Good French Bordeaux Claret in 1815

The following is excerpted from "Process for making and preparing Claret Wine for shipping; without which preparation such wines are considered unfit for exportation, being in its natural state about the strength of our common Cider.", The American Practical Brewer and Tanner, by Joseph Coppinger, 1815. It provides an interesting description of how the Bordeaux grapes were trod by foot, fermented, and aged, and of the different "growths" produced.

Claret wine, before the French revolution, was the staple article of export from the great commercial City of Bordeaux, to every part of Europe. And, it may be presumed, will soon again re-assume its wanted importance.

The vintage generally begins, for making this sort of wine, about the middle or latter end of September, and is generally finished in all the month of October. The mode by which the juice is expressed from the grape, is by the workmen trampling them with their bare feet in a large reservoir or cooler, (not the cleanest operation in the world,) which has an inclination to the point where the spout or spouts are placed for taking off the expressed juice, which is conveyed to large open vats, that are thus filled with this juice to within ten or twelve inches of the upper edge; this space is left to make room for the fermentation, which spontaneously takes place in this liquor.

After the first fermentation is over, and the wine begins to purify itself, which is ascertained by means of a small cock placed in the side of the vat, and takes place generally by the middle of February, or beginning of March, in the following year; it is then racked off into hogsheads, carefully cleansed, and a match of sulphur burned in each cask before filling; when thus racked off, it is bunged up, and immediately bought up by brokers for the Bordeaux merchants, and here it is made to undergo the second or finishing fermentation, in the following manner: It may be proper here to remark, that claret wine is generally divided into three growths, first, second, and third; the first growths, namely, Latour, Lafeet, and Chateaux Margo (editor -- now called Chateau Margaux), are uniformly rented for a term of years, at a given price, to English merchants, through whom, or their agents only is there a possibility of procuring any portion of this wine.

The second growths are shipped to the different markets of Europe, North and South America; and the third growth principally to Holland and Hamburgh. In order to strengthen the natural body of claret wine, and to render it capable of bearing the transition of the sea, the first and second growths are allowed from ten to fifteen gallons of good Alicant wine to every hogshead, with one quart of stum. The casks are then filled up and bunged down. They are then ranged three tier high from one end of the cellar to the other, each tier about eighteen inches, with two stanchions of stout pine plank, firmly placed between the heads of each hogshead, from one end of the cellar to the other, until they have reached, and are supported by, the end walls of the building. This precaution is necessary to guard against the force of fermentation, which is often so strong as to burst out the heads of the hogsheads, notwithstanding the precautions taken to secure them in the situation during the summer heats.

The wine cooper, who has the charge of these wines, regularly visits them twice a day, morning and evening, in order to see the condition of the casks, and when he finds the fermentation too strong, he gives vent, and thus prevents the bursting of the casks.

The third, or inferior growth, is exactly treated in same way, with the single exception of having Benicarlo wine substituted for Alicant in preparing them for their second fermentation, as cheaper and better suited to their quality; both these wines are of Spanish growth, and brought to Bordeaux by the canal of Languedoc: they are naturally of a much stronger body than native claret.

Thus mixed and fermented, the claret becomes fortified, and rendered capable of bearing the transition of seas and climates. About the latter end of September, or beginning of October, the fermentation of these wines begins to slacken, and they gradually become fine; in this state they are racked off into fresh hogsheads carefully cleansed, and a match of sulphur burned in each before filling. After this operation, they are suffered to remain undisturbed (save that they are occasionally ullaged,) till about to be shipped, when they are racked off a second time, and fined down with the white of ten eggs to each hogshead; these whites are well beat up together with a small handful of white salt; after this fining, when rested, the hogsheads are filled up again with pure wine, and then carefully bunged down with wooden bungs, surrounded with clean linen to prevent leaking; in this state the wines are immediately shipped.

Here it may be proper to state, that the lees that remain on the different hogsheads that have been racked off, are collected and put into pipes of one hundred and forty, or one hundred and fifty gallons each, and this lee wine, as it is termed, is fined down again with a proportionate number of eggs and salt. After which, it is generally shipped off as third growth, or used at table mixed with water.

The Wines of Ancient Egypt

Excerpted from "History of Egypt, From 330 B.C. to the Present Time", by S. RAPPOPORT, Doctor of Philosophy, Basel, 1906

Several kinds of wine were made in Egypt; some in the Arsinoïte nome on the banks of the lake Mceris; and a poor Libyan wine at Antiplme on the coast, a hundred miles from Alexandria. Wine had also been made in Upper Egypt in small quantities a very long time, as we learn from the monuments; but it was produced with difficulty and cost and was not good; it was not valued by the Greeks. It was poor and thin, and drunk only by those who were feverish and afraid of anything stronger. That of Anthylla, to the east of Alexandria, was very much better.

But better still were the thick luscious Tæniotic and the mild delicate Mareotic wines. This last was first grown at Plinthine, but afterwards on all the banks of the lake Mareotis. The Mareotic wine was white and sweet and thin, and very little heating or intoxicating. Horace had carelessly said of Cleopatra that she was drunk with Mareotic wine; but Lucan, who better knew its quality, says that the headstrong lady drank wine far stronger than the Mareotic.

Near Sebennytus three kinds of wine were made; one bitter named Peuce, a second sparkling named Æthalon, and the third Thasian, from a vine imported from Thasus. But none of these Egyptian wines was thought equal to those of Greece and Italy. Nor were they made in quantities large enough or cheap enough for the poor; and here, as in other countries, the common people for their intoxicating drink used beer or spirits made from barley.

The Egyptian sour wine, however, made very good vinegar, and it was then exported for sale in Rome. During this half-century that great national work, the lake of Moeris, by which thousands of acres had been flooded and made fertile, and the watering of the lower country regulated, was, through the neglect of the embankments, at once destroyed. The latest traveller who mentions it is Strabo, and the latest geographer Pomponius Mela. By its means the province of Arsinoë was made one of the most fruitful and beautiful spots in Egypt. Here only does the olive grow wild. Here the vine will grow. And by the help of this embanked lake the province was made yet more fruitful. But before Pliny wrote, the bank had given way, the pentup waters had made for themselves a channel into the lake now called Birket el Kurun, and the two small pyramids, which had hitherto been surrounded by water, then stood on dry ground.

Thus was the country slowly going to ruin by the faults of the government, and ignorance in the foreign rulers. But, on the other hand, the beautiful temple of Latopolis, which had been begun under the Ptolemies, was finished in this reign; and bears the name of Claudius with those of some later emperors on its portico and walls.

Glass Wine Bottles at the Jamestown Settlement, 1680

From "New Discoveries at Jamestown, Site of the First Successful English Settlement in America", 1957, US Department of Interior

Old wine and gin bottles comprise a large and important part of the Jamestown collection. Literally thousands of glass fragments from these bottles have been unearthed, and by diligent and patient work a few complete wine and gin bottles have been pieced together.

The glass wine bottles were made in England. The oldest excavated, made between 1640 and 1660, have spherical bodies and tall necks. Those made between 1660 and 1680 have cup-shaped bodies with short necks. Of the period between 1680 and 1700 the neck is very short and the body is wide and squat. Insofar as is known, no glass wine bottles were used at Jamestown before 1640.

The illustration shows some glass wine bottles unearthed at Jamestown ranging in date from 1640 to 1690. Thousands of fragments of these bottles have been recovered.

About 1650 the practice of affixing glass seals or buttons on the shoulders of English wine bottles was begun. The seal was inscribed with a name, or initials, or a date; sometimes a coat of arms or a crest, or other device or ornament. Many of these glass bottle seals have been found at Jamestown. As a rule, only the wealthy and influential planters had seals stamped on their wine bottles.

The Proper Wine Service for a Formal Ten-Course Dinner

The following is excerpted from "Dinners and Luncheons, NOVEL SUGGESTIONS FOR SOCIAL OCCASIONS", Compiled by Paul Pierce, Editor and Publisher of What To Eat, the National Food Magazine; Superintendent of Food Exhibits at the St. Louis World's Fair; and Honorary Commissioner of Foods at the Jamestown Exposition; 1909. It contains a detailed description of proper wine serving thoughout a very formal ten-course dinner! How very luxurious this seems today...

If only two kinds of wine are served, sherry should accompany the soup and fish courses, and either claret or champagne brought on with the roast, and served throughout the remainder of the dinner.

For the ten course dinner, cut glass goblets filled with water and crushed ice are placed at the right of each plate, about ten or twelve inches from the edge of the table. With these are grouped sauterne, sherry, rhinewine, claret, champagne, burgundy and liqueur glasses. The goblet of water remains in place throughout the dinner, being refilled at intervals.

First Course. With the oysters, a glass of sauterne is the most appropriate accompaniment. This should be served in light green glasses, poured from native bottles, which have been cooled to 52 degrees Fahrenheit, but never iced. When the oyster plates are taken away, the sauterne glasses should also be removed.

Second Course. With the soup, sherry, slightly cooled, should be served from a decanter, and poured into small white stem glasses, flaring slightly at the top. The sherry glasses should be removed after this course.

Third Course. With the hors d'oeuvres, which may consist of cold side dishes, such as canapés, caviar, or anchovies, or of hot dishes, such as timbales, croustades or bouchees; and

Fourth Course. Of fish, rhine wine is served from original bottles cooled to 52 degrees, and poured into long stemmed, light green glasses.

Fifth Course. With the entree, claret is served from a decanter having a handle and poured into pure white glasses, never colored. The temperature of the claret should be from 65 to 75 degrees, at least thirteen degrees warmer than other wines.

Sixth Course. With the roast, champagne is served from native bottles, as cold as possible, but not iced. The usual champagne glasses are saucer-shaped stem glasses, although some prefer a goblet shape, one size larger than a claret glass.

Seventh Course. A sherbet. With this cooling refreshment, regular sherbet glasses (small glass cups with handles) are necessary.

Eighth Course. Game with salad should be accompanied with burgundy, slightly warm, at 65 or 70 degrees, served from native bottles in wicker basket, poured into plain crystal glasses. After the eighth course the table is cleared for the first time of all plates, knives and forks, leaving only the water goblets, champagne and liqueur glasses before the guests. All crumbs are carefully swept away, and dessert spoons and forks laid for the

Ninth Course. With this course champagne is the favorite beverage in every country. After the dessert plates, forks and spoons are removed, a finger-bowl partly filled with water is placed before each guest, on plate having upon it a doily, a fruit knife and a nut pick (if fruits and nuts are to be served). After the fruits, cognac and liqueurs, such as annisette, benedictine, chartreuse or kummel, are served in miniature decanters, without handles, and poured into tiny thimble-shaped glasses, which should match the decanters, either plain or colored, cut or in striking gold effects. Creme de menthe is served on shaved ice in a special bowl-shaped glass, from a highly decorated small decanter either of white or colored glass without a handle.

Sherry, port and madeira are improved by being decantered several hours before using. In winter, the decanters should be dipped in warm water or otherwise warmed.

All possible care should be taken in handling and decanting wines in order not to disturb the deposit which may exist in the bottle. Nearly all wines precipitate a sediment which sometimes resembles sand or white crystals. Its presence is rather a mark of superiority than inferiority in the quality of the wine. This deposit, however, if shaken, destroys the brilliancy of the wine, and impairs its flavor and bouquet.

Lighter wines, such as bordeaux and most Italian wines, should be decanted only an hour before dinner,and brought into the dining room as late as possible before using. Sauterne, rhine wine, burgundy and champagne should be served from the original bottles, which should be stood up on end at least twenty-four hours before serving, to give the sediment time to settle at the bottom. The cork should be very carefully drawn without shaking the bottle, the bottle slowly tilted, and the clear wine gently poured out. A small quantity of wine containing the sediment should be left in the bottle. Putting ice in the wine glass will spoil the flavor of any fine wine.

A few drops of wine should first be poured into the host's glass, before serving the guests. If a toast to the health of any one present be proposed, the guest in whose honor the toast is given, must not drink, but should acknowledge the compliment with a smile and bow of thanks. The etiquette in regard to the German custom of clinking glasses is very well defined. One must hold the wine glass by the stem, being careful not to touch the bowl with the fingers. Convention also requires that one must look the person with whom one clinks glasses in the eye, and not at the wine, as one unfamiliar with this custom is very apt to do.

Vintage Light Summer Wine Cocktails

The following is excerpted from "The Pacific Wine and Spirit Review", November 30, 1900 and is a nice set of old ideas for some light cocktails using wine.

In hot weather it is not good to drink too much of anything, but the drinks suggested here, if moderately used, will surely be beneficial, and they may be taken by even ladies of the very finest fiber. A Claret or Rhine wine rickey, Rhine wine high-ball, claret high-ball, rye high-ball made with cider instead of carbonic water, and a Rhine wine punch made with the juice of a lime are all delicious.

Claret Rickey
To make a claret rickey, squeeze the juice of half a lime into a high-ball glass; add a lump of ice and a wineglass of claret; fill with carbonic water and stir well. Be sure to instruct the mixer to be sure to wash the limes or lemons before using them for rickeys or sours.

Rhine Wine Rickey
A Rhine wine rickey is made in the same way, only Rhine wine is used instead of claret.

Rhine Wine High-Ball
To make a Rhine wine high-ball, add a lump of ice to a glass of wine and fill with carbonic water and stir thoroughly.

Brandy Frappe
A brandy and Benedictine frappe is made in a cocktail glass filled with shaved ice. Add half a liquor glass of Benedictine and the same of good brandy. Sip it through a short straw.

Burgundy and Strawberries
Another drink that will be found extremely delicious, for ladies especially, is made as follows: Take as many goblets as there are guests and crush in each five strawberries (I am a great believer in crushed strawberry; it gives, when well done, a delicious flavor to a drink), add a lump of ice, then half fill with burgundy and the balance with apollinaris or white rock; stir well. The juice of a lime in a glassful of equal parts of champagne and claret, with a piece of ice, is also very palatable.

Claret and Rum Punch
For the man of moderate means, who likes to entertain his friends in hot weather at his country cottage, the following will be found a refreshing mixture. Melt a half pound of loaf sugar in a pint of warm water, pour it into a bowl or other vessel, add one gallon of good California claret and one pint of Jamaica rum, one square piece of ice, sliced oranges, lemons, pineapple and mint, then spray in three syphons of carbonic and stir well.

One can entertain a company of ten a whole evening on this beverage for about two dollars. Be sure, though, to buy claret from some dealer of established reputation.

The Wines of Tenerife, 1699

The following is excerpted from "A Voyage to New Holland Etc.", 1729, by Captain William Dampier, Third Edition. The book describes "The Canary Islands, the Isles of Mayo and St. Jago." amongst other topics. This section on Malmsey and Verdona wine from the island of Tenerife (today a popular holiday destination) is particularly interesting.

The true malmsey wine grows in this island; and this here is said to be the best of its kind in the world. Here is also canary wine, and verdona, or green wine. The canary grows chiefly on the west side of the island; and therefore is commonly sent to Oratavia; which being the chief seaport for trade in the island, the principal English merchants reside there, with their consul; because we have a great trade for this wine.

I was told that that town is bigger than Laguna; that it has but one church, but many convents: that the port is but ordinary at best and is very bad when the north-west winds blow. These norwesters give notice of their coming by a great sea that tumbles in on the shore for some time before they come, and by a black sky in the north-west. Upon these signs ships either get up their anchors, or slip their cables and put to sea, and ply off and on till the weather is over. Sometimes they are forced to do so 2 or 3 times before they can take in their lading; which it is hard to do here in the fairest weather: and for fresh water they send, as I have said, to Santa Cruz.

Verdona is green, strong-bodied wine, harsher and sharper than canary. It is not so much esteemed in Europe, but is exported to the West Indies, and will keep best in hot countries; for which reason I touched here to take in some of it for my voyage. This sort of wine is made chiefly on the east side of the island, and shipped off at Santa Cruz.

Serving Wine at a Formal Dinner

The following is excerpted from "Prepare and Serve a Meal and Interior Decoration" by Lillian B. Lansdown, and is nice description of pairing different kinds of wine with the individual courses of a formal dinner. It also contains some very precise serving temperatures which are of interest.

The theory of alcoholic beverages at the formal dinner is a simple one. Certain fixed and definite rules obtain and are generally observed. Three wines may be served, though the best social form prefers one or two.

SHERRY OR MADEIRA

Sherry or Madeira may accompany the soup course. They should be poured after the soup has been placed, and served from a decanter. In general wine should always be poured slowly, and glasses should be filled only two-thirds. The etiquette is for the waitress to pour a little wine into the host's glass, then filling the glasses beginning at the host's right. Sherry should always be served cold, at a temperature of 40 deg. Fahrenheit; the Madeira may be served at a temperature of 65 deg. F., or that of the room.

SAUTERNE OR RHINE WINE

Sauterne or Rhine Wine go with the fish course. They are poured, like the Claret, at the end of the preceding course, before the next course comes on. They (like Sparkling Burgundy and Champagne) are served from the bottle, and the bottle should be held in a folded napkin or bottle holder. The mean average temperature of Sauterne should be 50 deg. F. Some prefer it decidedly cold (chilled in the icebox), others only slightly cold. Rhine Wine should always be cold: 40 deg. F.

CLARET

Claret is the wine for the entree and, as a rule, is served from a claret pitcher. Being a light wine, it may be served with the Champagne and instead of it to those who do not prefer the Mumm. Claret should be poured at the end of the course immediately before the one with which it is served. The room temperature or one of 65 deg. F. is the proper one for Claret.

CHAMPAGNE, BURGUNDY OR PORT

These wines are served with the meat courses. In order that Champagne or Sparkling Burgundy may come on the table at the proper temperature (Champagne 35 deg. and Burgundy 70 deg. F.) it must be ice-packed for several hours before serving. Care must be taken, however, that it does not frappe when, if required at short notice, it is salt-and-ice packed half an hour before serving. Sweet Champagne, on the other hand, is improved in flavor if slightly frappeed. It should always be served very cold. Like Sauterne, Champagne and Burgundy are served from the bottle. In serving them the wire should be cut, and the cork carefully worked out of the bottle by pressing it up with the thumbs. It is wise to work out the cork under the edge of the table, since it is sometimes projected with much power. The temperature for Port is 55 deg. F.

CORDIALS AND LIQUEURS

Cordial glasses holding a small quantity are used for serving these sweet, aromatic beverages. Cordials are served plain, with crushed ice or with cream. In serving Creme de Menthe the straw is unusual in private home service, though customary in some hotels. Creme de Menthe glasses should be filled two-thirds full with fine crushed ice, then a little of the cordial poured over it. Chartreuse (green or yellow), Benedictine, Grenadine, Apricot Brandy, Curacoa, and Dantzig Eau de Vie arc usually served without additions or ice. Benedictine or Creme de Cacoa, however, may be served with a dash of plain or whipped cream. The exceedingly sweet Creme Yvette should he served with cracked ice, like Creme de Menthe. Noyau, Kirschwasser, Maraschino and Grenadine may be served as cordials, or reserved for the flavoring of puddings, ices and sauces.

Aging Red Wine in Wood Casks

The following description of the care needed to properly age red wine in wood casks is excerpted From "The Wine Press and the Cellar: a Manual for the Wine-Maker and the Cellar-Man", by E.H. Rixford, 1883.

The time necessary for wines to remain in wood in order to acquire the highest degree of perfection which they can acquire in casks, depends upon the quality of the wine; wines of strength and. body require more time than feeble ones.

Our author says that, on the average, the poorest wines of the Medoc become bright about the end of two years, and if they are kept longer, they lose their mellowness. But on the other hand, the firm and full-bodied wines of the same localities require to remain in wood a year longer to arrive at perfect maturity. Certain wines strongly charged with tannin, coming from certain localities, and those made from the verdot grape, are long in developing, but they keep so much the longer.

When they have attained their entire development and the separation of the lees is complete, they must be bottled, for they will lose their qualities if left in casks. In bottles they arrive at perfection; they acquire bouquet while they preserve their mellowness, but in casks, they finally lose their fruity flavor and velvety smoothness, and become dry.

And he gives the following summary for the care of Old Red Wines:

1. They should be kept in places perfectly closed, and before turning the bung to one side, we should be satisfied that they are perfectly bright, quiet, and well behaved.

2. They should be drawn from the lees twice a year; the casks should be kept full; and they should be kept from secondary fermentations by watching and opportune racking.

3. Keep down the loss by evaporation by all means possible, and keep them in close cellars, in strong, well hooped casks, and avoid spillage..

4. Bottle them before they lose their fruity flavor, and as soon as they cease to deposit.

Thus will they acquire all the qualities of which by their nature they are susceptible.

But if they are kept in places to which the air has free access, the evaporation will be great; and if the casks are left with spillage caused by too frequent sampling, or too infrequent racking, they will work, become dry, lose their mellowness, arid become slightly affected by acetic acid, produced by contact with the air.