66 



VINEYARDS AND WINES 



but there is every possible variety. A very fine olive, in 

 a favourable year, will sometimes yield as much as 80 

 pounds. Such a misfortune as has happened this season 

 is of rare occurrence. In planting they take a sucker 

 from the root of an old tree, and keep it three years in a 

 nursery ; it is then transplanted, and in three years more 

 it begins to give a few olives. In ten years it has become 

 a largish tree, but requires many more years before it 

 acquire all the magnitude it is capable of reaching. 

 Many of the olives we passed had the greatest possible 

 appearance of old age. They were so old, Mr, Durand 

 said, that no one had any knowledge of their age. In 

 general, the ground underneath was cultivated with grain 

 crops; the trees are benefited by the manure, and the 

 crop suffers only partially from the shade. We saw, 

 however, some very fine trees planted from 30 to 35 feet 

 apart, which overshadowed the ground so much, that 

 grain crops could not be cultivated under them with 

 advantage. 



After a drive of about an hour and a quarter, we 

 arrived at the first of Messrs. Durand's establishments. 

 This is an immense square inclosure, with high walls and 

 buildings. It formerly belonged to the Knights Templars. 

 The church is converted to a wine-cellar, and the houses 

 of the Templars to the residences of Messrs. Durand's 

 peasants. Several other buildings are also erected within 

 the walls, forming altogether a most complete and exten- 

 sive homestead. After taking chocolate we proceeded to 

 the vineyards. Mr. Durand only cultivates three varieties 

 of vines, the Grenache, which gives sweetness, the Carig- 

 nan, which gives colour, and the Mataro, which gives 

 quantity. His vines are in general planted either on the 

 plain, or on a gently inclined slope ; but when there is a 



