Wine can intimidate and confuse and there is no real need for this. Drinking wine has been around for a long time (see below) and can be too steeped in tradition and formalities at times. As with most traditions in our society, they are based in superstition more so than fact and the perceived “snootiness” of wine does not help to attract new wine drinkers.

That said, there are lots of confusing and/or interesting facts that might be fun to learn. Maybe we can remove the shroud of mystery that envelops wine and learn some interesting facts about the best thing you can put in your glass…wine.

Waerator 

·   Toasting- The Romans started the practice of dropping actual pieces of toast in their glasses of 
    wine. This was to help with the excessive acidity that was common in early versions of wine-making.

   ·  Wine deteriorates when oxygen hits it, yet it is the introduction of oxygen to the wine which gets the
    wine in the most enjoyable and recommended tasting profile. It is a delicate balance between too much
    air and not enough air. That is why everyone should aerate their wines properly with a good,     
    quality  wineaerator.

·   Vegan: While a lot of wine is Vegan, it would surprise you to know that a lot of wine is filtered through
   gelatin and other animal products. So, if you are a vegan, remember to read the label first.

Wine can intimidate and confuse and there is no real need for this. Drinking wine has been around for a long time (see below) and can be too steeped in tradition and formalities at times. As with most traditions in our society, they are based in superstition more so than fact and the perceived “snootiness” of wine does not help to attract new wine drinkers.

That said, there are lots of confusing and/or interesting facts that might be fun to learn. Maybe we can remove the shroud of mystery that envelops wine and learn some interesting facts about the best thing you can put in your glass…wine.

Waerator 

·   Toasting- The Romans started the practice of dropping actual pieces of toast in their glasses of 
    wine. This was to help with the excessive acidity that was common in early versions of wine-making.

   ·  Wine deteriorates when oxygen hits it, yet it is the introduction of oxygen to the wine which gets the
    wine in the most enjoyable and recommended tasting profile. It is a delicate balance between too much
    air and not enough air. That is why everyone should aerate their wines properly with a good,     
    quality wineaerator.

·   Vegan: While a lot of wine is Vegan, it would surprise you to know that a lot of wine is filtered through
   gelatin and other animal products. So, if you are a vegan, remember to read the label first.

·      ·     Italy- There is a fountain that dispenses wine, and yes, it is free. This is Italy after all.

·       ·  The oldest bottle of wine has been traced back to 325 A.D. You can go see (not taste) the bottle which is
  on display in a museum in Germany.

·       ·   Sense of smell- Sommeliers like myself can tell you that the sense of smell is the most important
   process involved in tasting and evaluating wine. What is interesting is physically, women are better at
   tasting and evaluating wine than men. This is due to their heightened sense of smell.

·      ·    Bubbles- In ancient Greece, it was thought that the bubbles in wine were from the phases of the moon
   reacting to the wine, and was also blamed on evil spirits.

·       ·   Wine Barrels- Why are they so expensive? The average age of a French oak tree that is used in making
   the most common wine barrel in Europe is 170 years old.

·      ·   There are around 10,000 varieties of wine grapes. A Grand Master Sommelier must know and
  understand each of them as well as where the grapes would grow.

·       ·  The Declaration of Independence was toasted with some Madeira wine that was imported for the King’s 
   presumed visit. When he canceled his trip, the founding fathers thought it appropriate to use the wine 
   that was meant for the King of England as a worthy wine to toast with.

·      ·   Napa was known for prunes before being known for wine.

·      ·   Resveritol is a chemical found in red wine that is shown to reduce heart attacks and acts as a free-
  radical remover.  

·       ·  A new planting of wine will take 3-5 years to produce the fruit needed to harvest for wine. This is an   
  expensive wait for the prospective winery owner and is another reason that wine startup companies are
  expensive to own.

·       ·  Prohibition- some wineries were able to survive prohibition by making sacrament wine for churches. Of
  course, the output for this sacrament wine exceeded 1200% of needed production for churches. I wonder
  what they could have possibly done with all that excess wine?

·      ·  One Glass of wine needs a cluster of grapes to produce enough juice to fill the glass. This is about 75
  grapes per glass.

·      ·  One Bottle= 750 ml, 2.4 lbs of grapes, and will pour 4 full glasses of wine.

Bet you didn’t know THAT about wine….

Saluti’
Eric Leckey
Sommelier, WSET 3, CSW