1911 Beverages de luxe

BY

Ç^auternes

ALBERT M. HIRSCHFELD New York

The White Wines of France are known under the naine of "Sauternes," and are grown in the De- partment of the Gironde. The vineyards are situated chieny on the left bank of the River Garonne, some miles south of the city of Bordeaux, from whence thèse wines are ex-

ported to ail parts of the world. The favorable situation of the vineyards, which are exposed to the direct rays of the sun, cause the grapes to grow to a high degree of maturity; and, besides this advantage, the soil is- peculiarly suited, it being composed partly of white clay and of a generally sandy nature. Besides thèse natural advantages, great care is exercised in the cultivation of the vine plants and the manner of vintag- ing, which, in its method, is peculiar to this district. Some of the principal towns around which the best spéci- mens of wines are obtained, and from which they dérive their distinctive names, are: Cerons, Barsac, Fargues, Preignac,. Sauterne, Bommes, etc. ; also around the Châteaux of Yquem, Vigneau, Suduirant, La Tour Blanche, Rabaud, La Passonne Cadillac, Grand Perrot, St. Croix du Mont, Château Ferrand,. etc. The wines grown around thèse Châteaux are considered the finest spécimens of high-class Sauternes. The proprietors of thèse Châteaux bottle the finer qùalities of good vintages in their own cellars and affix their own labels and coat-of-arms, and thus as "Châteaux Bottled Wines" give a degree of authenticity and of undoubted quality, which com- mand high priées in every market. It is doubtless due to the hilly situation of the vineyards and the care bestowed on their cultivation that the grapes from which Sauternes are made are superior to many others; the care, also, with which they are gathered and pressed gives the peculiar excellence, both in flavor and aroma, for which thèse wines are famous. The grapes are allowed to "over-ripen," and the bunches form a kind of "fermentation fungus," and to this is ascribed the peculiar and delicious bouquet, and the exqnisite bright golden color of the wine. Much time and money is thus expended on the vintaging