The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1890-10-27
A WONDERLAND.
How California Is Favored
Among Wine Regions.
Facts From The Census Report on Yiti-
cultural Affairs.
Capital Invested in the Vineyards and Wine
Cellars of the United States.
Native Champasnes.
Special to TIE MORNING CALL

WASHINGTON, Oct 26.-Colonel n. Gar
ment for the collection of statistics relating
to the viticultural branch of agriculture,
which has never before received official at
tention in this country. He says: spent
three months in California this season giving
official attention 20 its viticnltural interests.
The grapes grown in California to-day in
clude every variety that has made European
vineyards famous. In no other vine region
of the world are all these splendid grapes
found growing side by side, and they make
California a wonderland of the vine. l have
no doubt that it will surprise even grape
and wine growers themselves to know that
there are invested in vineyards and wine
cellars in the United States over S155,-
O,O00.
Il find by statistics. which are now col
leeted for the first time" said Colonel Gard
ner, that there are in round numbers 400,-
900 acres of this country planted to vine
yards, of which 100000 will be in bearing
this year. There is an Increase of 100000
acres in vineyard area during the past ten
wears, and an increase of over S1000o,000
YEAR of capital invested. OF the area of
bearing vines in the country, California
alone has 10000 acres, including $4,000
acres of raiSin grapes. That State also
has total of invested capital of nearly
S5S, 100000. Between thirty and forty mil
lion gallons of wine will be made in the
United States this year, of which California
will produce more than half. Seven-eighths
OF the grapes of California 60 to the wine
press. Four-fifths of the grapes grown in
all the rest Of the United States are for
table use.
California alone grows raisin grapes. AL
though every county in the State produces
grapes, the principal counties of raislns are
Napa, Sonoma, Fresno, Santa Clara, San
Diego, San Bernardino and Los Angeles, al
though there are many others of more or
less Importance. The counties of Fresno,
San Bernardino. San Diego and TulaFe COM
prise the great raiSin district, and will cure
100000 boxes this fall, the product being
worth at least So, 600. The grapes grown
for raisins are the muscat of Alexandria
and the muscat del GardO Blanco. The
counties grow large quantities of wine
grapes also. and the sweet wines of Califor-
mia come principally from that district.
Fresno county has 5000 acres of vineyards,
Sonoma q, 600 and Napa 5000.
"What may be called the dry wine section
IL California is in the counties of Napa,
Sonoma, Santa Clara, Alameda and one or
two adjacent counties, covering an area of
fifty miles northeast and south of San Fran
cisco. Good dry wines of different charac-
ters are also made in some Of the Sacramento
Valley counties. Sweet wines come from
the Southern counties of the wine region.
They make good deal of sherry IN the lat
ter district, but California will never be
famous for sherry. Arizona is the coming
sherry-makng region of this country, and
will one day be to us in that respect what
Spain is to the world to-day. Neither is
California good dchampagne-makngr region.
When native champagne takes the place of
imported it will not be to California that we
must look for it, but to New York State.
The phyloxera, which during the past few
years played great havoc with California
vineyards, is being gradually but surely
overcome. Inferior varieties of grapes,
upon which the pest feeds, are being rooted
out, and choice foreign varieties which are
subject to it are protected against it by
grating on native wild varieties known as
resistant vines. which the phylloxera does
not affect"