A Little Wine Trivia

   •        You may have your own bar or a wine cellar in your own
house which
holds a vast variety of wine, but it is close to impossible to store all
kinds of wine. Apparently, there are more than 10,000 varieties of grape
wines in the world.

       •        The cost of wine is not an indicator of quality as
there are many
factors that have an effect on the price of a wine. So your 1995 can be
of better quality than the 1989!

       •        According to Persian mythology, wine was discovered by
a woman. She
drank the fermented juice from grapes stored in a jar, went to sleep, and
surprisingly woke up cured of a headache, instead of suffering from the
world's first hangover as one might have expected.

       •        The Bible has many references to the vine and wine. The
first
recorded mention is in Genesis, in the ninth chapter, where we learn that
Noah planted a vineyard, and that "he drank of the wine and was
drunken.”

       •        As Magellan prepared to sail around the world in 1519,
he spent more
on sherry than on weapons. The accounts of sightings of Magellan drunk
when he reached the Philippines is not yet proven, though.

       •        The soil of one famous vineyard in France is considered
so precious
that vineyard workers are required to scrape it from their shoes before
they leave for home each night.

       •        The average number of grapes it takes to make a bottle
of wine is 600.

       •        So much for being precious. In Bangladesh, $5 will buy
a beer or a
first-class train ticket for a cross-country trip.

       •        It always takes two to tango. In Malaysia, drunk
drivers are jailed
and so are their spouses.

       •        Excitement stirs. 98% of all commercially produced wine
in the world
is consumed within 1 week of purchase.

Sources:
http://www.winelit.slsa.sa.gov.au/winelore.htm
http://www2.potsdam.edu/hansondj/FunFacts/AlcoholTrivia.html
http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art8532.asp
http://www.professorshouse.com/Food-Beverage/Wine/Articles/Wine-Facts-and-Trivia/

Red or White?

A perfect wine is the perfect mood setter for a dinner party. However, to  people  new to wines,  choosing between white and red wine is a struggle. One starts with the question, “What is the difference between white and red wine?”

Aside from the evident difference which is color, there are several distinctions between the two that will help people in finding wine-starter preference. First thing to know is that white wines are sweet in general; red wine is less sweet, more complex, and a much complicated drink. The plain sweetness of white wine is due to its main ingredient, simple grape juice. Red wine has grape juice, skin, seeds, and selected stems as the ingredients–these constitute the rich and complex taste it has.

Tannins are very important when it comes with the wine taste. Tannins are bitter-tasting substance that cause the “dry mouth” feeling associated with most red wines than whites.

Also, white wines are more suitable to meat like chicken and fish while the red wines complement red meats and thick and heavy sauces. For the health conscious, be reminded that red wine has more reservatrol, a higher-level antioxidant which reduces the risk of high cholesterol.