Daily tobacco leaf-chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1890-1895, 1891-12-15
The WINE OUTLOOK in FRANCE
Not Considered FIattering-H Bogus
French Wine is Made.

y
of state respecting the outlook in France
and Italy. They are much interested in
the reports that the foreign countries
which produce most of the wine import
ed to the United States are unable to
supply tho demands, and they are re.
ceiving large invoices of American
wines, which they ''work over" and
blend with the French and Italian arti-
Gle, and then send them back to us for
use. 1t is even reported that the cham
pagnes we are getting from France are
made over from body goods sent to
France from California.
The following is taken from a recent
report received at the department of
state from United States Commercial
Agent Griffin, Of Limoges, France, on
"The Wine Question in France" which
is Of special interest on this point:
Statistics show the strange fact that,
in spite of the decrease in the production
Of French wine tho commerce in wine
has been worry active Merchants have
searched diligently to obtain wine to
supply the deficit, and consequently 10
importations hay, risen from 500 900
hectolitres in 1873 to 10,5l0 600 hectic
litres in 1890, III Paris be taken as an
example of all France, it is shown that,
although in the last ten years there has
been an increase in the inhabitants Of
1885, 900, the consumption of wine has
fallen off 20 per cent. The diminut IN
in the expectation is not as great as one
would have reason to expect. In / %
France exported $500, 1000 hectolitres; in
1890, with only one-third of the amount,
1898, 900 hectolitres were exported
This is falling off of one-third, while
the harvest is decrease Of two-thirds.
Every effort has been made by the OK
porters to hold their foreign trade and
keep their customers supplied with wine.
This has given rise to an entirely new
industry, which was unknown when
wine was cheap and plenty, namely, cut
ting or blending the wines, 50 that the
less rich in alcohol could be used rs q
body and tho necessary amount ado,
either by the spirits direct or by the ad-
dition of other wine that surpassed the
degree required. For example, the " inc
of the department Of the Herault docs
not contain ordinarily more than o. 9
degrees Of alcohol. This is too small u
quantity to bear the trialsof exportatic1
and fails to suit the taste Of the home
market; but this wine, perfumed togivoit
the bouquet and with the necessary
amount of alcohol, is now one of tao
greatest supplies Of expectation and
home consumption The minister of ag-
riculture recently declared in public
that cit is incontestable that many of
our wines weigh more than 10 degrees
and, accord-Lg to a test made 10y the
chamber Of commerce, in the Burgundy
upon forty-three samples of the very
finest brands only thirty-tWo had more
than the IL degrees, four Just attained
that figure and seven fell below. II is
shown clearly that there is a large qu9n-
tity of what are termed petits wins
which are wanting in the required d.
gree Of alcohol. These wines were never
before employed for table use, but nov,
in the scarcity, in many instno IS
they furnish the base, while Spanish
wines, so rich in alcohol, raise the
degree to the height required. This j s
been made necessary because the J, Y
prohibits the use of artificial means TO
change tho degree of the wines. The
argument in favor of these mixture is
that, as it is allowed to use a little cot
ton in making silk cloth, 50 it is permits
SIDE 10 use theSe cheap wines 10 NIX
with others IN order to make a product
within the reach OF all. me VINE mer-
chants, who supply the nome mara It
and also export, are p.tteily oppoAi
the customs duties on foreign VINES
brought into the country, but the own
ers OF the. well known ana famous
chateau vineyards are seeking very
strongly to increase the tariff, in order,
as they say to n1ght ,aaSanS0 adultera-
tons and falsifcations."
The eXDOrtatiOn, to the United States