into the English market; no doubt, though, but we have them in some
shape, for the mystifications of the wine trade are stupendous, and, to
an outsider, unfathomable.
J. A.
[Illustration]
GERMANY: Rhine Wines—Heidelberg
Tun—Hock—Stein-wein—Asmannhäuser—Straw Wines—Goethe’s
Opinion of Wine GREECE: Verdea—Vino Santo—The Wine of Night.
HUNGARY: Maszlacz—Tokay—Carlowitz—Erlauer. ITALY: Monte
Pulciano—Chianti—Barolo—Barbera—Montefiascone—Lacryma Christi,
etc. MADEIRA: Malvasia—Tinta—Bual, etc. PERSIA: Shiraz.
GERMANY.
The Germans, says Cyrus Redding, like vain men of other nations, have
wasted a good deal of idle conjecture on the antiquity of the culture
of the vine in their country; and then, as though to show by example
that this waste of idle conjecture is not confined to the Germans, Mr.
Redding continues the investigation of this important matter himself.
In the opinion of an experienced merchant these wines have a “distinct
character and classification of their own.” Their alcoholic strength is
low, averaging about 18 per cent.
[Illustration: This illustration dates 1608 as “A Sciographie or Modell
of that stupendous vessel which is at this day shewed in the Pallace
of the Count Palatine of Rhene in the citie of Heidelberg.” A model of
this Tun was shown at the German Exhibition held in London, 1891. Its
capacity was eclipsed by a famous _tonneau_, elaborately ornamented with
allegorical figures, etc., which was shown in the French Exhibition of
1889. It would hold 200,000 bottles of Champagne, and came from Epernay.
It had to be drawn by a large team, by road, and the French press was
full of its imaginary adventures on its journey to Paris.]
To the north of Coblentz the wines are of little comparative value,
though a Rhenish wine has been produced at Bodendorf, near Bonn. On the
Rhine or its tributary rivers between Coblentz and Mayence, all the
most celebrated wines of Germany are grown. The grapes preferred for
general cultivation are the Riessling, a small, white, harsh species. The
true _Hochheimer_, daily consumed in Germany, is grown to the eastward
of Mentz, between there and Frankfort. The wines mellow best in large
vessels, an experience which has produced the celebrated Heidelberg Tun,
holding some six hundred hogsheads. The distinguishing characteristics
of German wine have been said to be generosity, dryness, fine flavour,
and endurance of age. The dyspeptic will learn with delight that the
strong wines of the Rhine are extremely salutary, and contain less acid
than any other. It is also averred that they are never saturated with
brandy. _Liebfrauenmilch_[27] is grown at Worms. It is full bodied,
as is that of _Scharlachberg_. Wines of _Nierstein_,[28] _Laubenheim_,
and _Oppenheim_ are good, but _Deidesheimer_ is considered superior to
them. _Hock_[29] is derived from Hochheim; but nearly every town on the
banks of the Rhine gives its name to some lauded vintage. The flavour of
Hock is supposed to be improved by thin green glasses. Perhaps, says the
judicious Redding, this is mere fancy. The Palatinate wines are cheaper
Hocks. Moselles have a more delicate perfume. The whole eastern bank of
the Rhine to Lorich, called the Rheingau, about fourteen miles in extent,
has been famous for its wines for ages. Naturally, therefore, it was
once the property of the Church. Here is _Schloss-Johannisberger_, once
nearly destroyed by General Hoche, where a leading Rhine wine is made.
_Steinberger_ takes the next rank to _Johannisberger_. _Gräfenberg_,
also once ecclesiastical property, produces wine equal to _Rüdesheimer_,
which is a wine of the first Rhine growths. _Marcobrunner_, _Roth_,
_Königsbach_ are excellent drinks. _Bacharach_ has lost its former
celebrity. The conclusion to which a celebrated connoisseur has arrived
after an exhaustive examination of German wines is this: “On the whole,
the wines of _Bischeim_, _Asmannshäuser_, and _Laubenheim_ are very
pleasant wines; those of rather more strength are _Marcobrunner_,
_Rüdesheimer_ and _Niersteiner_, while those of _Johannisberg_,
_Geissenheim_, and _Hochheim_ give the most perfect delicacy and
aroma.” The Germans themselves say _Rhein-wein, fein-wein; Necker-wein,
lecker-wein; Franken-wein, tranken-wein; Mosel-wein, unnosel-wein_.[30]
[Illustration]
The red wines of the Rhine are considered inferior to the white. Red
_Asmannshäuser_ is perhaps the best. Near Lintz _Blischert_ is made.
Königsbach and Altenahr yield ordinary wines. The most celebrated of
Moselle wines is the _Brauneberger_, of which the varieties are numerous.
A variety called _Gruenhäuser_ was formerly styled the Nectar of the
Moselle. The wines of Ahr, of which some are red, resemble Moselles,
but will keep longer. Of the wines of the Neckar the most celebrated is
_Besigheimer_. Baden, Wiesbaden, Wangen, and Würtzberg, all grow good
wines. Of the last is _Stein-wein_, produced on a mountain so called,
and named by the Hospital to which it belongs, _Wine of the Holy
Ghost_. _Leisten_ wines are grown on Mt. Saint Nicolas. _Straw_ wines
are made in Franconia. _Calmus_, a liqueur wine, like the sweet wines of
Hungary, is made in the territory of Frankfurt. The best vineyards are
those of Bischofsheim. Wines of Saxony are of little worth. Meissen and
Guben produce the best. Naumburg makes some small wines, like inferior
Burgundy. The excellence of the Rhine wines has seldom perhaps been
proved more clearly than by one who loved them well. Goethe, in his _Aus
einer Reise am Rhein, Main und Neckar_, says: “_Niemand schämt sich der
Weinlust, sie rühmen sich einigermaassen des Trinkens. Hübsche Frauen
gestehen dass ihre Kinder mit der Mutterbrust zugleich Wein geniessen.
Wir fragten ob denn wahr sey, dass es geistlichen Herren, ja Kurfürsten
geglückt, acht Rheinische Maass, das heisst sechzehn unserer Bouteillen,
in vierundzwanzig Stunden zu sich zunehmen? Ein scheinbar ernsthafter
Gast bemerkte, man dürfe sich zu Beantwortung dieser Frage nur der
Fastenpredigt ihres Weihbischofs erinnern, welcher, nachdem er das
schreckliche Laster der Trunkenheit seiner Gemeinde mit den stärksten
Farben dargestellt, also geschlossen habe—_” But for those who understand
not the German tongue we will give some of the sermon of this Church
dignitary on the Rochusberg in English. “Those, my pious brethren, commit
the greatest sin who misuse God’s glorious gifts. But the misuse excludes
not the use. Wine, it is written, rejoices man’s heart. Therefore we are
clearly intended to enjoy it. Now perhaps, beloved brethren, there is
not one of you who cannot drink two measures of wine without feeling
any ill effects therefrom; he, however, who with his third or fourth
measure has so far forgotten himself as to abuse, beat and kick his wife
and children, and to treat his dearest friend as his worst enemy, let
such a one discontinue to drink three or four measures, which thus render
him unpleasing to God and despicable to man. But he who with the fourth
measure, nay, with his fifth or his sixth, still maintains his sense in
such a manner that he can behave properly to his fellow-Christian, attend
to his domestic duties, and obey his spiritual superiors as he ought,
let him be thankful in modesty for the gift accorded to him. But let him
not advance beyond the sixth measure, for here commonly is the term set
to human power and endurance. Rare indeed is the occasion in which the
benevolent God has lent a man such especial grace that he may drink eight
measures—a grace which He has, however, accorded to me His servant. Let,
therefore, every one take only his allotted measure _und auf dass ein
solches geschehe, alles Ubermaass dagegen verbannt sey, handelt sämmtlich
nach der Vorschrift des heiligen Apostels welcher spricht; Prüfet alles
und das Beste behaltet!_”
[Illustration: “TASTING THE VINTAGE.”—_After_ Hasenclever.]
GREECE.
The vinification of Greece is commonly imperfect. Most of its wines
become vinegar in summer. Avoid, says a well-known guide-book, the wine
of this country, which is generally acid and always impure.[31] The best
Greek wines are those of the islands Ithaca, Zante, Tenos, Samos, Thera
(Santorin),[32] and Cyprus. The white wine of Zante, called _Verdea_,
resembles Madeira in flavour. The wine of Naxos is of considerable
strength, and is greatly improved by age. A quantity of it, known as
_Vino Santo_, is exported. Andros was sacred to Dionysus, and a tradition
(Plin. ii. 103; xxxi. 13; Paus. vi. 26) says that for seven days during
a festival of this god the waters of a certain fountain were changed
to wine. The wine did no credit to the god, if it resembled that which
this island at present produces. The “Nectar” of _Morta_ is bitter and
astringent. Dr. Charnock has recommended the _Monthymet_ as a good mild
wine, and the _œconomos_. A white wine, called “_the wine of night_,” is
supplied under the distinctive names of _St. Elie_ and _Calliste_; the
latter is the better.
HUNGARY.
The wines of Hungary, we are told, “possess considerable body with a
moderate astringency.” The varieties of wine known as _Ausbruch_ and
_Maszlacs_, including the _Tokays_, _Rust_, _Menes_, and many more, are
of the most important character. Without the addition of dry berries the
so-called natural wine or _Szamorodni_ is obtained. The Tokay essence,
a very sweet wine, should be also very old. When fifty years in bottle
it costs some £3[33] for a small flask. Ausbruch, also sweet, should be
also old. _Maszlacz_ is of four different kinds. The _Mezes_, _Male_ or
_Imperial_, does not get into trade. _Meograd_, _Krasso_, and _Villany_
from the West of Hungary are good strong wines of the second class. Wines
of the third class are very numerous. There is no space to mention more
than the red wines: _Baranya_, _Presburger_, _Somogy_, _Vagh-Ujhelyer_,
_Paulitsch_, and _Erdöd_, and the white _Miszla_, _Balaton_, _Füred_,
_Hont_, _Pesth_, and _Weissenburger_. _Samlauer_ is one of the best white
wines made at a place called Samlau, as _Erlauer_ another good wine
at Erlau. The most commonly known Hungarian wines of the present are
_Oedenburger_, _Samlauer_, _Neszmely_, and _Carlowitz_.
ITALY.
That Italy produces good wines is, says Cyrus Redding, undeniable.
She also produces wines that are very bad. The best Italian wines are
believed to be of Tuscany. As Hafiz is the authority for _Shiraz_, so
Redi’s _Bacco in Toscana_ should be consulted for the wines of Italy.
_Monte Pulciano_ is of a purple hue, sweet and slightly astringent.
It is to this wine that Redi gives the palm, calling it _la manna di
Monte Pulciano_. The wine of _Chianti_, near Sienna, is well known.
_Artiminio_, _Poncino_, _Antella_, and _Carmignano_, though of less
reputation, are not greatly inferior. The best _Verdea_[34] comes from
Arcetri near Florence. _Trebbiano_, a gold-coloured syrup, is produced,
according to Drs. Thudichum and Dupré, from grapes, “passulated on the
vine by torsion of the stalk.” _Montelcino_, _Rimaneze_, and _Santo
Stefano_ are Siennese wines. Of Sardinia the chief wines are the
so-called _Malvasias_, _Giro_, _Aleatico_, like the _Tinto_ of Alicante,
and _Bosa_, _Ogliastra_, and _Sassari_. Of Piedmont the principal wines
are _Barolo_, _Barbera_, _Nebbiolo_, _Braccheto_. _Asti_, _Chaumont_,
_Alba_, and _Montferrat_ have had reputation thrust upon them.
_Grignolinos_ are made from a vine closely related to the _Kadarka_
of Hungary, and the _Carmenet_ of the Gironde. The wines of Genoa are
of small repute. Central Italy furnishes _Montefiascone_,[35] with a
delicious aroma, _Albano_, resembling _Lacryma Christi_, and _Orvieto_.
The principal wine of Naples, from the base of Vesuvius, is _Lacryma
Christi_, a rich, red, exquisite drink, affirmed by some adventurous
fancies to be the _Falernian_ of Horace. “O Christ!” said a Dutchman
who drank, “why didst Thou not weep in my country?” Gallipoli, Tarento,
Baia, Pausilippo, yield good wines. The islands in the Bay of Naples
all produce wine; that of _Caprea_ is of good ordinary quality, both
white and red. Calabria furnishes many good wines. _Muscadenes_ and dry
wines are made at Reggio. _Asprino_, a white foamy wine, with a pleasant
sharpness, is a favourite of the Campagna. _Carigliano_ is a Muscadine,
with a flavour of fennel. Dr. Charnock speaks highly of the wine of
Capri, and of Orvieto, a delicate white wine of Rome. The disagreement of
travellers about the merits of wines arises principally, of course, from
a diversity of tastes, but also in the matter of Italian wines, from the
fact that different wines bear the same names in different countries.
There is, for instance, a _vino santo_ and a _vino greco_ in Naples. A
Veronese wine, _vino debolissimo e di niuna stima_, is also called _vino
santo_, and an excellently good wine at Brescia. It is the same with half
a dozen of the most noted wines of Italy. _Modico_, a fine white wine
from the place of that name near Salerno, was apparently a favourite of
the noted School of Salernum. The best known wines out of Italy are the
_Barola_, _Barbera_, and the rest which may be found on the wine-list
of every _padrone_ of an Italian restaurant; the _Inferno_ of the
Valtellina; the _Lambrusco_ of Modena; the _Chianti_ of Tuscan—a wine
grown on the estate of Baron Ricasoli, not thought so much of in Italy as
in England; and the _Lacryma Christi_ of Naples. Most Italian wines are
bottled in flasks, in the old Roman style, with oil[36] on the top, and
wool over the oil.
MADEIRA.
Wine is first mentioned as a product of Funchal, the capital of Madeira,
in the fifteenth century. In 1662, when Charles II. married the Infanta
Catherine of Bragança, English merchants began to settle in Madeira.
The principal varieties of Madeira are _Malvasia_, _Bual_, _Sercial_,
_Tinta_, and _Verdelho_ (the _Verdea_ of Tuscany). In England, Madeira
is now within the reach of all. At the beginning of this century, it
was known only to connoisseurs. The “fine rich old _Boal_” is fairly
familiar, and if we may trust the wine merchants, the “Very Superior
Old,” variously described as full, soft, golden, delicate, and mellow,
is gradually winning its way into public favour, since that same “soft
fulness,” added to a delicious and yet pungent flavour, produces a drink
“altogether superior” to the best Sherry.
PERSIA.
The ancient, most famous wines of this country were those of Chorassan,
Turan, and Mazanderan. These places still produce wines; but their
characteristics and reputation have, it is affirmed, become blended in
the wine of Shiraz, in the province of Ferdistan, on the Persian Gulf.
Chardin, the Frenchman, describes this wine as of excellent quality,
but of course not so fine as the French wines. The German, Kämpfer,
puts Shiraz on the same level with the best Burgundy and Champagne. He
who wishes to learn the nature of the wine of Shiraz should consult the
_Diwan_ of Hafiz. How far this poet speaks of wine literally understood,
and how far of spiritual delights, is a matter for commentatorial
investigation. Persian wine is frequently mixed with _raki_ and saffron,
and the extract of hemp. _Sherbet_, made of fruit juices and water, is
English rather than Oriental.
[Illustration]
PORTUGAL.
PORTUGAL: Peso da Regoa—Four Methods of Cultivation of
Vine—White and Black Ports—The _Quintas_—Tarragona—Charneco.
RUSSIA: Kahetia—Gumbrinskoé. SICILY: Marsala.
SPAIN: Malaga—Sherry—Amontillado. SWITZERLAND:
Chiavenna—St. Gall—The Canton of Vaud. CIDER:
Derivation—Ainsworth—Gerard—Bacon—Evelyn—Turberville—Macaulay—Phillips.
PERRY.
One hundred and fifty years ago, in the small town of Peso da Regoa, then
called Regua only, near the confluence of the Corgo with the Douro, lived
a single fisherman, in a hut which he had himself constructed. When the
Oporto Wine Company was established, their warehouses were erected here,
and an annual fair for the sale of wine was established.
Peso da Regoa—the Peso comes from an adjoining village—is now a thriving
town, and may be considered the capital of the Alto Douro district (_Paiz
Vinhateiro do Alto Douro_), whence are sent to England and elsewhere
those wines which are here known as Port. The wine district is bounded
by Villa Real on the north, Lamego on the south, S. João da Pesqueira on
the east, and Mezãofrio on the west. It is unwholesome, and but thinly
populated. Those who list may draw from this fact a divine prohibition of
the bibbing of Port.
The vine is cultivated in Portugal in four ways. (1) By being trained
round oaks or poplars _de enforcado_, as the Romans _ulmisque adjungere
vites_. (2) By the terrace system, the best as (1) is the most
picturesque. (3) By bushes in rows, with the intermediate ground
ploughed. (4) By the trellis or _de ramada_. The first liquor drawn from
the _lagar_, or press, the result of the weight of the grapes alone, is
called _Lacryma Christi_. After that a gang of men jump into the _lagar_,
and dance to the sound of the fife or bagpipe. The weather is warm, the
work is hard; the result is better conceived than expressed.
Of white Ports the best are _Muscatel de Jesus_ (the testimony to
religious influence in this and the _Lacryma Christi_ is extremely
touching), considered the prince of all, the _Dedo de Dama_, the _Ferral
Branco_, _Malvazia_ (our Malmsey),[37] _Abelhal_, _Agudelho_, _Alvaraça_,
_Donzellinho_, _Folgozão_, _Gonveio_, White _Mourisco_, _Rabo da Ovelha_,
and _Promissão_. Of the black Ports the finest is _Touriga_, and the
sweetest _Bastardo_. Other dark Ports are _Souzão_, the darkest of all,
_Aragonez_, _Pegudo_, besides _Tintas_, whose names are legion. Other
wines grown here, or in the immediate vicinity, are _Alvarilhão_, a kind
of Claret, _Alicante_, _Muscatel_, _Roxo_, and _Malvazia Vermelha_.
Great quantities of wine are produced in the _quintas_ outside the line
of demarcation, and some of these wines are equal to those made in the
wine district of the _Alto Douro_ itself. Red wines transformed into
French Clarets at Bordeaux, are exported in large quantities. A wine from
Tarragona, known as “Spanish Red,” or superb Catalan, is sent yearly to
England, and sold as very full, rich, fruity, and tawny Port. Port will
not keep good in the cask for more than two years without the addition of
alcohol. The Oporto merchants use a pure spirit distilled from the wine
itself. The old Port which we prize so highly and pay for so dearly is
seldom unaffected by brandy or other spirit.
[Illustration: INTRODUCTION OF THE GOUT.]
[Illustration: THE GOUT.]
Some of the best wines are produced by Estremadura, such as _Bucellas_,
_Collares_, _Lavradio_, _Chamusca_, _Carcavellos_, _Barra a Barra_,
and many others of which not even the names are known in England. The
vines round Torres Vedras might, it has been said, produce the finest
wines in the world, if properly cultivated. _Arinto_ and _Estremadura_
are comparatively new wines. The white wines of Tojal and the vintages
of Palmella and Inglezinhos have only to be known to become popular.
The province of Traz-os-Montes, in spite of its climate of _nove mezes
de inverno, e tres de inferno_, produces excellent wines in the Piaz
Vinhateiro. Those in the vicinity of the river Tua and the Sabor are
considered by connoisseurs to resemble the celebrated _Clos Vougeot_.
There is a remarkable red wine called _Cornifesto_, and the white wines
of _Arêas_, _Bragança_, _Moraes_, _Moncorvo_, and _Nosedo_ are excellent.
The cup of _Charneco_ (2 Hen. VI. ii. 3), a wine mentioned by Beaumont
and Fletcher and Decker, is said to have been made at _Charneco_, a
village near Lisbon (_European Magazine_, March, 1794).
Port-wine is accredited with producing gout, and the two accompanying
illustrations give the “Introduction to the Gout,” and the real fiend
itself.
RUSSIA.
_Kahetia_ is a wine produced in a district of that name, east of Tiflis.
It is of two descriptions, red and white, and is much esteemed throughout
Transcaucasia. As it is kept in skins made tight with naphtha, it has
generally a slight taste of leather and petroleum. _Gumbrinskoé_ is
a sweet wine grown in the Gumbri district of the Caucasus. _Donskoé
Champanskoé_, the champagne of the Don, is said by Dr. Charnock to be a
very good wine, and better than many sorts drunk in Britain. Russian
wines generally, as those of many other countries, are largely diluted,
and, like the majority of Greek wines, do not improve by keeping.
SICILY.
A thousand years before Christ, says Mr. Simmonds, districts of Sicily
were famous for wine. The coins of Naxos (500 B.C.) bear the head of
Bacchus on the obverse, on the reverse Pan, or a bunch of grapes. Of
Sicilian wines, the light amber or brown wine of _Marsala_ is best known.
There is Ingham’s L.P., and Woodhouse’s; there is also the Old Brown. The
Faro is perhaps the strongest wine of Sicily. The wine of Terre Forte is
made near Etna, in some vineyards of Benedictine monks. Marsala, as we
know it, is generally adulterated, or fortified, to use a more technical
term. Even the “Virgin” has not escaped this common lot of wines. Much
Marsala is indeed sold as Marsala, but much more is sold as Sherry. The
wine of _Taormina_ has the classic taste of pitch. Augusta produces a
wine with a strong flavour of violets. This to some palates is the most
agreeable wine drank in Sicily or elsewhere. The _Del Bosco_ of Catania,
and the _Borgetto_ have been both recommended by the subtle taste of Dr.
Charnock. A dry wine called _Vin de Succo_ is made about ten miles from
Palermo. The wine of Syracuse somewhat resembles _Chablis_.
SPAIN.