PORT VEXDRE. 



75 



loose rock with a bar of iron, and thrust in the plant to 

 the depth of 12 or 15 inches. I saw a plantation of the 

 preceding year where almost every plant had succeeded, 

 although none of them had given shoots of more than six 

 or eight inches. Mr. Mas says it was formerly the prac- 

 tice in this country to trench and break up the rock to 

 the depth of two or three feet, but (strange to say) they 

 found the vines were sooner worn out, and they now fol- 

 low the less expensive method. A hectare of middle 

 aged vines is here worth 1,000 francs. The greatest ex- 

 pense is in the first plantation, for it is universally neces- 

 sary to build a series of terraces to support the soil. The 

 value of a hectare with a good exposure, before planting, 

 is 500 francs. There is, however, little ground in this 

 neighbourhood remaining to be planted, although the 

 greatest portion has been brought into cultivation within 

 the last 15 or 20 years. The average produce, according 

 to Mr. Mas, does not exceed six charges the hectare, 

 which is just the half of the vines of the plain. The 

 annual expense of cultivation, including the vintage, is 

 40 francs, but the wine is worth 28 to 30 francs a charge, 

 or from 168 to 180 francs the hectare. The distance of 

 the plants is from three to four feet, and the pruning is 

 in every respect similar to that of the vines of the plain. 

 The varieties chiefly cultivated are the Grenache and the 

 Carignan. The vines are never manured. The wine 

 sometimes remains in the fermenting vat so long as SO 

 days. Like the wine of the plain, it is seldom drank in 

 its pure state, but is sent to Paris, with an addition of 

 from 7^ to 10 per cent, of brandy, in order to be mixed 

 with the lighter wines of Burgundy and Orleans, to give 

 them strength and colour. The mixture of the brandy 

 has, they say, a double purpose. It enables them to ship 

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