fee the articles Vine, and Vitis. 



Of the Vintage. — It is of the utmoft importance in the 

 manufafture of wines, to attend to the precife moment when 

 the grapes have arrived at their full maturity ; and then, and 

 not before, ought the vintage in general to commence. 

 This may be known, according to Chaptal, by the follow- 

 ing figns. 



1. The green end of the clufter becomes brvown. 



2. The clufter becomes pendant. 



3. The feed lofes its hardnefs, and the (kin becomes thin 

 and tranfparent. 



4. The clufter and feeds are eafily detached. 



5. The juice is fweet, bland, thick, and clammy. 



6. The kernels of the feeds are free from glutinous 

 matter. 



The fall of the leaves denotes rather the approach of win* 

 ter than the maturity of the fruit, efpecially in the more 

 northern climates. This therefore is a fallacious fign. Ne- 

 verthelefs, when the froft has been fo fevere as to deftroy 

 the leaves, it will feldom be proper to delay the vintage much 

 longer, as the fruit can hardly be expefted after this to be- 

 come ripe ; and by delay it may ftand a chance of being 

 fpoiled entirely. 



On the contrary, in the manufafture of particular wines, 



tlie grapes are permitted to remain till they wither, or they 



3 T 2 are 



