Wine Wednesday!
General Wine Knowledge & Random Fun Facts!
There are approximately 6.5 million gallons of wine consumed worldwide every year (An Olympic-sized swimming pool only holds 660,430 gallons of water....so the equivalent of almost 10 of these swimming pools).
A champagne cork can fly 50 miles per hour
Cabernet sauvignon is the #1 most widely planted grape in the world
Spain has the largest number of grapevines in the world
1 acre of vineyard produces approximately 800 gallons of wine
There are 60 gallons of wine in a standard wine barrel
A “butt” is a medieval measure of liquid which is equal to 126 gallons. So the answer is NO. You can not drink a “butt” load of wine by yourself in one evening.
Madeira, made on the island of Madeira off of Portugal, was the fan favorite of the founding fathers. It was used to toast both the signing of the United States Declaration of Independence and the inauguration of President George Washington. Madeira is a wine made mostly from the Verdelho grape that is fortified with brandy, making it both high in alcohol content and a beverage capable of traveling long distances without spoiling.
Nearly all red wine comes from one species of grape: Vitis vinifera, originating in Eastern Europe. It was eventually planted in the United States (U.S.), but the U.S. has many of its own native species, for example, the commonly known Concord grape used for sweet wine and jam is the Vitis labrusca species, and is native to the Eastern U.S and Canada.
The color of wine comes from the grape skins, not the grape. For example, a Blanc de Noir Champagne is a white sparkling wine made from Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier, both red grapes.
As wine ages, no matter red or white, they will eventually age to a brown color. A red wine turns from bright ruby to a brick color as it ages…. then eventually to brown. This is due to oxidation. Similarly, a white wine goes from light to dark… also eventually to brown. (Chart below compares light to full-bodied wines and young versus old wine… and is complements of WineFolly.com)
Hope you enjoyed this weeks Wine Wednesday! Up next week… the difference between the Right Bank and the Left Bank Bordeaux wines of France…. Saluti!