1869 Cooling Cups and Dainty drinks by William Terrington

22

Wines.

running into

an excessive fermentation, and so

losing much of its saccharine matter/’ From the rich nature of the Douro grape, which, when hung up in the sun to dry, are like masses of sugar, the fermentation, once begun, would not stop of its own accord (even when the wine is drawn away) till it becomes unpleasantly bitter ; hence, to re- tain the delicious qualities of the grape, it is neces- sary to add brandy at the critical moment, ere the bitterness commences. The colour of Port wine varies from a dark red to a deep tawny brown when old. When it has become tawny, it loses much of its astringency. It derives its colour from the skin of the grape, without the aid of geropiga or any other foreign ingredient Of the excellence of genuine Port wine many a travelling connoisseur can testify who has drunk it on the spot and enjoyed the full mellow body, exquisite flavour, and seducing mildness of the pure unmixed juice of the grape ; but after the “ blending” and adulterations to which the choice wines of the Alto Doiu’o are subjected in order to reduce them to the orthodox Port standard, it would be just as reasonable to expect the product to be good as to How great the crime, how flagrant the abuse, T’ adulterate generous wine with noxious juice.