UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA. AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION. BUI/LETIN Wine Colors, and Color-Wines. At the late Viticultural Convention I exhib- ited a table of measurements of the color of a number of wines of the vintage of 1886, in or- der to emphasize the fact that California can produce wines with abundance of color, and that with proper attention to this point in the selection and proportioning of the varieties con- stituting a vineyard, the dealer need not even be exposed to the temptation of using artificial colors, unless for the purpose of " stretching" by the addition of water, etc. This table is reproduced below, with some additions which add weight to the evidence, and also allow of NO. 69. CAS some generalizations regarding the depth and permanence of the tints belonging to the va- rious classes of wine grapes, and the influence of locality and soil. The "color at pressing" (column 1) can of course be given only for the wines made at the viticultural laboratory. Column 2 gives the color-intensities a8 observed on or about March 1st, in a number of wines sent in for examina- tion, as well as in a number particularly of the deeper-tinted wines made at the viticalt- ural laboratory . Column 3 gives the decrease of color that has occurred between the time of pressing and March 1st, in per cents of the color originally observed; while column 4 indicates the tint or shade of color last observed. TABLE SHOWING INTENSITIES, SHADES AND PERMANENCE OF WINE COLORS. 1112 3 I Variety. 475 645 619 552 593 616 599 607 55i 614 534 617 579 5i6 545 483 613 5ii 59i 529 507 542 492 498 615 479 618 620 524 588 640 533 527 54i 496 470 519 544 Malbeck Malbeck Malbeck *Cabernet Franc Cabernet Franc Cabernet Franc Cab. Sauvignon Cab. Sauvignon *Gros Verdot Verdot *Tannat Merlot Merlot Grossblaue *Grossblaue *Beclan Beclan *Carignane Carignane §Zinfandel "fZinfandel *Zinfandel JZinfandel *Teinturier *Teinturier Gamay Teinturier Sirah Si rah *Mondeuse Mondeuse Petit Bouschet Crabb's Black Burgundy Lenoir Lenoir *Pfeffer's Cabernet (Robin Noir). *PferTer's Cabernet Burgundy Burgundy (Chauche Noir?). ♦Petit Pinot? Pi not St. George Meunier Grower. J. T. Doyle (ITU. P.) J. T. Doyle C. C. Mclver J. T. Doyle (U. P.). " T. Doyle C. C. Mclver T. Doyle J. B. J. Portal J. T. Doyle (U. P.). C. C. Mclver Wm. Pfeffer C. C. Mclver J. Gallegos J. T. Doyle (U. P.). J. T. Doyle (U. P.). J. Gallegos C. C. Mclver A. Salazar J. T. Doyle J. Gallegos C. C. Mclver H. P. Gregory... Place of Production. !7o 38.1 34.8 p.) J. T. Doyle (U D. C. Feely J. T. Doyle (U. P.). JL T. Doyle (U. P.). C. C. Mclver J. Gallegos C. C. Mclver C. C. Mclver T. T. Doyle (U. P.). H. B. Wagoner. . . . Fresno Vineyard Co. Wm. Pfeffer C. Weller J. S. Fowler J. Gallegos H. M. La Rue & S'ns T. T. Doyle (U. P.). J. T. Doyle (U. P.). Cupertino Cupertino Mission San Jose Cupertino Cupertino Mission San Jose Cupertino San Jose Cupertino 85.3 Mission San Jose Gubserville. Mission San Jose Mission San Jose Cupertino. . Cupertino. . Mission San Jose Mission San Jose Mission San Jose Cupertino. . Mission San Jose Mission San Jose Soquel Cupertino Patchen. . Cupertino Cupertino Mission San Jose Mission San Jose Mission San Jose Mission San Jose Cupertino Livermore Fresno Gubserville Warm Springs. . . Patchen Mission San Jose Da vis vi lie Cupertino 5i.4 40.8 57.i 41 .2 30-3 48.8 10.2 54.o 75 44-4 46.5 3i-7 p O 12.0 16.3 10.5 10.2 5-3 12.6 Cupertino 1 13. 6 27 . 6 27 25.5 36.0 .. 23-5 32 35 50.0 38.8 32.0 57.o 57.i 40.8 50.0 3i.5 30.0 26.0 36.4 36.3 3o.3 35.6 31.6 23.5 27.7 43.2 8.3 19.0 40 . o 26 . o 67.7 10. o 44.4 0.0 27.6 40.6 77.0 £3 O (V Present Tint. 33-2 26 53-3 11. 6 14.0 27-3 80.0 154.0 27.3 39.8 37-0 45-9 30.8 11. 2 7-1 8. 9 7.8 (?) 8.2 13.3 7.0 56.4 15.2 24.0 (?) 35.0 2.0 1st p. r. 3 d-4th p. r. 3d p.r. 5th p. r. 2d p. r. 3d p. r. 1 st p. r. 3d p. r. 2d p. r. 2d p. r. 3d p. r. 4th p. r. 5th p. r. 2d p. r. 2d p. r. 1st p. r. 3d p. r. 1st p. r. 2d p. r. 4th p. r. 5th p. r. 2d p. r. 3d p. r. 2d p. r. 2d p. r. 2d p. r. 1st p. r. 1st p. r. 2d p. r. 2d p. r. 1st 2d p. r. 2d p. r. orange-red red 5th red 3d red 3d red 3d red orange- red 3d red 3d red * Wines made at the viticultural laboratory; §average of three analyses; faverage of four analyses; ^average of wines from grapes from Vina, Sacramento, Davisville and Patchen; p. r. means purple red; IfUniversity Experimental Plot. Ia commenting upon the above figures it may be proper to restate their basis, as explained in the Report for 1886, pages 26 and 133. The standard of comparison is the French color- scale devised by Chevreul and adopted by the Government as well as by manufacturers in France. A portion of this color-scale, repre- sented by 10 little silk discs, and including the tints of most red wines, forms the basis of com- parison, the colors running from simple " pur- ple red " through five numbered shades of the same to 44 red," and from this through num- bered shades toward orange-red. The compar- ison is made by measuring the thickness of the column of wine that will make its color and in- tensity, viewed toward a white silk disc, ex- actly equal to that of one of the type discs; which thickness will, of course, be inversely proportional to the intensity of the wine's own color. A convenient numeriotl expression of these ratios is obtained by assuming the color- intensity corresponding to a wine-layer four- tenths of a millimeter, or the sixty-second part of an inch in thickness, as 100. Oa such a scale the colors of all ordinary wines can be readily expressed in percentages falling below 100; while a very few special color-wines will rise above, so that their colors have fco be given in figures over 100, expressive of their extraordi- nary intensity. It should be farther understood that on Euch a scale, the color-intensities of deep-tinted commercial wines will range between 20 and 30; ordinary red wines (e. g. t most Zinfandels) between 10 and 20; while any wine below 10 will be classed as 11 light red." Taking 20 as a satisfactory figure for clarets intended to be used as table wines, and still showing a handsome tint when diluted with water, it will be seen that column 2 shows quite a number possessing many times that amount of color, while all but the Burgundy group range above 20, and could therefore be used to bring up the color of lighter, valley-grown wines, by blending. In nearly all these cases, the analysis as well as the tasting test shows that these same wines will also serve to comple- ment the deficiencies of the last-named class of wines in other respects, especially as regards tannin and bouquet. The most prominent color-wines shown in the table are, in the order of their intensity, the Petit Bouschet, Mondeuse, Sirah, Verdot, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc. Contrary to the general impression, the two samples of Lenoir do not show any extraordinary merit in this respect. The Livermore sample, it is true, gave quite a high reading at pressing, but lost nearly half of its color between that time and March 1st. The Fresno sample gave even less at the latter date. At the same time it will be noted that the tint of the Lenoir is altogether f different from that of the Bordeaux varieties. | At first a full red, it rapidly fades toward the orange red as it deposits its color, and at this time the latter is almost identical with that of unadulterated 44 cherry- juice." But if the Le- noir possesses no epecial merit in the way of either kind or quality of color, it is difficult to see on what ground it should be preferred to a dozen other varieties here enumerated that give as much or more color of the right tint, fading much less, and un associated with the peculiar flavor that always clashes more or less with the Bordeaux type at least; while it is not a heavier bearer, to say the least, than several of the noble Bordeaux vines have now proved to be. The latter, it will be noted, all fall within the 44 purple- red" shades of color, which is also shared by the Teinturlers, as well as by the Jura and Piedmontese grapes; and of course this, and not a red or orange-red, is what is looked for in wines representing these types. Hence the Lenoir has not a proper place among them, upon that ground alone. As shown on Table 6 of the Viticultural Re- port for 1886, the Pinots proper, including the Meunier, all run into shades of red ; and the in- tensity of their tints is qjiite low relatively to the Bordeaux varieties, being somewhere be- tween 10 and 15, which is only about one-third of the general average of the varieties shown in the above table. Among the latter, the 44 Crabb's Burgundy " holds quite a high place, both for the intensity and permanence of its purple-red tint; and this, with its habits in fruiting, may be considered as definitively re- moving it from among the group of 44 Bur- gundies," even in the widest signification of that much -abused term. On the other hand, the peculiar tint of the Robin Noir or 44 Pfef- fer's Cabernet," as well as its relatively low in- tensity, would assign it a place near the Pinots, and shows that it needs to be blended with some one of the purple-red varieties in order to make its wine take a place among the Bor- deaux type which it otherwise resembles. The influence of locality upon the intensity of tints is very strikingly exemplified in a num- ber of instances, but more particularly in the case of the wines from Doyle's level upland vineyard at Cupertino, and the same from Mc- Ivor's hill land at Mission San Jose; also be- tween the latter and Gallegos' level upland at the same place. In the cases of the Malbeck and Cabernet Franc, and especially in that of the Sirah, the color is markedly higher in Mc- Iver's wines than in Doyle's; but in the Verdot the color is the same from both places. As be- tween Gallegos and Molver, the latter's Mon- deuse exceeds Gallegos' nearly one to three, and in the case of the Merlot, five to three- but the Baolau from both i8 identical, and Gal- legos' Zinfandel exceeds Mclver's in color by eight points, on an average of four and three samples respectively. It thus appears that local superiority in color does not necessarily hold good for all varieties, however great the difference may be in some of them. The most intensely colored wine of all thus far observed is Mclver's Petit Bouschet, which has in effect the appearance of red ink, and ex- ceeds by 92.5 per cent the deepest tint other- wise noted at the same date. This wine can be diluted with six times its bulk of water and still retain a deeper tint than the majority of Zinfandel wines in the market; alongside of it, cherry juice dwindles into insignificance, and can only hold its own on the score of its 19 and odd per cent of untaxed alcohol. At the last measurement, made April 18, this wine still held 124 out of the 154 of color observed March 1st. It does not, of course, follow that this grape will carry the same, or any similar proportion of color elsewhere. No other sample of its wine of the same vintage has been received, and consequently no direct comparison can be made; but the remnant of wine from Natoma grapes of 1884, recently measured, shows but 13.0 of color, and was noted at the time as somewhat disappointing expectations in this regard. It is obvious that with respect to color, as well as other qualities, different local- ities will need to be specially tested, in order to determine the varieties that will yield a sat- isfactory outcome. But whatever may be the experience of a given locality, it is certain that with wines such as these and a number of others in the table, noted for their abundant bearing, there can be no excuse for the use of either cherry juice or aniline dyes, under pretense of cater- ing to the public demand for color. With due care on the part of vineyard owners, and fair offers for color-wines on the part of wine- blenders, there need be no lack of color in Cal- ifornia wines. Permanence of Color. — While column 2, above, shows at a glance the highest degree of color existing at the time of last reading, column 3 is also very instructive in showing the relative degree of permanence in the several varieties. Here the smaller figures, of course, show the greater degree of permanence; and among them we find the Gamay Teinturier with a zero to its credit — meaning that from the time of pressing (September 30th) to March 1st, or during five months, it had lost no appreciable amount of color; that color being, moreover, quite double that of the common run of deep- tinted wines. Doyle's Teinturier, which at first showed 10 points more than the Gamay, had, on March 1st, fallen 4.4 points below it, losing 26 per cent; while Feely's Teinturier, starting with 75, in falling to 67.7 had lost only 10.0 per cent. It here seems that locality had materially in- fluenced not only the original depth of tint in the same variety, but also its permanency; both may, however, have been somewhat influ- enced by different degrees of maturity. Yet, in the two samples of Grossblaue, No. 516, the earlier sample, gathered barely ripe, and show- ing only 40.8 of color against 57.1 of the more mature sample No. 545, has maintained its color so much better than the latter that on March 1st it stood four points above it, thus indicating that the gain in color by greater ma- turity is not always maintained. The full record of observations on the colors of 47 red wines made from different varieties of grapes at the University laboratory in 1886, is reserved for future publication. It is very evi- dent, however, from the facts here shown, that so long as the public demand for deep-tinted wines continues, the detailed study of the be- havior of each variety in this respect in different localities, under different treatment, and espe- cially in different combinations or blends, will remain a matter of considerable pecuniary in- terest to growers. E. W. Hilgard. Berkeley, May 12, 1887.