[Rarebooks] fs: 2 Scarce 19th C. Australian Wine items

[Joslin Hall Rare Books]

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Bleasdale, Rev. John I[gnatius].

AN ESSAY ON THE WINES SENT TO THE LATE INTERCOLONIAL EXHIBITION by the 
Colonies of Victoria, New South Wales, and South Australia, with critical 
remarks on the Present Condition and Prospects of the Wine Industry in 
Australia.

Melbourne; F.F. Bailliere: 1876.

An intriguing early report on the state of the 19th century Australian wine 
industry by one of its strongest and most noted supporters.

The Rev. Bleasdale (1822-1884) was a remarkable man. Born in England, he 
emigrated to Australia in 1850 and then left for San Francisco in 1877, 
where he was involved in establishing olive trees as a commercial crop. He 
was a Fellow of the Geological Society of London, Vice Chairman of the 
Royal Commission for Technology, Trustee of the National Gallery of 
Melbourne, and Director of the School of Mines at Ballarat; he was also a 
staunch proponent of the daily moderate consumption of wine for health 
purposes. His stature as an advocate of the young Australian wine industry 
continues to this day, and a noted Australian winemaker named his winery 
the Bleasdale Winery in the Reverend's honor.

The exhibition discussed in this pamphlet was held to select wines to 
represent Australia at the 1876 Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia. It 
included 270 exhibits, 155 from Victoria, 68 from South Australia, and 47 
from New South Wales. His report includes a list and description of the 
wines exhibited, as well as a list of the winners which were sent to 
Philadelphia. But there is much more here than that- his essay addresses 
the state of the Australian wine industry, its successes, problems, and 
suggestions to make it better. He notes- "I would here reiterate what I 
have often stated, viz., that if the cellar management in the three 
colonies were equal to the magnificent produce of the vines, no country on 
earth could surpass in quality and variety of kinds Victoria, South 
Australia, and New South Wales."

Bleasdale notes that his report should have been presented as a part of the 
formal report on the exhibition, but "Circumstances arose in the course of 
the awarding of the medals and other distinctions to the successful Wine 
Exhibitors by the Executive Section of the Royal Commission of which I was 
a member, that caused me to withdraw and decline to take any part after the 
lapse of a few minutes either in the making of awards or the preparing of a 
Report on the Wines." What went on? One can only speculate... Bleasdale 
authored several other reports and pamphlets on Australian wine, freezing 
meat, the gemstones of Victoria, and the suitability of the olive tree for 
cultivation in California.

With only 3 copies located by OCLC this is a scarce report, and certainly 
very scarce in this condition.

Softcover. 5.5"x8.5", 35 pages. Original printed softcovers, with light 
fading around the edges, spine base and head worn and slightly split, name 
at the top of the cover, but overall a very nice copy of a very fragile 
item. [04860] $500.00

Illustration- <http://www.joslinhall.com/images/th-04860.jpg>

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Seward, Harry & Alfonso Faber.

BORDEAUX INTERNATIONAL WINE EXHIBITION 1882. Report of the Commissioners 
for the Colony of Victoria.

Victoria / Melbourne; John Ferres, Government Printer: 1883.
Edition of 1,360 copies.

A fascinating piece of 19th century Australian viniana- the official report 
by the Australian delegation to the Bordeaux Wine Exhibition of 1882. The 
1882 exhibition was a resounding success for the fledgling Australian wine 
industry, and an important step forward for it in terms of international 
recognition of the quality of Australian wines. Reports on the Australian 
activities at the exhibition are supplied by Seward, the Chairman of the 
Australian Commission, and Faber, the Secretary.

Both note that the Australian wine makers fared very well, won more than 
their share of awards, and that the judges and other attendees were very 
favorably impressed with the Australian wines. In total, 44 Australian wine 
makers took part, plus two makers of cordials and one Australian exhibitor 
who had a remedy for the Phylloxera. There are numerous lists and tables 
showing who was awarded what, and a most interesting list of the Australian 
exhibitors and the wines they brought.

Of course, the entire point was to promote and sell Australian wines 
outside the country, a venture in which they appear to have been only 
partially successful. As far as France goes, Seward notes- "The impression 
and opinion of the trade are rather favorable for our wines, but the 
facility existing at present to supply themselves with cheap wines from all 
the different wine-producing countries of Europe prevents the French 
importers and merchants from using Australian wines as yet". The English 
trade exhibited no such reluctance- "Buyers for the English market came 
here freely and offered very good prices; we could have sold them all the 
Victoria wines here if they had not been specially retained for the 
Amsterdam Exhibition".

Seward finishes by offering some suggestions for ways the Australian wine 
makers can improve their productions, and makes a plea for "the 
establishment of an oenological school with a model vineyard after the 
fashion of the schools erected and maintained by the French, Austrian, 
German, Italian, and other Governments". A nice, early Australian wine item.

Unbound. 8.5"x13.5", 33 pages, contained in card covers, ca.1920 or so; a 
nice, clean, bright copy with just a few spots and a light stain at the top 
margin; it has been stapled along the spine into the card covers; partially 
unopened. [04859] $275.00

Illustration- <http://www.joslinhall.com/images/th-04859.jpg>

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