The Wine Press and the Cellar: A Manual for the Wine-Maker and the Cellar-Man

In 1876 the Mission grape sold in California for from $7.50 to $10 per ton, and foreign varieties for from $14 to $18 per ton, and consequently many vineyardists in districts remote from the market turned their hogs into the vineyard to gather the fruit. At this time farmers concluded that it would not pay to grow grapes, and the vines were rooted out of many vineyards, and the land devoted to the production of more profitable crops. In 1878, however, the prices were better, and the Mission grape brought from $12 to $14 per ton, and the foreign varieties from $22 to $26, and under a growing demand for California wines, the wine makers in the counties of Sonoma and Napa have paid during the past three seasons of 1880, 1881, and 1882, prices ranging from $16 to $22 per ton for Mission, and from $22 to $35 for other foreign varieties, and in some cases even as high as $40 per ton for wine grapes of the best varieties; the extremes in prices depending upon the activity of the competition in the different localities. Although in California we are accustomed to speak of the Mission grape and the foreign varieties in contradistinction, it may not be amiss to state for the benefit of other than California readers, that the Mission is undoubtedly a grape of European origin, and was cultivated by the Spanish priests at the missions existing in the country at the advent of the Americans, and hence the name. And notwithstanding the existence of our grape, Vitis Californica, the names native and California grape have been applied to the Mission, but the word foreign is never used in describing it. The increase in the price of grapes has followed closely upon the increase in the demand for our wines, and the production has kept pace with the demand. [Pg vi] The annual shipments of wine and brandy from California, commencing with 1875, according to the reports published from time to time, are as follows, in gallons: ......Buy Now (To Read More)

Product details

Ebook Number: 66524
Author: Rixford, Emmet H. (Emmet Hawkins)
Release Date: Oct 12, 2021
Format: eBook
Language: English