The Shasta courier., 1868-05-30
Wine Making.

R. Henreuse, correspondent of the Alta,
offers the following suggestions on wine max
ing in this State, which may contain some
thing of interest to manufacturers of the
article. He says:
California could and should supply wine
to all the States of the Union. That it is not
the case is the result of two serious evils in
the management of the present wine produe-
tion. One evil consists in the important
treatment of the wine, and will be corrected
by the universal adoption of the air treat
ment or air fermentation. The other evil is
caused BY the mistake that the producer OF
the grapes should also be the manufacturer
of the wine, and even the dealer in the ma
ufactured article. The attempts, far.
have proved disastrous failures, with the
exception of few cases, in which large
capital which did not yield anything like
fair returns has been used. Experience has
taught that in all classes of manufacture it is
more advantageous to leave the production of
the crude material to one class, while another
possessing capital does the manufacturing ;
and others, again. attend to the shipping TO
the various markets IN the world. Tni-
rule is required by the long recognized and
now well established principle of the divi
sion of labor. Why should wine maufac
ture form an exception? There should be
growers Of grapes, as of grain, sugar, tobacco,
Gotten, etc, as miners of copper, iron, tin,
etc. and in the grape growing districts
wine makers with capital should establish
their presses, watts and stills, purchase the
grapes from the growers, and dispose of their
manufactured articles to wine merchants
The manufacture, if carried on in this man
ner, will yield certain and fair remuneration
to all parties concerned, secure and increase
the profits, which under the present system,
are either a triie, or, as we may have occa-
sion to know, enter on the wrong side of the
ledger. The grace growers will cheerfnlly
contract to furnish grapes at the rate of
seventy FIVE cents and dollar per one hun
dred pounds, equal to a gross yield of about
800 per acre the manufacturers can be
certain of fifty per cent. and upwards
annually on the money invested. and he ner-
chants will find sure profit. Thus all
parties interested will be benefited by plac-
ing this branch of industry on the basis
which has been explained provided tlat
the air-treatment is used, 50 that. the win
may be ripe and ready for shipment the
same year it is made, and the trouble and
expense of ripeniug by the ordinary process
saved. This plan suggests an inexhaustible
source of profitable investment, by which
this country may be enriched populated,
and improved to an extent far SURPRISING z
the most sanguine hopes now entertained
ior any other branch of industry, If Cal
ifornia could produce 2O0, 900, 900 or 300.
000,000 gallons of good wine annually,
every drop oft would be engaged in advance,
and the demand would be steadily increasing.
There are now planting 30000,000 of vines
in the various valley and foot hill counties
which this year could produce 100000
gallons of wine under the proposed system,
by the timely erection of establishments Of
sufficient capacity in the various wine dis
tricts. AS it is most of the crop will be
wasted, beneftting nobody.