UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION. BULLETIN NO. 65. Shall California Make Sophisticated Wines? The discussion concerning the definition of a pure wine, and of legislation relating thereto, The wines thus produced were to a large ex- tent so thoroughly faulty, that the dealers who bought them took great risks in their preserva- tion aud transformation into anything corre- sponding to a commercially recognized grade. The materials for making proper blends were not obtainable, and the temptation to produce appears to have reached a stage at which it is \y y artificial additions at least the semblance of desirable to recall, to the minds of those con cerned, the 11 bottom facts " of the case, which have been lo3t sight of in not a few of the argu- ments advanced in the premises. On the one hand, extreme purists have gone so far a3 to contend that even the blending of wines from different grapes constitutes a departure from strict rectitude; while on the other hand, we find gravely advanced, in public print as well as speech, and proposed to be enacted into a State law, a declaration that only poisons shall be excluded from the ingredients with which wines may be doctored for the public benefit. It has long puzzled philosophers and law givers how a poison is to be defined. In the present case, the purest product possible contains as one of its essential ingredients a substance that is declared by a respectable portion of Ameri- can opinion to be the very poison of poisons, which no one should touch, taste or handle. It is easy to foresee how adroit lawyers and easy- going; "experts" would, under such a law, manipulate almost any but the most extreme cases, so as to produce a disagreement of juries. It is a well-known characteristic of a primi tive condition of human knowledge, that for any ill that befalls, a special medicine is sought the right thing was great, even when the knowledge of suitable methods of after-treat- ment existed. This, however, was by no means generally the case; winemaking and dealing was undertaken like any other business venture, without any special knowledge of the subject, because it was expected to pay, and with the sole idea of producing, as cheaply as possible, something that would sell as wins. The injury done to the reputation of California wines during this primitive period still weighs down the prices and the estimation of our best products, which are mostly hid away under foreign labels; outside of the State, it is still a mooted question whether we can produce any- thing in the shape of wine that will remain sound for some years, and that will not show the earmarks of its origin in some objection- able form. Worse than this, however, there re- main among us, as remnants of the olden time, many of the bad practices both of producers and dealers. Even in this year of grace, the dealer is abroad who tries to persuade the pro- ducer that *' wine is wine," no matter whether Mission or Cabernet Sauvignon; that all this talk about distinctions of kinds and qualities is made by unpractical men who only make trou- ble for the trade, and that 15 csnts per gallon Among the greatest difficulties encountered by all around is about the right gauge, conscientious physicians is the persistent de- It is quite time that these remnants of the mand of patients for some tangible medicine, good old style should be definitively consigned to the rubbish pile. Producers are fast awakening to the conviction that a definite plan must be pursued in the planting of vineyards, in order that they may themselves be enabled to propor- tion properly the blends desired in the market. They are also learning that winemaking is not altogether the simple and easy thing it was sup- posed to be, but requires skill, judgment, and close attention to details which, only a few this primitive condition, in which wines were years ago, were scouted as being beneath the made from au indiscriminate mixture of Mis- notice of 11 practical" men. A large proportion sion and other wiii3 and table grapes, by the of the best Old World varieties of wine grapes " go-as-you please " process of fermentation, or has been imported, and their local adaptations by equally primitive methods derived from the are fast being recognized and systematically producer's dim recollection of what he saw in studied with a view to the production of definite Germany, France or Italy in his youthful days, qualities conforming to the commercial demand I of the world, by the blending of suitable varieties. \ in cases when nothing but a change of hygienic conditions is needed, or can accomplish a cure. Similarly, in a primitive condition of the wine- making industry, the tendency is to rely on medicines to cure all faults found in the wine, instead of preventing the occurrence of such faults by the applicition of sound principles in its preparation. California winemaking is just emerging from A large number of producers who have created a direct market for their products, independent- ly of wine-dealers, have successfully arranged their production so as to be independent of any medication whatsoever, and furnish wines con- forming in every respect to the demands of legitimate commerce, as well as to the tastes of consumers. They furnish the living proof that doctoring " is as unnecessary as it is objection* able from every point of view. It is this most legitimate and desirable prog ress from crude mixing of miscellaneous ingre- dients into the semblance of wine, to the preparation and profitable marketing of an un- impeachable product, that is crossed and im- peded by the manufacture of spurious wines and by the false pretense that the demands of the Sugar is next in quantity to water. In the sunny climate of California, a seriouB deficiency of sugar is quite exceptional, provided the vine- yard has been stocked with due regard to the local climate. A simple calculation shows that at the ruling prices and the average production of grapes per acre, the natural sugar of the grape is the cheapest available, since the best of commercial glucose introduces into the wine elements of instability, as well as other objec- tionable features impossible to overcome. Re- fined cane or beet sugar, when added to must prior to fermentation, is promptly converted into pure grape sugar and ferments out as such. Hence its use for the purpose of strengthening weak musts would seem to stand on the samt ba-is as that of water for the opposite purpose; market require the sophistication of the prod- ; the sugar introduced becoming in every respect uct of the grape. If some wine-producers or dealers have failed to keep up with the prog- ress of the time?, and are thus not in a position t3 command the materials for proper blends from their ill-assorted vineyards, that is their misfortune or fault. It hardly justifies them in advocating the need and propriety of the use of cherry juice in making up deficiency of color; least of all does it justify their opposition to a legislative measure designed to enable the pro- ducers of pure wine (as defined in every diction- ary and encyclopedia) to place a distinguishing mark upon the product of their skill or pro- gressiveness. Taking for granted that it is desirable to restrict as much as practicable the introduction into wines of any substance 11 not the product of the grape," a brief consideration of the in- gredients of wine and must will show how far the need of any intervention of artificial additions can be maintained. If it can be shown that all desirable results can be compassed by the legitimate method of blending natural products, the wine-doctors' expedients should be repudi- ated as being needless as well as pernicious. First, as to water (which after all is the most abundant ingredient of wine, since it consti as identical with that of the grape, as the wa- ' ter. On the score of coit alone, however, it would in practice naturally be superseded by that of condensed must, so soon as this material shall be generally available. As regards fortification with alcohol in the shape of "neutral spirit " instead of grape spir- it, as advocated in the late district convention, it must be admitted that really " neutral ,; spirit would be objectionable mainly on grounds of true policy, in diminishing the market for our own brandy product. But most of the com- mercial article would infallibly make its pres- ence felt in any delicate wine for years. As regards acid, all " cream of tartar " is the product of the grape, and so is tartaric acid. There can be no intrinsic objection to the in- troduction of as much tartar as anybody may desire, into must or wine. Tartaric acid stands on a slightly different baeis, as its presence, in place of its naturally occurring compound, ren- ders the wine more liable to " turning " and other troubles. Those who attempt to use it on the large scale will also find that here, again, it is better to provide against any such expen- sive necessity by planting or purchasing a proper selection of acid grapes, by blending tutes from 81 to 92 per cent of dry wines), iti which with such troublesome varieties as Trous- must, of necessity, be used in the legitimate in- seau, Mission and others, a healthy fermenta rlnafrv Ktt whinVi ovannrofJ tw "condensed" tion can alwavs be secured. dustry by which evaporated or must is converted into wine by fermentation Its use is altfo justifiable when by natural evap oration, in certain seasons, the grape juice con tains too much sugar to allow of being fer- mented into dry wine, while light-bodied musts are not available for blending. The require ments of a sound fermentation limit its exces tion can always be secured. Glycerine and carbonic gas are natural prod- ucts of wine fermentation. But no well-made wine requires the addition of glycerine, which serves mainly to hide avoidable faults. Car- bonic gas is a legitimate ingredient of wine whenever wanted. Color is probably the point which gives rise sive use prior to that process; but the " stretch- to more sophistication than any other; not ing " of fermented wines, by its addition, is only because the valley wines, which thus fai liable to gross abuse. When heavy red wines have formed so large a proportion of the vint* need dilution to conform to the requirements age, are generally deficient in color, but chiefly of the market, an abundance of light wines can because in the u stretching " of wines, the color be found for the purpose. Those of the Folle is that which suffers most obviously, and is Blanche, Sultana, Burger and others are as most readily imitated by outside additions so neutral as could be desired, if suitable light as to satisfy the average consumer, red wines should not be available. There is no Bat since our vineyards have ascendea from valid excuse for the use of water after fer- the valleys into the hill country, the supply of mentation. color proves to be as abundant in this State as i anywhere in the world. In fact, it would be difficult to find a heavier showing of color per acre than that of the Gros. Verdot at Cupertino, which, with a tint about three times as deep as that of the average Zinfandel wine, yielded at the rate* of about 25 tons of grapes, or say 3500 gallons of wine per acre, competing in cheap- ness with "cherry juice." The Gros3blaue, the Bonscbets and others are similarly available for the more common wines, while for those of high degree we have the Cabernets, Beclan, Tannat, etc. In regard to tannin, it was at one time thought that California wines were likely to be deficient, and this remains true of most of the valley wines; bub the products of the hill vineyards leave little excuse for the use of tannin from outside sources. Both *ides of the Santa Clara valley, as well as the hills of Napa and Sonoma, and even portions of the San Joaquin valley, have furnished wine3 of extra- ordinary tannin contents. There will be little difficulty in securing, hereafter, a sufficiency of blending wines for bringing clarets up to the Bordeaux standard in this respect. Commercial (oak) tannin is not, chemically, or hygienically, the same as wine tannin; and its use Bhould, as a rule, be restricted to the fining process. This process, as now largely practiced, is responsible for a great deal of the fault found elsewhere with California wines. Our winemakers have not mastered the fact that fining is the last process in the finishing of wine ; that it is in every instance an evil with respect to the delica- cy and zest of the product, and should be practiced as sparingly as possible; and that a very large proportion of well-made, sound wines never need fining at all, if subjected to appro- priate after-treatment, notably to frequent racking and aeration. It is here, especially, that hygienic treatment, instead of medication, needs to be generally adopted. Finally, when wines are not entirely sound— and with the methods of fermentation now in vogue this is a very prevalent condition — the remedy to be applied should not lie in the use of antiseptics, sulphuring, salicylic or boracic acids and the like, but in the simple and rational heat- ing process devised by Pasteur, and named for him. The 11 Pasteurizer " should be an indispen- sable appliance in every wine-house; and its use, if properly understood and practiced, will at once do away with nine-tenths of all doctor- ing for unsoundness. The universal adoption of this simple and inexpensive expedient will save all losses now sustained in the shipment of our young wines, and will soon do away with the reproach that "California wines will not keep." If in the face of all these facts and legitimate substitutes for medication, there are those whc desire to adhere to the old doctoring system, it is at least the right of those who do without them and furnish the consumers the pure prod- uct of the grape, to have a legalized mode of ex- pressing the fact on the packages. E. W. Hilgard. Berkeley, February 11, 1887.