The record-union., 1892-09-19
FARM AND ORCHARD.
The Vintage of the Medoc---Mak-
ing of the Wine.
The Poultry Yard in September-Poor-
~ Cured Fruit-why Poor Stocks-
Castor Oil Bean Culture-The Lin
den-Keep Record of Newly-Set
Trees-Butter and Cheese.

iAOO Tile 1duI 116OCC anu The DdS hSuOCs
and again subdivided into localities such
as Pauillac, Margaux, st. Julien and st.
Estephe. These names are applied TO the
growths of the respective localities-and
TO good deal besides.
The Medoc is long tongue of land
which stretches north from Bordeaux be-
tween the sea and the Rivers Garonne
and Gironde. 1t is not what can be called
fertile soil, being of light, pebbly char
acter, and it is noticeable that the best
wine is produced where the earth appears
the most STERILE and, in fact, little better
than stone heaps.
The vine tiourishes best where the soil
is too thin even to encourage weeds and
where the bushes are stunted. The rea-
son is that in such places the earth re-
tains the sun heat long after shutdown, so
that the work of qualification proceeds
almost as steadily by night as by day.
The surface of the Medoc is composed of
sand and pebbles supposed to have been
washed down by the mountain torrents
from the Pyrenees and deposited ages ago
on the sea margin.
When the casks filled with the rich,
ripe fruit reach the cellarS-long stone
buildings without hoors-they are emp
tied on to horizontal laJtice-work table.
On this the grapes are rubbed by skilled
workman in such manner that the fruit
drops through into a trough beneath,
while the stalks remain to be thrown
away. Treatment differs, but following
the most general process, the grapes which
fall through the lattice work are received
in trough which is on slightly-in-
clined plane, with a groove to permit the
juice to run freely off into receiver.
Upon the bottom of this trough the fruit
Is spread evenly, and then three or four
men with bare legs and feet begin TO tread
down the grapes, dancing TO the sound of
hddle as long as the grapes continue to
be thrown in.
This is wine treading, and, although
machines have often been introduced TO
supersede it. and are, in fact, used in some
vineyards, the belief remains that Vir-
tue exists in the human feet which no
mere mechanical pressure can provide.
This may seem odd, but it is readily ex-
plalnable. The weight of the humah
body IN rhythmic dance is quite sufficient
to crush the grapes, while the human foot
Is sufficiently flexible not to crush the
seeds, which contain an oil injurious TO
the wine.
1t is held by some growers that crush
ing produces more rapid and equable
fermentation of the juice, although a
Iighter-colored wine. Others maintain
that it produces too much sediment, and
that 1t is better TO throw the unbroken
grapes into the vat and allow them to ex-
ude their juice in natural process of fer
mentation. That process takes about a
fortnight, by which time the skins and
seeds Will have settled at the bottom of
the vat. When the grapes are trodden it
IS only the juice which runs into the vat;
but alter the men are done dancing upon
them the skins and pulp are put into
mechanical press, where the remaining
juice IS squeezed out Of them and made
into inferior wines.
Whether it be the whole grape or the
trodden juice which is put into the watts
huge oaken vessels standing in a row in
the sheds-these are Theoretically sealed,
with, perhaps, siphon to carry Off the
carbonic acid gas that may be generated.
Two weeks is the usual time allowed in
the watts, but the period varies, and may
extend to four weeks.
We Will pass over the chemical process
OF fermentation and come to the next in
dustrial process in wine making. This
is the barreling and bottling.
The barrels must be of the best oak and
the best make, for a bad barrel will spoil
the best wine that was ever made. They
have to be very carefully cleaned out.
flrSt with boiling water, and then with
brandy, after which they are fumigated
by means of bit of lighted sulphur at
the end of rod run through the bung-
hole. When thoroughly purified thew are
put in row upon thick beams to protect
them from the damp floor. After being
filled with the new wine, they have to be
constantly watched by the cellarman.
who gauges regularly the evaporation and
replaces the exact quantity evaporated
This rehlllng is frequent at first but after
few months once a fortnight suifices.
The bungs also have to be carefully
watched and the linen round them con-
stantly changed, since any acid which
the cloth absorbs may be impaired 10 the
wine.
By the month of March the first track
ing" or drawing off of the new wine is
done. That is to say, the wine is led off
by slphon from the first caslI to a new
one, which has been as carefully cleaned
and purified as the first. The siphon is
used so that the wine may not come into
contact with the air. The process is re-
peated III June and again III October, and
each drawing off should be clearer than
its predecessor. When the clarifying is
not proceeding as ii should, from any
cause, some makers throw the whites of
half dozen OF eggs into the cask, others
use gelatlne or some other clarifier, but
nothing which can in any way iniure the
quality or colCr of the vino
Sometimes, if the fermentation in the
vat has been imperfect, a second fermeu-
tation will take place into the casks. the
symptom of which will be the blowing
out of the bung by the generation OF car
wine is promptly drawn of and passed
through the pipes immersed in boiling
water to another barrel. This danger is
incidental only To the first year. Second
fermentation rarely occurs in the second
year; but in the second year the wine IS
racked off three times again.
AT the end of the third year the wine is
ready for bottling, for it will not mature
any more in wood after that term. Some
vines mature much earlier. The bottling
nrocess is simple, but very great care has
10 he exercised with the corks, which are
soaked in brandy before being forced by
an ingenious machine into the necks of
the bottles. The bottles are then sealed
or capsuled, and laid on their sides in the
cellar. either 10 mature there or to be
presently packed into cases and shipped
abroad This is with regard to wine
..bottled at the chateau" but, of course,
the larger proportion of the claret con-
sumed is imported IN the wood.-All the
Year Round.
POULTRY YARD IN SEPTEMBER,
AS spring and fall seem to be the nat
urai clearinghouse time, SO September
seems to be the month to straighten the
poultry yard. As there IS always a
ssblack sheep in the tlock," so there are
always moor members in a flock of poul-
try. no matter what the breed may be.
Young hens that are of the quality you
desire your flock TO be, that is, non-sit-
ters. profuse layers, of handsome plu-
mage. good mothers, etc, should be care
fully selected from the flock and put in
run by themselves to keep. Also cock
erels from good breeds. and from moth
ers possessing the qualities enumerated
above for heredity is strong IN fowlS), at
least one to every ten hens; and II you
have prime ones, some Tor your neigh-
bors; and put them also by themselves
and not with fha hans Males for breed