V I T 
ration of the humidity, the hardnefs of fait. What 
Ariftotle fays of the wines of Arcadia, expofed to the 
fire and the fmoke, is yet more furprifing ; Ita exfic- 
catur in utribus, ut derafurn bibaturj i. e. fo dried 
in the bottles, that it is fcraped off to be drank. It 
was fo folid, that they were forced to fcrape the fiafks 
to drink it, and could not drink it without diluting 
it with water. 
The Romans prepared their wines after the following 
manner : they took the muft that had run from the 
Grapes that had been trod-, they put them into a wood- 
en vat, of which the ftaves had been bound together 
by hoops, or flexible bands. 
After the wine had been fermented all the time ne- 
ceffary for feparating the grofieft impurities, they 
drew it out of the vat to put it into the calks, where 
it continued to ferment; and to affift the depuration, 
they mingled as much plafter, or chalk, or clay, or 
powder of marble, or of pitch, or of fait, or of re- 
fin, or of lee of new wine, or of fea water, or of 
myrrh, or of aromatic herbs, as they judged neceffa- 
ry, every country having its particular mixture. And 
this is what the Latins call Conditura Vinorum. 
They left the wine in the calks until the fpring fol- 
lowing ; alfo many left them until the fecond or third 
year, according to the nature of the wine, and the 
country -, afterwards they drew it out to put it into 
earthen vefiels, which they did over on the infide 
with melted pitch, and marked on the outfide the 
name of the place from whence the wine was made, 
and that of the Roman confuls, in whole confulate it 
was made. The Latins called this changing of the 
wine from calks to earthen vefiels, Diffufio Vinorum, 
or Vina defundere. 
They had two different forts of vefiels ; the one the 
amphora, and the other the cadus. Pancirollus and 
others fay, the amphora was of a fquare or cubic 
figure. As to the contents authors are not agreed, 
O O 
but moll fuppofe they held about eighty pounds of 
liquor. This veffel was contradled at the neck. Af- 
ter it was filled with wine, they flopped the mouth 
clofe with cork. The cade was of the figure of a 
Pine Apple, which is fuppoied to contain half as much 
more as the amphora. Thefe vefiels being flopped, 
were carried into a room expofed to the fouth, fitu- 
ated in the higheft ftory of the country-houfe where 
the wine had been prepared. This place was called 
apotheca. 
It was to diflipate the fuperfluous humidity of the 
wine, that they expofed thefe vefiels to the heat of 
the fun, and of that of the fire, and of the fmoke, 
which has given to this place the name of Fumarium, 
became of the fmoke which was gathered by the fun- 
nel, through which the fmoke of the fire was carried 
off, when it was lighted below. 
Thefe wines could be kept for two hundred years, 
and would, as has been faid, arrive at the confidence 
of honey, during which, Adhuc Vina ducentis fere 
annis jam in fpeciem redadta mellis afperi; etenim 
haec natura vini in vetuftate eft, fays Pliny, lib. xiv. 
cap. 4. So that it is troublefome to drink this wine 
becaufe of its thick neks, and in order to render it 
drinkable, they diluted it with warm water to give it 
a fluidity, and afterwards they pafied it through a 
ftrainer, and this they called Saccatio Vinorum, as 
Martial fays, 
Turbida folicito tranfmittere caecuba facco. 
It is true, they had other wines of the fame nature, 
which they did not pafs through a ftrainer, as the 
Mafficum, which they only expofed during a night to 
the air, to procure a fluidity and depuration, as Ho- 
race fays, lib. ii. fat. 4. 
Mafiica fi coda fupponas vina fereno, 
Nodturna, fi quid craft! eft, tenuabitur aura, 
Et decedet odor nervis inimicus : at ilia 
Integrum perdunt lino vitiata faporeim 
V I T 
This lukewarm wine had been very difagreeable td 
drink, if they had not cooled it with ice or fnow, 
whether in mingling it with the wine, or fetting 
the bottles in ice. The moft luxurious mingled 
fnow with the wine, and pafied it through a fiiver 
ftrainer, which Paulus, the jurifconfult, calls Colum 
Vinorum. 
Of the method of planting vineyards in Orleans. 
Of the diftance that fdGuld be given to the rows , and the 
breadth of the paths , when a vineyard is planted . The 
different kinds of plants. Of planting between , and of 
digging up old Vines , and planting again. 
The trenches ought not to be opened, till after the 
ground that is defigned to be planted has been mark- 
ed out, to the end that a length and breadth, pro- 
portionable and uniform, may be given to all the 
rows and paths, as much as the ground to be plant- 
ed will permit. And forafmuch as the Vine receives 
its nourilhment in the trench, it wiil be proper to give 
it fome inches in breadth more than to the paths. 
The moft common practice is to allow five feet in 
breadth for the trench, and as much for the path, when 
red wines are planted, efpecially the Auvernats, whole 
branches ought always to be trained pretty long. 1 his 
is the beft method for this fort of Vines, and the 
plants ought to be planted two feet fix inches clifcant 
one from another. Some do not exadlly obferve this 
diftance ; they allow but four feet and a half for a 
trench, and the fame for a path. 
There are alfo fome that allow but a foot and a half 
diftance between each plant, when the trench and 
the path have no more breadth than that which I am 
about to mention but the Vines planted fo clofe to- 
gether ought, of neceflity, to be twilled circularly ; 
and as their roots will in a few years run one into 
another, the Vines will not laft fo long ; befides, they 
will require to be a little oftener and more plentifully 
dunged, than thofe that have been planted at a great- 
er diftance. 
Others, on the contrary, allow near fix feet for the 
breadth, and lometimes more for the trench, and the 
path, but this certainly is greater than is poftible to 
dig or cultivate between the ftocks, which is the beft 
manner of performing this work. And when they 
dig otherwife, they will have a great deal of trouble 
to work to the middle of the trench, which neverthe- 
lefs ought to be as well digged as the reft. 
But the vignerons of Burgundy do not dig the v/hole 
ground, for when the diftances are fo large, they con- 
tent themfelves to touch but lightly the middle of 
thefe trenches, and only dig about the rows of plants. 
It is then advantageous for the citizens not to give fo 
much breadth to the trenches. 
Thofe vignerons, that purchafe or rent vineyards 
which have the trenches fo wide, pluck them up of- 
tentimes, that they may be able to plant others there, 
where they allow much lefs breadth for the trenches, 
' and the diftance between the plants without concern- 
ing themfelves about the Vines lafting the lefs while. 
But the citizens ought to follow a better method, 
which is, to give five feet for the breadth of the 
trench, and as much to the path, and two feet fix 
inches for the diftance between each plant, efpecially 
when one plants Vines of Auvernat, becaufe thefe 
will furniftr layers, fo the trench muft neceffarily be 
larger, and the plants at greater diftances the one 
from the other, that they may find more nourifiiment, 
and that the fhoots of the Vines may be extended the 
better. 
A vineyard planted after this manner will laft longer, 
will defend itfelf better againft the winter’s frofts, 
will produce finer and better fruit, which will ripen 
better, and of confequence make better wine ; and 
alfo the vignerons of Burgundy would find their ac- 
count of planting their Vines in this manner, in that 
they would have fewer Vines to tie, to prune, and to 
difbranch, &c. becaufe there are a great many fewer 
plant* 
