271 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY GENTLEMAN, January 31, I860. ' 
THE WINES OF WOODSTOCK. 
(Continued from page 231.) 
I come now to introduce you to some samples which, reckoned 
at 1?. Gd. per bottle, would cover their prime cost to tlieir homo j 
consumer. 
1857. 
On October the 29th I gathered my Esperione and While 
Sweetwater Grapes, in the proportion of two-thirds of the former 
to one of the latter, mixed them together, and, when crushed, 
added 1 gallon of water, from “ Fair Rosamond’s Well,” in 
Blenheim Park, and made 7 gallons of wine. To sample No. 1 
I allowed 3lbs. of sugar per gallon; to No 2, 2 lbs. ; and to 
No. 3, 1 lb. of sugar Nos. 2 and 3 were worked in stone vessels, 
and bottled off in the following spring. From the small pro¬ 
portions of sugar given to them, I feel curious to know what is 
thought of their merits ; and I mention here, once for all, that I 
never add one drop of raw spirits to my wines of any description ; 
all the alcohol they gain is through the properties of the sugar, 
which is always necessary for British wines, more or less, on 
account of the lesser portion of sunshine heat, the Grapes get, 
compared to their foreign compeers; and even there, in some 
parts, they use a great deal of sugar to their Grape juice. No. 1 
sample was worked in a small barrel.—[No. 1. Very sweet. 
Nos. 2 and 3. Dry. No. 3 we thought as good as most clarets. 
—Eds. C. G.j 
In October, 1858, I drew off a small quantity, it proved to be 
very bright. This was my first run, and to be “ in at the death ” 
could tolerably explain my satisfaction; but, I intended it to 
remain in the wood another year, and on October the 3rd of last 
year it was bottled, and the wine had become slightly' clouded. 
From which I infer, that it should have been bottled off a year 
sooner, or, otherwise, left in the cask for a longer time; and even 
then, if preferred to be drunk as a still wine, a tap could be 
driven in the barrel, and the wine drawn off for use as required. 
1858. 
On October the 21st I gathered 85 lbs. weight of Esperiones, 
and 36 lbs. of Sweetwaters. The former (No. 4), ran 5^ gals, of 
pure juice, to which I applied 4 lbs. of loaf sugar per gallon. The 
saceharometer floated at twenty-one in the pure juice, and after 
the sugar was given at fifty-two. I wanted to allow but 3 lbs. 
of sugar a-gallon to this wine, but was urged to the larger 
quantity by the rector and the parish clerk, who is the son of an 
alderman ! What was I to do ? I think to this day that the wine 
is made unnecessarily sweet. On the 27th the saceharometer, 
which is marked on the index to fifty only, floated above that 
count by ten, by guess. March 15th, 1859, racked the wine, 
saceharometer thirty. October 3rd, bottled, saceharometer 
twenty-six. 
The white Grapes (No. 5), ran 2 gallons of pure juice, allowed 
3 lbs. of sugar per gallon. Saceharometer, pure juice, twenty-five ; 
after sugar, forty-two. On the 27th it told forty-nine, and when 
the wine was bottled in October, 1859, it floated at seven. On 
the same day I proved the saceharometer in some sherry, and it 
sank to less than water mark. 
For the petit vin (No. 6), on the 25th, I put. 2 gallons of 
water to soak the skins and pips ; 28th, strained it off and gave 1 
3 lbs. of brown sugar per gallon. Saceharometer, before sugar, j 
two and a half; after, thirty-three ; and on the 30th, it floated at 
thirty-nine. Bottled this “ cheap wine” in the following spring. 
—[No. 4. Sweet. No. 5. Sweetish. No. 0. Effervescent. Good, 
but a Cape-like flavour.— Eds. C. G.] 
1859. 
On October the 21st T gathered 128 lbs. weight of Esperiones , 
and 73 lbs of Sweetwater Grapes. The former (No. 7), gave me 
8 gallons of pure juice, allowed 3 j lbs. of sugar per gallon. 
Saceharometer, pure juice, twenty; after sugar, fifty-two. On 
the 31st, it rose up to fifty-nine. 
The white Grape (No. 8), ran 4 gallons of pure juice, allowed 
it 3 j lbs. of sugar per gallon. Saceharometer, in pure juice, 
twenty-two; after sugar, fifty-three. On the 31st, saceharometer j 
sixty—viz., as previously remarked, the indices over fifty are my 
own imagination.—[Nos. 7 and 8. Both effervescent. The best ! 
of all the samples.— Eds. C. G.] 
I also m k ade, this year, 6 gallons of what they would call in 
the cider counties, “washings.” 
Now, look on that picture and then on this, drawn from the 
“ Cincinnati Scientific Artisan,” and taken from the Times of 
October 27th, 1858What American wines arc made of. 
Hiram Cox, M.D., of Cincinnati, has made the following startling 
statements. ‘ During the summer of 1856 I analysed a lot of 
liquors for some conscientious gentleman of our city, who would 
not permit me to take samples to my office, but insisted on my 
bringing my chemicals and apparatus to their store that they 
might see the operation. I accordingly repaired to their store, 
and analysed samples of sixteen different lots. Among them were 
—port wine, sherry wine, and a Madeira wine. The distilled 
liquors were some pure, and some vile pernicious imitations ; Lvt 
the wines had not one. drop of the juice of the Grape? Italic is 
my own. ‘ The basis of the port wine was diluted sulphuric acid, 
coloured with cider-berry juice, with alum, sugar, and neutral 
spirits. The base of the sherry wine was a sort of pale malt, 
sulphuric acid from the Bitter Almond oil, with a per centage of 
alcoholic spirits from brandy. The basis of the Madeira was a 
decoction of Hops with sulphuric acid, honey, spirit from Jamaica 
rum, &c. The same week, after analysing the above and exhibit¬ 
ing the quality and character of the liquor to the proprietor, a 
sexton of one of our churches informed me that he had purchased 
a gallon of tire above port wine to be used in the church on the 
next Sabbath for sacramental purposes, and that for this mixture 
of sulphuric acid, alum, and Elder-berry juice, he paid 2 dols. 
75 cents, a gallon.’ ” 
So return we to our home-made; and let me speak of 
Rhubarb, which may be truthfully termed the poor man’s 
wine, for there never can be any difficulty where a corner 
of almost any description of soil is to be had in raising 
this production. From the middle of June to the begin¬ 
ning of July is the proper time, for then the stalks are 
neither too old nor too young; and the method of making it 
into wine, with a few exceptions which I will point out, is the 
same as that just specified for the Grape. Calculating that 
9 gallons are to be manufactured, a 9-gallon cask and a gallon 
stone bottle will be wanted. 60 lbs. of unpealed stalks must be 
procured and well bruised with the pestle and mortar, or with 
the mallet on the washing-bench over a tub, and in progress cast 
into it, along with 6 gallons of water, in which the bruised stalks 
are to soak from 16 to 24 hours. Then strain off, first taking 
the precaution to cut a mark on the tub which is intended to be 
used to where it will hold 10 gallons ; add the sugar, and 4 ozs. 
of red argol procured from the chemists, for this is a keeping 
property wanting in all wines excepting the Grape; then pour in 
sufficient water to fill the tub up to the ten-gallon mark, and in 
every other particular proceed after the manner already explained. 
Though in the instance of Rhubarb, omit the young wine. 
1857. 
The Rhubarb wine (sample No. 9) I made in the middle of 
June. I gave it 2£lbs. of loaf sugar to the gallon. No. 10 is 
some of the same wine with | lb. extra sugar to the gallon, and I 
applied it when I racked the liquor in the following October, as 
it was not thought sweet enough. At the same time I bethought 
me of a colouring matter to improve its hue, which is naturally 
pale. I procured 1 oz. of cochineal, secured it in a small muslin 
bag, and placed it in a stewpan on a warm hob along with two 
or three quarts of the wine, and let it stand twelve hours or so 
to extract the colour from the drug; but not by any means 
allowed it to boil, or to become scalding hot even. It was run 
off and replenished with other quantities on to the same bag, 
twice over, and the colouring successively entered at the bung-hole 
of the cask, when a healthy sherry tint became imparted to the 
wine.—[No. 9. Disagreeable. No. 10. Sparkling and good.— 
Eds. C.’G.] 
1858. 
No. 11 I made on the 8th of July; 4 lbs. of loaf sugar were 
allowed per gallon, and the saceharometer floated to forty-five; 
on July 12th to forty-three; 19th to thirty-six; and on the 21st 
to thirty-five; when I ran off the wine from the cask, and sul¬ 
phured it to stay fermentation, as follows :—After the barrel was 
rmsed out from the settlings, and placed bung-hole downwards, 
I took an old iron spoon holding some flowers of sulphur a-light 
and allowed the fumes to enter the cask, which was then filled 
again with the liquor, and on the 30tli day of the month the 
saceharometer floated to twenty-nine. The fermentation proved 
very slight after the sulphuring; but I shall not care about 
repeating the operation till further comparison enables me to 
prove its benefit. I used 2 ozs. of cochineal to colour this wine, 
but I fancy the drug prevents the effervescing qualification. 
No. 12 is some of the same wine which I retained uncolourecl; 
and for lack of the sparkling quality in the others, I set my wits 
