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EXCELSIOR 
$3.00 PEU VEAll. 
Single iYo., Eight Ceuta 
NEW YORK CITY AND ROCHESTER, N. Y 
•II Park How, New York 
83 ItulTnlo St.. ItoelieHter, 
FOR THE WEEK ENDING SATURDAY, JANUARY U, 1870 
fEntered according to Act of Cong ress, in the year 1870 , by D. D. T. Momti:, in tlie Clerk’s Oftiee of the District Court of the United States for the Southern District U Ktw York.] 
from the uorLh of France are superior to those 
from the south. Winter flavors the fruit, 
and summer needs but the power to perfect 
it. Northern wines are light, healthful and 
induce cheerfulness ; from the South we get 
raisins and port, Madeira and Malaga wines, 
full of headaches and alcohol. In its south¬ 
ern limits tin; vine is not more certain than 
in its northern; its growth is continued 
through most of the year. Planted on the 
slopes of the Andes where the year is one 
continual spring, the fruit never arrives at 
mondsport across the valley, and the range 
of vineyards down the west shore. 
The direction of the lake is from north¬ 
east, to southwest. Pleasant Valley, of 
which only the foot is seen, extends from 
I lie head of the lake southwest a distance of 
two or three miles. The bottom lands are 
level and fertile. The hills bounding the 
valley, as well as those along the lake, 
range from four hundred to a thousand 
feet in height. The slopes are rut, through, 
at almost regular distances, by deep ravines, 
which afford excellent natural drainage. 
The soil on the slopes is disintegrated shale 
and sandstone, warm and porous to a great 
depth. For grass or grain crops it is very 
poor. • 
It is estimated that five thousand acres iu 
this region are now planted with vines. 
The first vineyard in PJeasant Valley was 
set in 1855. The success was beyond ex¬ 
pectation. Land, heretofore considered al¬ 
most valueless, rose quickly in price to two 
and three hundred dollars per acre. Bear¬ 
ing vineyards w r ere held at one thousand. 
It is a curious fact that as far back as 1843, 
Air. IIastinos, a merchant of the place, ter¬ 
raced his garden and ’wanted a few vines, 
and on one occasion t<• * ’! a barrel of grapes 
to New York to sell „-..s success was so 
good that the next, year he took down two 
barrels. This quantity broke the market, 
one being ns much as lie could dispose of, 
and he abandoned the business. 
a stock company, and lias been grown under 
the charge of Dr. Van Keuhen. The con¬ 
dition of Hie vineyard is sufficient praise ol 
the skill of the Superintendent. Forty thou¬ 
sand dollars are invested in it. The tillage 
is perfect; the soil is plowed with one horse 
often enough to keep if loose aud clean. The 
last plowing throws the dirt to the stems of 
edge, and extend their long lines far above. 
Below are level, rich flats, bounded by op¬ 
posing bills, and away to the left a wide ex¬ 
panse of lake. The cellars below ground 
are made of massive masonry, with arched 
roofs, and the edifice above is of solid con¬ 
crete. The office, press and storage rooms 
occupy the space above. The brandy still is 
HAMMONDSPORT. 
Vine Culture and Wine i>In.kfnsr in Wentevn 
New York. 
It is a remarkable fact tiiat vine culture, 
in this country, has been pursued most suc¬ 
cessfully and energetically near the extreme 
northern limit of the grape zone. From the 
PLEASANT VALLEY STILL WINE CELLAR. 
PLEASANT VALLEY SPAIIKLINO WINE CELLAR. 
the main road to Bath, now bottled and kept in a room of high 
and beautiful prospect, temperature until the fermentation lias cre- 
li it with their lower ated a sufficiency of gas, which is indicated 
regions well up in the North. Johannis- 
berger and Tokay, are produced on the very 
northern verge of vine culture, and the wines 
the lake is iu front of Bluff Point, perhaps 
two miles. The view given shows Bluff 
Point iu the distance, the village of Ham- 
