State Library of NSW
[Page 108]
Several gentlemen of the neighbourhood also connoisseurs in wine say I am quite right. I mention this only to shew that in my opinion I may [indecipherable] about the excellence of wine or other wine I am not without some reason. Mr Danl. Geustier told me that in the cellars underneath where we were sitting were stored for private use 30,000 bottles of these wines from 1840 downwards there having occurred during the ten years preceding the breaking out of the vine disease a much greater proportion of fine vintages than usual. Mr. D. Guestier walked home to Beycheville to bed, and we retired to [indecipherable] here. The next morn (yesterday) I walked before breakfast with Charles Barton round the grounds through the vineyards surrounding them and through the "Chaise" or "Wine House". The grounds [indecipherable] from their fine foliage but not kept in high order, much as at Camden. The vineyards were particularly interesting. The crop had also been gathered the previous evening (about 6000 gallons wine) not a third of a crop. The vines I found with strong wood, but not nearly so neatly cultivated as I expected. Kept very low to a [indecipherable] horizontal [lath?] and subjected to a very rude shortening of the [summer?] shoots as the large sections of branches cut through bearing witness. The ground between the rows, which are 3ft. 3in. apart almost [indecipherable] very foul with a variety of weeds. The worst of these they told me was the common "couch " of Europe constantly a much more formidable [indecipherable] to our "Doub" grass. Amongst the most abundant of the annual weeds I was surprised to find was "Summer grass" besides sundry specimens of "Fat [indecipherable]" and of the purple or red weed "Never die" here called Pourpier [Purslane]. There were besides an infinite number of other weeds. [indecipherable] would be astonished to see his ground in such a state. I know I should. The land is very like the soil of the porous Sydney gardens only instead of iron stone it is full of quartz pebbles. The depth of this soil varies I am told, some times there is a band of iron conglomerate 18 inches or 2 feet from the surface which collect up the wet, sometimes clay & pebbles, sometimes the pebbly soil on complete beds of pebbles extend to several feet deep. I could not help noticing how nearly flat the vineyards all around within sight are and how little [indecipherable] above the level of the soil nearby meadows which occupy the lower levels between the banks & gentle slopes or plateaus covered with vines. Vineyard covers 9/10ths of the country. The 1st "Crus" are occupied planted with the Carbernet or Carmenet Sauvignon [indecipherable]
This page has its status set to Completed and is no longer transcribable.