THE COLONIAL WINE TRADE.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXIX, Issue 4124, 9 June 1874, Page 3

THE COLONIAL WINE TRADE.

Mr. J. T. Fallon, of Melbourne (formerly of Albury, N.S.W.), who is without doubt tho largest and most experienced winemaker in Australia, lately visited England and the Continent in connection with the wine-trade. On his return to Melbourne he was invited to a public dinner by the vignerona of Albury, and in reply to the toast of his, health gave some of his experiences in England in connection with Australian wines. Many of his remarks are of wider than Australian interest, though of course they are especially interesting there. Ho said :—“While iu London, he had done his best to remove the prejudice existing in England against tho wines of Australia. That prejudice had been of the strongest; so much so indeed that it was no easy matter to induce people even to taste it. He had been at some pains to explain tho great diversity of character of wine in different Colonies, and iu different parts of the same Colony, showing that they could not properly be classed as all alike, and demonstrating the mistake committed in arriving at the conclusion that all Australian wine must necessarily he bad. One might as well try to make poi't wine at Bordeaux, or claret in Portugal, as attempt to produce iu Australia a uniform wiue. Wines produced on the south side of the Groat Dividing Range were very different from those produced in tho Hunter district. In each locality the wine possessed .some distinguishing characteristic, and its own peculiar excellence. Tho wines from Albury were distinguished by greater alcoholic strength, and by more body than those from the coast districts. Ho had invited a gentleman connected with the wine trade to sample some of the Albury wine. Imbued with the usual prejudice, he said he knew it would be useless, but he, however, came and tested the wine. Tho result was that the gentleman in question expressed great surprise at tho quality of tho wine, and immediately gave an order for a large quantity. He was not surprised at the prejudice existing in England against colonial wines, as he himself had seen stuff shipped to London which no one in that room would think of drinking. He had on more than one occasion seen a shipment prepared for London of the most execrable trash conceivable—rubbish that was unsaleable at any price in the Colonies. Could it occasion any wonder that Australian wiue, then, should get a bad name at homo. Tho harm thus done to the trade was incalculable. If only tho shippers of the rubbish suffered, it would not of course matter much, but unfortunately the whole of tho Colonics had to pay tho penalty. If, however, care were ekercised in selecting none but good, sound, well-matured wines, a large market was open for all. From tlio impression gathered 'during his continental trip he felt satisfied that all Australia required was tho skill in the preparation of the wines possessessed by wine makers iu tho old country. With that they would bo able to compete suc ; cessfully iu the Loudon market with any manufacturer. Even as it was, many colonial wines would compare favorably with the produce of Spain and Portugal, and most of them wore indeed better than the lower class of continental wines. Tho climate and soil of Australia were better adapted for the growth of tho grape than almost any part of Europe. There had not Been a good vint-

age on the Rhine since 18G9 or 1870. In Austria and France many of the vineyards were in the same plight, and they were also more subject to risk from frost and other causes than Australian vineyards. Again, there was much less labor connected with the preparation of land for the vines in Australia. In most places in the Colonies all that had to be done was to commence ploughing the land at once; while on the Rhine it was often necessary to terrace the vineyards at a large cost. The crop in such instances, whatever the quality, could not be great in quantity. The colonial wine trade, as he had said before, had been greatly injured by the shipment of parcels of inferior quality. The prejudice thus created it would take years entirely to remove ; and it would also be necessary that for the future nothing but good samples should be forwarded. These he hoped and believed would suit the ’market, and if other growers would do the same thing, he had no reason to doubt that Australian wine would soon be an indispensable article in every wellstocked cellar in Europe.”