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Wine Facts

Wine Facts
Wine is a fermented, alcoholic beverage made from grapes that is believed to have been produced since 6100 BC in Armenia, where the first known winery existed. It was traditionally consumed in ancient Rome, Greece, and Thrace, mainly for its intoxicating effects. Wine has also played an important religious role because of its association with blood by the Egyptians in ancient times. Wine is also used by Christians and in Judaism. Wine is produced when yeast consumes the grape's sugars and converts it to CO2 and ethanol. The type of wine is determined by the variety of grape, fermentation, origin of grapes, and how it is produced.
Interesting Wine Facts:
Most wine has an alcohol content of between 5.5 and 15.5%.
Main types of wine include red, white, rose, sparkling, or orange.
There was a wine glass in ancient Greece that would spill its entire contents if the glass was overfilled. This was to ensure drinking in moderation.
During prohibition, when selling or buying wine was illegal, grape juice mix was sold with instructions on how to NOT turn it into wine.
In 2003 Richard Juhlin, who reportedly has the best nose for tasting wine and champagne, correctly identified 43 of 50 wines. The second place nose was only able to identify four.
In China it is a symbol of wealth to mix expensive red wines with Coca-Cola and Sprite.
Red wine is believed to provide health benefits. Moderate drinking of red wine also can lower diabetes risk.
The fear of wine is called Oenophobia.
Red wine gets its color from the skin of the grapes. Red wine is made from dark-colored grapes which produce color ranging from violet to red, to brown.
White wine ranges in color from straw to yellow gold. The wine is white because the grape pulp is non-colored.
Rose wine is lighter than red wine in color, but it still gets its color from the skins.
Fruit wines are made from fruits other than grapes such as berries, apples, elderberry, blueberries, etc.
Wine can also be made from honey, which is then referred to as mead, or honey wine.
Sake is a wine made from rice and is popular in Asia.
Wine is protected internationally in some cases by region. In Europe there is Bordeaux, Rioja, and Chianti.
Non-European based wines are often classified by the type of grape.
True champagne can only be from the Champagne region of France.
A wine must be 95% from grapes of a particular year to carry a vintage label in the United States.
Wine tasting is a popular activity with some wine lovers. Taste tests have often revealed that people tend to identify a wine as being higher quality if it is more expensive. Some incorrectly identify wines based on perceived value.
Some bottles of wine are extremely valuable and can sell for thousands of dollars to as high as small fortunes.
Countries that produce the most wine include Italy, Spain, France, United States, China, Argentina, Chile, Australia, South Africa, and Germany.


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