Q: Where did the term “Drinking to one’s health” come from?
A: Ancient Greece. The host of dinner would take the first sip to assure his guests the wine was not poisoned.
Q: Who are more inclined to the effects of wine, men or women?
A: Women…This is partly because they have less enzymes in the stomach lining that are needed to break down alcohol.
Q: What is oenophobia?
A: Believe it or not, there are some people that have a fear of wine. It’s called “oenophobia.”
Q: Do people still crush grapes by walking on them?
A: Yes…They typically do so in producing a small quantity of the most expensive port wines. (or if you are Lucille Ball!)
Q: How many bubbles are there in a bottle of champagne?
A: 49,000,000
Q: “Slainte” is a typical toast in which country?
A: Ireland; the word means “health.”
Q: Is British wine the same as English wine?
A: No…British wine is made from imported grape juice concentrate. English wine is made from grapes grown in England. And Welch wine is from Wales-grown grapes.
Q: How many standard wine bottles equals one Nebuchadnezzar?
A: 20
Q: When you see AVA (American Viticulture Areas) on a California wine label, how much of the contents have come from that AVA?
A: 85 percent of the contents have come from that area.
Q: Where did the ritual of saying “Cheers” and clinking glasses with our friends and family come from?Q: Did you know that grapevines don’t produce good wine grapes until they are at least three or four years old?
A: As the vine ages, the yield tends to decrease, but the quality may improve. With proper care and luck, they may continue producing a viable crop for fifty or one hundred years, or more.
Q: Which is healthier for you, red or white wines?
A: The jury is still out on some of the health benefits of moderate wine consumption, but red wine does seem to have a slight edge. It received a lot of attention for its purported benefits in the late 70s, when a book called The French Paradox suggested that red wine helped the French avoid the cholesterol problems that should have gone along with their fat-heavy diet.Studies since report that an antioxidant called resveratrol is responsible. Resveratrol, like tannins and color, comes from the skins of the grapes; since white wines are pressed before fermentation, they generally have little or no resveratrol (Red wines are macerated with the skins to get the color, tannins, and flavors the skins impart).
However, more recent studies suggest that moderate consumption of any wine, red or white, can contribute to lower incidents of heart disease and several other ailments. Research continues, but for now, let’s be glad we can actually enjoy something that’s also good for us.
Q: What are the most planted grapes in the world?
A: Grapes are, in fact, the most planted fruit crop in the world, but not as many as you’d think go into wine. In California, for example, only 47% of the grapes grown are wine grapes; the majority is for table grapes or raisins.
The three most planted white wine grapes are surprising: Airén (756,300 acres), Chardonnay (432,900 acres), and Ugni Blanc (338,400 acres). Chardonnay, sure; there’s some much Chardonnay out there that its detractors have formed groups dedicated to drinking ABC – Anything But Chardonnay. But what are Airén and Ugni Blanc? Airén is Spain’s most planted grape, and given that country’s vast vineyards, it grabs the #1 spot for acreage; however, it is not widely sold in the United States. Ugni Blanc is grown in Italy, Argentina, and France. The former two make it into generally simple white, crisp wines, but in France it is distilled together with a few other grapes to make Cognac. It is very prolific, and despite the smaller acreage, probably produces more wine than even Airén.
Red grapes are less surprising: Merlot leads the way at 647,800 acres, followed closely by Cabernet Sauvignon (633,800 acres), and Grenache (513,400 acres). If the last one surprises you, you can blame Spain again, as well as France and Italy. In the New World it was originally planted as a blending grape for Syrah, but more and more wineries are giving it its due on the label.
Q: How many grapes does it take to make a bottle of wine?
A: About 2-1/2 pounds
Q: What do the different shapes of wine bottles represent? Do they refer to varietal or type in any way?
A: Bottle shapes generally do represent the region or varietal to some degree. A Bordeaux bottle, for example, is narrow and has a defined “shoulder,” where it quickly slopes in to the neck. Contrast that with a Burgundy bottle: fatter and curvier, it gradually slopes into the neck so there’s no definite spot where the neck begins and the body ends.
“Wine bottles come in all shapes and sizes, from tall and slender to short and stout. And while the bottle shape doesn’t make a difference in terms of impacting the wine’s flavor, the bottle chosen does often represent a good amount of history and tradition that reflects back to where the wine is made.” – VinePair.com
Q: What does it mean to let a wine “breathe?” Is it important?
Q: What is the difference between a sweet wine and a fruity wine?
A: Fruity wines have concentrated flavors that represent the fruit in the wine and are sometimes perceived as sweet. Sweet wines are wines that display and contain a higher level of residual sugar (sugars that did not ferment to dry) and have a sweet to very sweet finish.
So go ahead, swirl it around and take a whiff. Do you like what you smell? What does it smell like? Swirl and sniff again. Is it the same or has it changed?
Now, taste the wine. Hold it in your mouth for a moment. How does the taste compare with the smell? Is it what you expected? How would you describe it?
Q: On what holiday do American wine drinkers consume the most wine?
A: American wine drinkers consume more wine on Thanksgiving than any other day of the year.
True or False: red wine is made from red grapes, and white wine is made from white grapes?
Q: Where does the vanilla flavor in wine come from?
A: If newer oak barrels were used in the winemaking process, the wines will often have a hint of vanilla in both the aroma and flavor.
Q: When was the corkscrew designed?
A: Mid-1800’s.
Q: How many varieties of wine grapes exist in the world today?
A: Over 10,000!
Q: How many gallons of wine does California produce annually?
A: Over 17 million gallons
Q: What culture invented wine?
A: The French didn’t invent wine; in fact, the oldest known wine making was in Iran back in the Neolithic period. These Zagros mountain villagers were making and storing wine around 5400 B.C. in some of the earliest pottery jars archeologists have found. The Nile Delta established a royal winemaking industry around 3000 B.C., with the Pharaohs of Egypt enjoying wine so much that they took thousands of liters of wine into their tombs with them.
Q: Did you know that it takes three types of grapes to make Champagne?
A: It does! It takes two reds, a Pinot Noir and a Pinot Meunier; and one white, a Chardonnay. The color of a Champagne comes from the pressing, when winemakers decide how much of the grape skin’s pigments to color the wine.
Q: How many calories are in a four-ounce glass of red wine?
A: Approximately 85. The wine with the fewest calories is one that is dry and has low alcohol content.
Q: How many gallons of wine are in a single barrel?
A: 60
Q: How many grapevines generally make up an acre?
A: 400
Q: When did winemaking begin?
A: The Mesopotamians were credited with producing the first wines in 6000 B.C.