Page:EB1911 - Volume 28.djvu/747

GERMANY: ITALY] pipe = 92 gallons) and the export to 6010 pipes, of which quantity 1951 pipes went to Germany, 1680 pipes to France, 796 pipes to Russia and 755 pipes to the United Kingdom. Madeira, like sherry and port, is a fortified wine. The method of vinification is similar to that employed in other parts of Portugal, but the method employed for hastening the maturation of the wine is peculiar and characteristic. This consists in subjecting the wine, in buildings specially designed for this purpose, to a high temperature for a period of some months. The temperature varies from 100° to 140° F. according to the quality of the wine, the lower temperature being used for the better wines. The buildings in which this process is carried out are built of stone and are divided into compartments heated by means of hot air derived from a system of stoves and flues. Much of the characteristic flavour of Madeira is due to this practice, which hastens the mellowing of the wine and also tends to check secondary fermentation inasmuch as it is, in effect, a mild kind of pasteurization.

Although the quantity of wine produced in Germany is comparatively small and subject to great variations, the quality of the finer wines is, in successful years, of a very high order. In fact Germany is the only country which produces natural (i.e. unfortified) wines of so high a class as to be comparable with—although of an entirely different character from—the wines of France. The finer wines possess great breed and distinction, coupled with a very fine and pronounced bouquet, and in addition they are endowed with the—in the case of lighter wines—rare quality of stability. The great inequalities observed in the different vintages and the exceptionally fine character of the wines in good years are, generally, due to the same cause, namely, to the geographical position of the vineyards. The wines of the Rhine are grown in the most northerly latitude at which viticulture is successful in Europe, and consequently, when the seasons are not too unpropitious, they display the hardiness and distinction characteristic of northern products. During the period 1891–1905 the total production of Germany has averaged roughly 62 million gallons, attaining a maximum of 111 million gallons in 1896 and a minimum of 16 million gallons in 1891. The trade with the United Kingdom is now a very considerable one, amounting in 1906 to roughly 1 million gallons to the value of three-quarters of a million sterling.

The wines grown in the Rheingau, Rheinhessen and in parts of the Palatinate are generally known by the name of Rhine wines, although many of these are actually produced on tributaries of that river. Thus the well-known Hochheimer, from which the curious generic term “hock” employed in England for Rhine wines is derived, is made in the vicinity of the

little village of that name situated on the Main, a number of miles above the junction of the latter with the Rhine. The Rheingau district proper stretches along the north bank of the Rhine from Bingen on the west to Mainz on the east. The most important wines in this region are those of the Johannisberg and of the Steinberg. The vineyards of the former are said to have been planted originally in the 11th century, but were destroyed during the Thirty Years' War. They were replanted by the abbot of Fulda in the 18th century. During the French Revolution the property passed into the hands of the prince of Orange, but after the battle of Jena, Napoleon deprived him of it and presented it to Marshal Kellermann. On the fall of Napoleon, the emperor of Austria took possession of the vineyard and gave it to Prince Metternich. At the present time the property still belongs to the descendants of the latter. The vineyards of Steinberg belong to the state of Prussia. The vineyards of these two properties are tended with extraordinary care, and the wines, of which several qualities are made in each case, fetch exceedingly high prices. The finest wines are produced in a manner somewhat similar to that employed for making the Sauternes. The grapes are allowed to become over-ripe and are then selected by hand. This process produces the so-called Auslese wines, which frequently fetch as much as 30s. or 40s. a bottle. The other most important wines produced in the Rheingau and its extensions are those of Marcobrunn, Geisenheim, Rüdesheim and Hochheim. The most important wines produced in Rheinhessen (on the left bank of the Rhine and south of the Rheingau) are those of Liebfraumilch, Nierstein, Oppenheim, Bodenheim, Laubenheim and Scharlachberg. In the Palatinate the most important growths are those of Forst, Deidesheim and Dürkheim.

The wines of the Moselle are of a somewhat different character to those of the Rhine. Whereas the Rhine wines of the finer descriptions are as a rule fairly full bodied and of marked vinosity, the Moselle wines are mostly light and of a somewhat delicate nature. While the Rhine wines generally improve in bottle for a lengthy period, the Moselles are as a rule at their best when comparatively fresh. Indeed, many connoisseurs hold that when a

Moselle ceases to show signs of the somewhat prolonged secondary fermentation, characterized by the slight prickling sensation produced on the palate (caused by the presence of bubbles of carbonic acid gas in the wine), that it has passed its best. The best-known growths of the Moselle are those of Brauneberg, Bernkastel, Piesport and Zeltingen. Some of the tributaries of the Moselle also produce wines which in quality approach those of the parent river. Among these may be cited the growths of Scharzhofberg, Geisberg and Bockstein.

Large quantities of wine are produced in Alsace-Lorraine, Baden and Württemberg, but the majority of these have little interest, inasmuch as they are used only for home consumption. Among the wines, however, which are well known may be mentioned the Franconian growths, amongst which the celebrated Stein wine, which is grown at the foot of the citadel of the town of Würzburg, and in the grand duchy of Baden the celebrated growths of Affenthal (red) and Markgräfler.

Practically all the important wines of Germany are white, although there are a few red growths of some quality, for instance that of Assmannshausen in the Rheingau. The latter is produced from the black Burgundy vine, the Pineau. In the Rheingau the predominant vine is the Riessling. This plant appears to be indigenous to the Rhine valley, and the finest wines are made exclusively from its grapes. In the hope of reproducing the characteristic of the Rhine wines, the Riessling has been planted in many young wine-producing countries, such as Australia, California and the Cape, and not entirely without success. It thrives best on rocky mountain slopes freely exposed to the sun, and requires a relatively high temperature to reach perfect maturity. In the lower lands, therefore, it is customary to plant, in addition to the Riessling, vines such as Österreicher and Kleinberger, which mature more readily than the former. Other vines, such as the Orléans and the Traminer, are also found in small quantities in the Rheingau. On the Moselle the Riessling and the Kleinberger are the chief growths. The vintage on the Rhine is, in order to permit the grapes to acquire the “over-ripeness” necessary to the peculiar character of the wines, generally very late, rarely taking place before the end of October. The process of vinification is peculiar in that fermentation takes place in relatively small casks, the result being that there are frequently marked differences in the produce of the same growth and vintage.

The very great variations which are shown by the same growths of different vintages makes it impracticable in the case of the German white wines to give representative analyses of them. Comparing the fine wines of the better vintages with, for instance, the red wines of the Gironde, the main features of interest are the relatively high proportions of acid and glycerin and the low proportion of tannin which they contain.

Italy ranks second to France as regards the quantity of wine produced, but in respect to quality a comparison is scarcely possible, inasmuch as the Italian wines are on the whole of a poor character. They display many of the features characteristic of southern wines, showing either an excessive vinosity coupled with a somewhat crude bouquet, or where the alcoholic strength is not high, a decided lack of stability. The reason for this is to be sought partly in the unscientific methods of cultivation, and partly, in many districts, in the haphazard methods of vinification employed. The vines are to a great extent still trained on trees or trellis-work, or allowed to grow among the rest of the vegetation in the most casual manner. It must be stated, nevertheless, that of recent years a decided improvement has set in in some quarters owing to the lively interest which the Italian government has taken in the subject, principally owing to the important export trade to America, Switzerland and other countries. The trade with the United States, which in 1887 amounted to little over 120,000 gallons, has risen to considerably over a million gallons. The exports to the Argentine Republic amount to roughly 4 million gallons, and to Switzerland from 4 to 8 million gallons. The trade with the United Kingdom is small, amounting to little over a quarter of a million gallons annually, and of a value rather less than £50,000. The total exports of Italy are on the average not far from 40 million gallons. The wines of northern Italy are on the whole of good colour, but somewhat harsh. Among the best-known wines in Piedmont are the Barolos and the wines of Asti, which are made from a species of muscatel grapes. They are of an agreeable flavour, and this especially applies to the white descriptions. A considerable quantity of sparkling wine is manufactured in this district. Among the best-known wines of Lombardy are the Passella wines of Valtelina. In central Italy the best growths are those of Chianti, Pomino, Montalcino, Carmignano and Montepulciano. Tuscany produces the greater part of these wines, which are of good but not excessive alcoholic strength, containing as a rule some 10% to 11% of alcohol. The Montepulciano wines have a brilliant colour and high bouquet, and are of a sweet, luscious flavour. The wines of Chianti, near Siena, are often described as being of the claret type, but actually they are somewhat similar to the growths of Beaujolais. The best Italian wines, however, are probably those grown in the Neapolitan district. The best of these is the celebrated Lacrima Christi, which is grown on the slopes of