Clarets are not known in France as clarets, but are known as Bordeaux wines, and common wine is vvn ordinaire, which may apply to any of the cheap everyday wines. The Burgundies are stronger wines than the Bordeaux or clarets, and are therefore more gouty, and are both red and white, but the true and best Burgundies are red. True Burgundy, as the French understand it, is made from the grapes raised in the department of Burgundy called Cote d'Or, the golden side, which is only thirty-six miles long and reaches from Cha-lon-Sur-Saone to Dijon. Chambertin we rarely see in America, or Corton, or Clos de Vougeot, or others of the true Burgundies. Burgundies do not travel as well nor keep as well as the clarets, and hence clarets are much more frequently seen here. The best white Burgundy of the Cote d'Or is the Montrachet. The most common of the white Burgundies we see in America are the Chablis wines. They are good, have good flavor, and are desirable for the sick where a Burgundy is needed, yet they are not absolutely true Burgundies, and are not wines made from the Cote d'Or grapes.

The Bordeaux or claret wines are named from the city of Bordeaux, the capital of the department of Gironde, France. The city of Bordeaux is the centre of this wine trade. The vineyard name of the district is the Bordelais. The name claret is taken from the French Clariet, which means a clarified wine, and, as before mentioned, is not used in France as a name for wine. The Bordeaux wines are mild, not very astringent, pure and fragrant, provided you get fairly good ones. There are among them high-class wines, fine wines, and ordinary wines. As a rule, a sea voyage improves them, while it deteriorates Burgundies. The high-grade clarets should always be warmed to the temperature of the room, in order to bring out their bouquet and flavor. They gain in bouquet by keeping in bottle, if properly corked.

The Medoc wines, named from a province of the Bordeaux country, are among the best of clarets. The Chateau Margaux, the Chateau Laf-fitte and the Chateau Latour are rarely seen here in their true form, but good Medoc wines may be found. Medoc wines are natural wines, are not reinforced wines, and are therefore mild clarets. We do not know now what we get when we buy foreign clarets, as there is so much roguery at Bordeaux, and the remedy is to use those made in our own country, unless we get the better French wines from some favored source. Among the best of the red wines of Bordeaux is the Haut Brion.

The Sauternes are white and are sweeter than the clarets, but have good flavor and pure aroma.

The poor grades are sour. Barsac is among the best of them, if Barsac is Sauterne. A bottle of the renowned and famous Chateau Yquem would be a curiosity in America, or would have been some time since. The great fortunes accumulated in this country can now buy the best of the world's luxuries, and the high-priced luxuries will follow the accumulated money. Chateau la Tour Blanche is another famous brand.

The best of the sweet wines are the Muscatelles, Malvoisie, and the Maccabeo. They are sweet, full of aroma, and full of vim. They go principally to Russia, where they doubtless turn to vinegar in the stomachs of the unfortunate subjects of the great Czar.

The Rhine or German wines are usually of the lighter character, both white and red, but the white far predominate. They are low in alcohol, but yet keep well, as a rule. They have much free acid and tartar salts, and are considered allowable in persons who are afflicted with calcareous troubles. Hock wines are so named from the district of Hockheim, from whence they come, near the banks of the Main. Johannisberg is the prince of Rhine wines, and I have already spoken of it. If any one wishes the best, let him endeavor to get Johannisberg. The Riesling grape is one of the great Rhine grapes, and we will see more about it when we come to speak of the California wines. It is most interesting to visit the Rhine region, the Rheingau, and to ponder and study the surroundings, where the work of ages has been carried on with the grape as the chief factor. Steinberg is a brand next in flavor to Johannisberg, and in some seasons is better. That is really the case with all brands of wine. The grape of the brand makes good wine this year and poor wine next year. Ask a judge of wine about a brand, and he will first ask you to tell him the year of the vintage of the particular specimen. If an expert he may even tell you by smelling and tasting it. The year makes a mighty difference. Other brands of Rhine wines are Rupertsberger, Deidsheimer, Durkheimer, Liebfrauenmilch, the Fenerberger, Laubenheimer, Bodenheimer, Niersteiner, and many others.

The Moselle wines are light in alcohol, have much fragrance, and an aromatic flavor, resembling elder-flower, which is said to be artificial. The Moselle wines make good sparkling wines. Sparkling Moselle I have drunk frequently in the Rhine country, but it is not a very common wine here. Some German hocks are also fermented and made to sparkle; in fact, a sparkling wine may be made of almost any still wine by the arts of the wine-maker.

The Italian and Hungarian wines do not come to us in any quantity except when they come in wines from France for blending purposes. The wines of Italy, at least those from Northern Italy, are chiefly, as a rule, rough and badly made, the skins, stems, and seeds being macerated too long. Some of the Hungarian light wines are of fine flavor, have good aroma and smooth taste, and are growing in favor in the United States. The white Italian wines come from middle and Southern Italy, and Tuscany; as a rule, they are also rough and badly made.