**  Ked  hermitage,  when  H  is  of  the
first  quality,  is  not  bottled  for  exportation
«Bttl  It  has  been  four  or  five  years  in  the
cask,  in  which,  as  well  as  in  bottles,  it  is
generally  sold  at  that  a^e.  The  price,  in
the  former  case,  is  high,  even  if  the
quality  be  moderate.  In  bottle  the  beat
sells  for  about  four  fruncs.  The  price  of
this  wine  is  regulated  by  the  quality,
together  with  the  demand  for  exportation,
and  not  by  the  qoantity  o^  scarcity.  The
quantity  produced  is  about  ftS69  heelo-
litres,  incrading  each  quality.  It  is  fer-
mented in  large  vats,  but  its  treatment  w
not  so  perfeot,  on  the  whofe,  as  that  of
sosM  other  French  wines,  firande  says
the  red  contains  12*32  of  alcohol,  and
the  white  17*43.
"  The  white  is  made  of  white  grapes
onlv,  and  divided  into  three  growtiis.
This  is  the  finest  white  wine  France
produces.  lis  colour  should  be  straw-
yellow;  its  odour  is  like  that  of  no
other  known  wine.  It  is  of  a  rieh  taste,
between  that  of  the  dry  aod  luscious
wines.  It  is  often  in  a  state  of  ferment-
aC!on  for  X^o  yezn,  but  it  is  never  de.
livered  to  the  consumer,  if  if  can  be
avoided,  until  fermentation  is  complete.
The  quantity   of  real  white  hermitage


does  not  exceed  120  pieces  asnaally.
It  keeps  much  longer  tlwn  the  r»d,  even
to  the  extent  of  a  century,  without  the
feast  deterioration  ;  though,  after  twenty-
five  or  thirty  yeara  old,  it  assumes  some-
what of  the  character  of  cerfain  of  the
old  Spanish  wines,  and  its  perfume  and
fSste  nndergo  a  change*

"  Krmit9ge'pailU,  oi  straw-hermits^e,
is  mtfde  from  white  grapes,  carefully
selected  ont  of  the  most  perfect  and  best.
