The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1900-09-29
CALIFORNIA WINES.

Bearing the Names Of French
Wines
The press of California is much per-
turbed over the action Of the Paris ex-
position jury Of award In wines. This
body passed a resolution declaring chat
''all wines and brandies offered for ex-
animation bearing any label indicating
a false description be excluded from
examination or recompense, and the di-
rector-general be requested to have all
such wines at once removed from the
exposition grounds" The California
press protest bitterly that this is I'M
fair to California, where certain wine
growers have for years been using
French names for California wines.
Yet in parallel columns these same Cal
iforna papers protest bitterly against
eastern wine-dealers who for years
have been using California names for
inferior wines. But If it is dishonora-
bel for New York wine-dealers to use
California names, it is dishonest for
California wine-dealers to use French
names.
At the risk of offending some Califor-
MIA wine-dealers, we wish to say that
we are very glad their falsely labeled
wines We're excluded from official exam
ination at Paris. The fact that they
subsequently received an Irregular
rating at the request of Professor
Wiley of the United States agricultural
! department, cuts no figure in the case.
They We're excluded from examination,
competition or recompense by the jury
of the Paris exposition, and 1t served
them right.
In our old copy-books at school there
figured the material maxim, Honesty
is the best policy" 1t is not high eth
les, but it is good business. And so the
wine-growers of California have found
and will find. Some of them have tried
to steal the fame and profit belonging
to well-known French wines. They
gave the names of French districts,
, French vineyards, and even French
firms to the California product. 1t has
been said that some of these wine
growers did it honestly. This is nom
sense No man can do a dishonest
thing honestly. They did it for their
financial advantage, and they did 1t
knowing they were stealing the name
and fame of wines produced by other
men. The more far-sighted, as well as
more honest California wine-growers,
have given California names to the
Juice of the California grape. They
have done well for themselves and for
their state To themselves they have
brought profit, and to their state they
have brought honor. They are men of
all callings and of all stations in life.
How varied may be seen from the
rI, Ior cold dol
the French jury-Winfleld Scott Reyes,
a mining engineer and the son of an
Americans general. Charles A. Baldwin,
a young gentleman of fortune and the
son of an American admiral; Pierre
Klein, foreigner and an ex-restrau
rant-keeper of San Francisco
All sorts of specious arguments are
advanced In favor Of the false labelling
of California wines, 1t Is said that the
French names "imply a certain type Of
wine;" and therefore that the Califor
MIA product resembling 1t is entitled to
steal it's neighbours fame, and masquer-
AIDE under it's title. This would be bad
morals If 1t We're not bad logic. But 1t
is both. France Is large country and
grapes are grown In many parts of it.
Yet even in France they do not pretend
to produce champagne outside of the
Champagne district. Sparkling wines
are made in the Burgundy district, but
they are not called "ehampagnes.
They are called sparkling Burgun-
dies The Burgundian wine-growers
are proud of their product, and do not
strive to steal the fame of their fellow
winners In the north A "wine of the
came type" as champagne is produced
in Germany. but 1t Is not called Cham
se1le." A ''wine of the same type" as
champagne Is produced in Italy but
neither is 1t called champagne" 1t Is
called Sparkling Asti" The wine
growers of the Asst district are also
proud of their wines, and they do not
try to steal the French winners name
and fame. Is it too much to ask of
California wine-growers that they
should be at least as honest as the
growers of Burgundy, of Asti and
of Moselle?
We mention champagne particularly
because 1t is a most distinctive type of
wine"-to use the phrase of the apollo
gists for dishonesty. But the same pi-
ratical practice exists concerning other
French wines. The names of the
grands wins of the Burgundy, Of the
Medoc, of the Sauterne and other dis
tricts are also used by dishonest Cali
fornia winners. The action carries it's !
own punishment These men have |
been striving for years to build up a
business with other mems names.
They will now find their effects blasted. |
While their rivals, who have been hon
estly building up the reputation of Cal |
ifornia wines on California names, will
reap harvest.