Various Notices- 
329 
Mataro wine, both of which are sweet, thick, ropy, and unwhole- 
some. The latter is often sold by irreputable traders to private 
families as Tent, but in this inspect an experienced wine broker 
cannot be deceived. 
“ It is almost needless to observe that the wine called Port, of 
which such vast quantities are consumed in Great Britain, is the 
produce of Portugal. The vines, whence it is made, grow upon 
the banks of the Douro, about 14 or 15 leagues from Oporto, and 
occupy a space about six leagues in length, and two leagues in 
breadth. These vineyards produce between 60 and 70,000 pipes 
of Port, and there are others which yield nearly 6,000 pipes annu- 
ally. The vine whence we derive our Port, originally grew in 
Burgundy, but the climate of Portugal, being widely different 
from that of Burgundy, has caused such an alteration in the grape, 
that no two whines are more unlike than those which are the pror 
duce of each of the above mentioned territories. The wines Di 
Ranio’*^ are prohibited from being exported to any part of 
the world except Brazil, but the English factory established 
at Oporto have sometimes contrived to ship a few pipes to this 
country. 
‘‘ In the province of Algarva a small quantity of indifferent 
wine is made, but it constitutes no branch of export trade ; in- 
deed Port is the only wine which the Portuguese derive profit 
from, and it may be truly said to be the grand prop of their com- 
merce. The wines of Portugal, like those, of Biscay, are only 
sold at the prices annually regulated by the government. As 
soon as the prices are promulgated, the factory and individuals 
send in their names to the proprietors of the wines ; the whole of 
the Port wine is shipped at Oporto. 
“ The brandy of Spain constitutes an article of considerable 
commerce ; it is very inferior to the brandy of France, and is prin- 
cipally used in making up Spanish and Portuguese wines. The 
brandy of Portugal is nearly the same as that of Spain, very little 
pf it is exported. 
Raisins or dried grapes are produced in abundance in all the 
provinces of Spain. The Vaientia and Grenada raisins are cer- 
tainly the most esteemed of any, the produce of Spain. The mode 
of drying grapes at Vaientia is as follows: The grapes are first 
dried in a ley made of vine stalks, the juice issues from the pores of 
the fruit, and when placed in the open air is crystallised ; the raisins 
^ A light Port, 
