Did You Know……. Wine Fact #16
In the Bordeaux region of France, Margaux is the largest of its regions within the appellation while Pomerol is the smallest. The Graves region is known to be the oldest. Others include Pauilliac, Pessac-Leognan, St. Emillion and Medoc, still yet many other sub-regions are included throughout the entire appellation....
Did You Know ……. Wine Fact #15
We Americans drink more wine on Thanksgiving Day than any other day of the year. Research shows that 63% choose wine as their holiday beverage of choice. Red wine is prefered by the majority of tasters with white wine and rose a distant second. Come to think of it,...
Did You Know………. Wine Fact #14
That the best way to preserve an open bottle of champagne, or sparkling, is with a “bouchon”. Bouchon, which is French for stopper, is a metal cap, that when clamped down on the bottle neck, will not let gas escape any further, helping to preserve your favorite bubbly for...
How many grape varieties are permitted in the blending of the French Rhone wine Chateauneuf du Pape?
As of 2020, the lucky number is 18. They include red grapes Cinsault, Counoise, Grenache Noir, Mourvèdre, Muscardin, Piquepoul Noir, Syrah, Terret Noir, and Vaccarèse (Brun Argenté). White and pink varieties include Bourboulenc, Clairette Blanche, Clairette Rose, Grenache Blanc, Grenache Gris, Picardan, Piquepoul Blanc, Piquepoul Gris, and Roussanne. In 1923, French regulators declared that 10 different varietals could be used in the making of Chatauneuf du Pape. That...
What do wine and marriage have in common?
In ancient Babylon, the bride’s father would supply his son-in-law with all the Mead, a honey fermented wine, he could drink for a month after the wedding ceremony. Because of the lunar or moon based calendar, this period of free mead was known as “honey month”, or more commonly...
What is Saperavi?
It is a dark skinned red grape that is the specialty varietal from the Republic of Georgia. Grown in the Alazani Valley on the edge of the Caucasus Mountains, archaeologists have found proof that wine has been produced in this region for over 7 millennia. Wine from this grape...
What is Oenophobia?
It is the actual fear of wine, that in some people, triggers multiple symptoms. There is also clinical treatment available for patients seeking help from this phobia. Lucky for us non suffering wine lovers, the only thing we fear is bad wine....
Did You Know…………. Wine Fact #13
That at actor Tom Cruise’s 2006 wedding, 300 bottles of Barbaresco and Champagne were served. Paltry compared to the wedding of Alexander III of Scotland, where in 1251, over 135,000 liters of wine were popped for the occasion. Maybe not the same quality but I don’t think there were...
Did You Know ……………. Wine Fact #12
In the Grimm’s fairy tale Little Red Riding Hood, it states that Little Red took a bottle of wine to her grandmother. Sadly, with this reference to alcohol, over 400 copies of this book sit in a locked storage room at a public school in Empire, CA, banned in...
How Much Does a Wine Barrel Weigh?
A typical French oak barrel weighs roughly 90 pounds when empty, while the more dense American oak would weigh about 110 pounds. Full of juice, they weigh approximately 600 pounds. Each holds 225 liters or 60 US gallons, enough to make 25 cases or 300 bottles of wine....