39 / 96
five
arrondissementa
of
tlie
Department
of
Champagne,
where
Champagne
grapes
are
grown
:
Chalons
sur
Marne,
Eperney,
Rheims, Sainte-Mene
Hould
and
Vitry-le-Francois,
but
the
right
to
the
name
of
genuine
French
Champagne
is
now
limited
to
the
wine
made
from
the
grapes
of
Rheims
and
Eperney.
In
general
parlance,
when
the
wine
of
the
Champagne
dis-
trict
is
referred
to,
the
sparkling
wine
is
meant,
yet,
in
this
same
district,
still
wines
are
made
that
are
claimed
by
some
to
be
the
best
in
France.
At
one
time
there
was
quite a
contro-
ver.sy
as
to
whether
the
still
wines
fi
m
Champagne
or
Bur-
gundy
wines
were
the
better.
Of
the
red
wines
grown
at
Rheims,
the
two
finest
are
the
Rilly
and
Bouzy.
The
Sauterne
district
comprises
a
portion
of
the
Depart-
ment
of
Gironde
and
jiart
of
the
Medoc,
and
is
called
in
France
the
Graves.
The
soil
here
consists
of
.sand
and
gravel,
mixed
with
more
or
less
clay,
so
that
one
would
hardly
expect
to
have
such
luxuriant
vines
as
produce
the
popular
Sauterne
wines.
It
is
from
another
part
of
the
Gironde,
where,
likewise,
the
soil
would
appear
to
be
almost
worthless, that
the
Medoc
wines,
or
Clarets,
as
we know
them,
are
produced.
The
most
famous
red
wines
of
France
ai'e
those
from
the
Burgundy
district,
and
known
by
this
name.
The
vines
are
grown
on
the
Cote
d'
Or,
which
is
a
chain
of
hills
averaging
from
800
to
1,000
feet
in
height.
For
thirty
miles
the
vineyards
extend
in
one
continuous
row
on
the
sides
of
these
hills.
The
soil
is
of
yellowish
red,
accounting
for the
name
of
the
district,
and
Burgundy
is
probably
the
oldest
wine-producing
district
in
entire
Europe.
One
authority
gives
his
views
of
the best
Bur-
gundy
wine
in
the
following
language
:
"In
richness
of
flavor,
and
in
perfume,
and
all
the
more
delicate
qualities
of
the
grape,
they
unquestionably
rank
as
the
finest
in
the
world."
The
Department
of
the
Pyrenees
Orientales
is
another
where
vineyards
in
full
leaf
and
all
their
beauty
may
be
seen
stretching
out mile
after
mile,
both on
the
level
land
and
on
the
hillsides.
Here,
the
very
drie.st
and,
likewise,
the
sweetest
of
wines
are
made
in
the
same
neighborhood.
The
dry
wine,
known
as
Grenache
wine,
which,
through
a
peculiar
process
of
manufacture,
partakes
more
of
the
nature
of a
liqueur,
is
laid
away
in
cellars
for
many
years
before
it
is
said
to
be
really
fit
for
use.
From
the
same
neighborhood
comes
Muscat
wine,
which
is
very
sweet,
and
for the
first
year
is
like
a
syrup,
Init,
after
the
second
year,
becomes
clear
and
acquires
the
bouquet
which
has
given
it
its
reputation.
Maccabeo
and
Malvoysie
are
two
more
liqueur
wines
made
in
this
vicinity,
and
a
large
num-
ber
of
other
wines,
also
grown
in
this
department,
are
classified
under
the
name
of
Rousillion
wines.
According
to
an
old
narrative,
on
the
left
border
of
the
Rhone,
in
the
commune
of
Tain,
one
of
the
Queen's
courtiers,