Category: Red Wine

Red Wine – The Taste of Romance

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What is the first thing that people notice about red wine?  The color of course!  It is the rich red color.  Did you know that red wine is produced from grapes that are not only red but purple and blue as well?  The many different varietals of red wine give it names like “dark red, light red, almost black, maroon, deep violet, and burgundy”.  That list could expand to include many more descriptors, but most of all we love the romance and taste of reds.  It has become a part of our culture to see people in the movies in intimate settings drinking red wine.  In part, this is due to its color, the color that represents love, but also for the rich bold flavor that reminds us of love and romance.

Popular reds are Shiraz, Merlot, Pinot Noir, and Cabernet.  The list could continue for another few sentences, but the important thing to remember is that each wine will be made from a different grape or many different varietals of grapes.  Knowing what grape can be grown in what region depends on the longitude line the region falls on.  Many grapes that made Italy famous are also grown in places like Michigan in the United States.  The longitude line will dictate the climate in which a grape can be grown.  If where you live falls on or near the same line that a famous grape growing region does, you too can grown the same varietals and maybe become famous yourself.

Pairing food with wine is an important part of the whole experience.  Red wine is versatile, but there are some definite rules to follow.  Rule number one should always be, if you like the taste of the wine, then drink it.  Apart from that there are some other guidelines that can be followed to make the experience the best one possible.  For instance, reds should never be paired with mild cheeses.  Mild cheeses are always great with white wines.  Strong cheese on the other hand is perfect for red wine and can be paired with just about any red available.  In fact many cheese spreads are mixed with Port or Merlot which is to die for.  Pastas with cream sauces and seafood will never pair well with red wine.  Pasta with red sauce however will taste lovely with a nice red like Zinfandel or Merlot.  Unfortunately Asian food is another pairing you shouldn’t make with reds.  Poultry should only be paired with Beaujolais and pork with only Pinot Noir or Beaujolais.  The good news is that beef was made for pairing with reds and you should feel free to pair almost any red with beef except for Port or Beaujolais.  It is the robustness and full flavor that makes red pairing with red meat so perfect.  Surprisingly, chocolate is a perfect companion for Port, Cabernet or Merlot.

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Red Wine – Can it Lower Your Blood Pressure?

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The French Paradox, the fact that the French eat a diet high in saturated fat but have a low incidence of coronary artery diseases, has been known for a long time. The French diet should normally increase the incidence of coronary artery diseases, not lower it. The suggested explanation for the paradox has been the high consumption of red wine in France.

While alcohol normally increases your blood pressure, red wine has been proved to contain substances that lower the risk of heart diseases. As an additional bonus, red wine also contains substances that slow down ageing process. When the French Paradox was reported in the US back in 1991, the sales of red wine increased by almost 45 percent. White wine is produced in a different way and does not have the same positive health effects as its red colleague.

So how much is a healthy daily consumption of wine? Medical experts give a wide range of answers. Some don’t believe that red wine has any positive effect at all. But most research seems to confirm that one glass of wine a day can be good. Some push it towards two glasses, at least for men. The larger you are the more you can drink, smaller people are generally recommended to stick to one glass wine a day or less.

No medical expert recommends non-drinkers to start drinking red wine for health reasons. If you are drinking wine, it should be for pleasure. But it can be nice to known that in moderate quantities red wines can have some positive health effects as a bonus.

It’s worth remembering that while the French have a lower incidence of coronary artery disease they also have one of the highest rates of cirrhosis of the liver in the world. The latter is often caused by excessive drinking of alcohol. So once again, drink and enjoy your wine in moderation.

If you suffer from hypertension, trying more traditional remedies such as relaxation, physical activity and slow breathing, is a safer way of reducing your blood pressure.

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Resveratrol and Red Wine Grape Extract Safety

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When polyphenols including Resveratrol, Quercetin, and red wine grape extracts are concentrated into a daily tablet equivalent to over 100 Bottles of red wine (400 – 1000 mg) or more, there is one immediate question, is it safe?

Indeed, scientists who study these nutraceutical supplements have and are continuing to use similar scientific research techniques to those used in the pharmaceutical industry to evaluate their potential health benefits and safety.

In 2002, the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences commissioned a report entitled, “Trans-resveratrol Review of Toxicological Literature.” A review of more than 200 referenced scientific studies were included, and the report stated that there were no reported adverse effects from Resveratrol on humans.

Animal studies have used the human-equivalent of over 1,000 mg (10 mg/kg of bodyweight) of Resveratrol, and have shown no toxic effects. Massive dosage studies were also performed on animals. “The no observed adverse affect level (NOAEL) was 300 mg/kg/day,” which would be a human dosage of 30,000 mg or 10 – 100 times the maximum concentrations contained in human high-concentration oral nutraceutical dosages.

Human studies also confirm the safety of Resveratrol in highly concentrated forms. Studies including those at Marywood University, University of Leicester (UK) and University of Michigan, etc. all found no significant side effects and no evidence of toxicity.

Personally, members of our company have taken 2,000 mg of Resveratrol and red wine grape extracts for extended periods with no side effects.

Many nutraceutical manufacturing plants are certified by the FDA (US Food and Drug Administration), TGA (Australia’s FDA Certification), NSF, USP (US Pharmacopia), etc. (be sure to check company’s websites for such information).

According to Dr. Joseph Maroon, in his recent book, The Longevity Factor, How Resveratrol and Red Wine Activate Genes for a Longer and Healthier Life (page 198) “Having seen both a pharmaceutical manufacturing plant and a dietary supplement facility I am assured that the manufacturing standards are virtually identical.”

High quality Resveratrol supplements have been on the market since the year 2000, and numerous patients, companies and doctors have reported their safety.

NOTE: Of course, any side-effects experienced as a result of taking Resveratrol, Quercetin, red wine grape extracts, or any other nutraceutical supplements should be reported to the manufacturer, and to your doctor.

Red Wine Refrigerator – Why You Need One

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Most people don’t think to chill their red wine. Unfortunately, that means they aren’t getting the best out of the bottles they buy. When you invest in a good bottle of red wine, it makes sense to treat it with respect and ensure that it can mature correctly, which is only possible in optimum conditions.

Originally, red wine would have been kept in a wine cellar. These underground chambers were perfect for making sure the wine stayed at just the right temperature, no refrigeration needed! These days, very few people actually have a wine cellar, though part of your basement could potentially be converted into one. The solution? A red wine refrigerator.

Regular Fridges Just Don’t Cut It

Why can’t you just pop your tinted wine into your kitchen fridge? There are a number of reasons this is NOT a good idea.

First of all, the kitchen refrigerator is not meant for wine. It’s too cold. While the wine needs to be cool, it should not be refrigerated at any temperature lower than 50 degrees F. The average kitchen fridge ranges from 35-38 degrees, which is far too low for your red wine. A wine bottle refrigerator can be set to just the right temperature, ensuring the best quality wine possible.

Another consideration is vibration. Regular fridges have pretty strong vibrations, but if you know anything about wine, you know it matures best when left unmolested and allowed to sit for long periods of time. The vibrations in a regular fridge is very disruptive to this process, so you need a way to cool the bottles without shaking them up at all. Red wine refrigerators do this very nicely, since they have built-in anti vibration mechanisms that keep the bottles chilled and undisturbed.

When choosing a cooler for your bottles, you’ll find that it is very important to look for one that fits the space you have. There are fridges that only hold 6 bottles for those of you who don’t need a lot of space and plenty of larger sizes, as well. Built-ins work very well for those who have a full collection.

You need a red wine refrigerator if you are serious about your collection of alcoholic beverages. Otherwise, the bottles you own are not being kept at the right temperature and this affects the quality of the wine.

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Cheap Wine, Sauvignon Blanc, Red Wine ? Wine Growers Direct

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The Sauvignon Blanc Wine

The Sauvignon Blanc, also called the Sauv Blanc, has origins from France. History has it that the Sauvignon Blanc wine comes from the Bordeaux region in France. The grape used for this wine is a green skinned grape and gets its name from the French words Sauvage, which means wild, and Blanc, which means white. The name is courtesy the original wild grapes used for this crisp, dry and refreshing varietal wine. The same grape used to produce this wine, is also a component of some famous desert wines from Sauternes and Basarc. The Sauvignon Blanc grape is now widely grown in many countries of the world including Australia, France, Chile, New Zealand, South Africa, Brazil and California. Infact Australian Sauvignon Blanc Wine is highly popular and is exported all over the world.

The taste of the Sauvignon Blanc can be influenced to a great deal by the climate. It can taste very grassy or sweetly tropical. Most of the winemakers have given it a general description of being Fresh, Dry, Elegant, Crisp and slightly citrusy at times. Sauvignon Blanc along with another wine called Riesling was also one of the first wines to be bottled with a screw cap bottle closure, unlike the usual cork. This maybe because this wine is generally consumed young as aging this particular wine provides no benefits, however it is said the screw cap also keeps the wine fresh and can not be adversely affected by the cork.

The Sauvignon Blanc grape is often blended with others. For example, particularly in Australia, the Sauvignon Blanc is often blended with Semillon. There are other varietal styles to it as well, including those from Adelaide Hills and Padthaway, which are way different from their New Zealand neighbors, especially in terms of flavor and acidity.

The Sauvignon Blanc is a highly popular wine and goes very well with many types of food and cuisines. Infact many Sauvignon Blanc Companies provide their own recommendations on food pairing with this wine on their websites where they also allow you to Buy sauvignon Blanc wine at discounts!Sauvignon Blanc is also an excellent pair with fish, seafood, sushi, meat and poultry, is an excellent accompaniment to salads and dips and so on and so forth. The list of pairings for this wine is simply endless!

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