Receptacles for Wine:—In principle, tlie most capacious s,nd most tightly closing vessels are the best. 'Use is chiefly made of casks, of various sizes, constructed of oak, whose principal inconveniences are that they sometimes present soluble substances to the wine, and are more or less porous. When made, the wine is stored in casks or glass bottles. In any ease, the receptacles must he thoroughly eleaned in good time before they are required. Those having an unpleasant smell after cleaning should not be used. The best mode of cleaning is as follows. The cask is first soaked in cold water, and then in hot water to swell the wood and close all interstices. It is afterwards thoroughly washed with a mixture of sulphuric acid with fifteen times its weight of water, and finally subjected to two wa,shings, the first in boiling, the second in cold water, to remove all trace of the acid.
During the " insensible fermentation" in the casks, tt more or less abundant floth forms on the surface of the liquid, and must be carefully removed. At this time, therefore, care is taken to keep the casks constantly full, in order that the soum may escape at the bung-hole which is only im perfectly closed by a leaf or by lodging the bung loosely on it. In some countries, the level is adjusted every day during the first month, every four days during the second, and then once a week till the wine is dra,wn off. The intervals are modified elsewhere, the object being to let out the scum and prevent the action of the air on the wine while the disengagement of csrbouio acid is relaxed or spent.
The CELUSOS which diminish the contents of the cask are evaporation and absorption by the wood of the cask. The casks should be hermetically closed as soon as the generation of carbonic acid is not sufficient to oppose the free access of the air, but a, vent-peg should be inserted for the purpose of letting out the gas now and sgain. The working of wiue consists in EL gradual and eomplete purification, performed after the fermentation, and intended to eliminate all convertible foreign matters, but especially the soluble and insoluble nitrogenous matters.
For all wines of good quality the filling up should be done with the same wine, some being re served specially for the purpose, but with eommon wines it may be done with the press liquor. In any case, the vessel containing the eomplementary wine should not be left open.
It is unnecessary to state that the casks ought to be raised on stands in the cellar, at such a height as to render the drawing off ELS easy ELS possible. They should also be placed perfectly hori
zontal, for if tilted up at the back, the lees collect at the front, rendering it necessary to place the tap inconveniently high in order to prevent it from running out with the wine ; and, if raised at the front, it is impossible to draw off the whole of the clear liquid ; whereas, when lying perfectly horizontally, the lees collect in the centre of the lower cavity, without being disturbed when the wine is racked. The casks, thus disposed, must be inspected frequently, in order that any aecidents ma,y be diseovered and remedied at once. This is espeeially necessa,ry during the month which precedes and follows the equinoxes; at these times, the wine is particularly subject to undergo fermentation, especially new and white wines. If allowed to ferment, the wine exercises considerable pressure in the casks, the sta,ves frequently giving way unless an exit be made for the ea,rbonic acid gas, or, rather, unless several litres of the wine be immediately removed from the cask. During the equinoxes a,lso, the easks are liable to be rotted by vapours exhaled from the ground ; this is especially the case in deep cellars. Great care must be taken, too, to see that none of the casks become leaky or worm-eaten ; large quantities of wine may be lost from these muses.
Drawing off.—There are so many influences which cause the lees to remingle with the wine a,fter having deposited itself at the bottom of the vessel, that the first care necessary after the conclusion of the oomplementary fermentation, is to separate the wine from the deposit by drawing it off.
This is performed at various times according to fancy, but the most reliable rule is that weak wines should be drawn off iu winter, medium wines towards the end of that season, and strong, wines in summer. The operation is repeated as many times as may be necessary for the purification of the wine. It is best performed by means of a siphon, or a simple air-pump.
As long as a wine preserves its colour, flavour, and aroma, there is no necessity for it ; but as soon as it begins to lose its transparence, becoming turbid and flavourless, it must at once be drawn off into another cask, which has been well sulphured the moment before. The effects of sulphuring are pointed out in the ensuing paragraph.