Hopkinsville Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1889-1918, 1893-01-20
THE VINTAGE OF THE MEDoo,

THE VINTAGE or THE mEDoc.
Hsw the Grapes Arc Grown. ssd the
49, Making Of the Wine.
The best clarets are grown in the dis
trict called the Medoc. which is divided
into the Haut Medoc aud the Bias
Medoc, and again subdiyided into lo-
cAlitles such as Pauillac, Margaux, 81
Julien and ST. Estephe These names
are applied 10 the growths Of the re
spectlve locallties-and 10 good deal
besidea
The Medoc Is long tongue OF land
which stretches north from bordeaux
between the sea and the rivers Garonne
and Gironde. II Is not what can be
called fertile soil, being of a light,
pebbly character, aud IL 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 hourishcs best where the
soil Is too thin even TO encourage weeds
and where the bushes are stunted- The
reason is that in such places the earth
retains the sun heat long after sun
down, so that the work Of frnctihca'
ton proceeds almost as steadily by
night rs by day. Tho surface OF the
Medoc is composed of sand and pebbles
and supposed TO have bsen 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 foors--they are emp
tied onto horizontt Al latticework table.
On this the grapes are rubbed by q
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 whichfall through the lattice
work are received In trough which y
ON slightly inclined plane, with I
groove TO permit the Juice TO run freely
off into receiver Upon the bottom o.
this trough the fruit Is spread evenly
and then three or four men with barr
legs and feet begin TO tread down the
grapes dancing 10 the sound OF u fiddl,
as long as the grapes continue 70 b
thrown In.
This is wine treading, and although
. machines have often been introduced Il
supcrsede II, and are, in fact, used h
= some vineyards the n. remains tina
3 a virtue exists n the human feet which
no IA ire mechanical pressure can pro
vide. This may seem odd, but II !
readily explainable The weight OF tn
= human body In rhythmic dance Is quit
suiiieient TO crush the grapes. Will
the h6man foot is sufficiently hexibl
not % crush the seeds, which contail
M oil Injurious 10 the wine.
II Is held by some growers that crush
ing produces more rapid and equabl
ferms ltation OF the juice, although
lighter colored wine Others maintain
that Il produces too much sediment, ans
that It 10 better 10 throw the unbrolSei
grapes into the vat and 10 allow then
To exude their juice In natural process
of fermentation. The process take
about fortnight by which time tn
skins aud seeds will have settled at th
bottom OF the vat When the grape
are trolden II Is only the juice whic
runs into the vat; but after the men ar
done dancing upon them the skins an
pulp are put into mechanical press
where the remaining Juice is squeeze
out Of them and made into inferio
wines
Whether II be the whole grape or tn
trodden juice which Is put into the vat
huge oaken vessels standing In u row