Over the past twenty years the wine industry has witnessed the introduction of many new bottle closures. The stated intention with the new closures was/is to provide an alternative to traditional, natural wine corks with the promise of improving an assortment of factors. Some allowed easier removal. Some present cost savings to the winery. Some promise elimination of the inconsistencies measured in natural corks. All these alternatives needed to fulfill the primary role of the closure – protecting the wine inside. In addition, a good closure must provide the proper environment that regulates the beneficial effects of oxygen.

With a few exceptions, alternative closures have been adequate at keeping wine in the bottle. The track record becomes less successful at managing oxygen from getting inside. Isn’t interesting how, for hundreds of years, there has been praise and appreciation for corks ability to “just control the right amounts of oxygen to reach the bottled wine”; by the act of Mother Nature it has become the gold standard of closures. The alternative closure market is still trying to find a way to control oxygen in the bottle to just the right amount then stop the process automatically.

Most wines benefit from small amount of oxygen. Too much, and the wine will “oxidize” and exhibit a range of flavors from a “loss of fruit tastes” to the development of “vinegar-like” characteristics. Too little oxygen can develop “reduced” characteristics. These often include sulfide aromas, which can run from the aroma of “struck matches” to the memorable essence of an angry skunk. In some cases the reduced aromas can be improved by aerating the wine before drinking. This is also called letting the wine “breathe”.

Before the introduction of alternative closures, most research on wine and oxygen was focused on the wine making processes in the cellar and barrel room. With the advent of alternative closures, the study of oxygen and wine now includes packaging options and bottling conditions.

In the March 31, 2011 issue of “The Telegraph”, Victoria Moore writes, “My view is that a large number of aromatic whites with screwcaps are slightly reduced and that it’s a phenomenon that’s largely brushed aside. There’s also a middle ground of which the effect of reduction is to dumb down the nose and give it a very particular taste.”

Why this interest coincides with the introduction of alternative closures is because their advent demonstrated that the oxygen behavior of a natural cork is impossible to duplicate. Natural cork consists of millions of tiny “cells” – 40 million cells fit in one cubic centimeter. Each cell is filled with air, and that air provides a small dose of oxygen for each bottle.

Synthetic closures appeared to allow too much oxygen ingress, and are not recommended for wine that will spend more than 18 months in the bottle. Some screwcap liners are virtually airtight. Reduced aromas were noticed in some of the wines using this alternative. Manufacturers have tried to compensate for these shortcomings by adjusting the oxygen permeability of their products. In the case of synthetics, there are now options promising reductions in the rate of permeation. For screwcaps, there are options that replace the airtight tin liner with a plastic disk that allows for oxygen permeation.

Both solutions are problematic because the correction involves oxygen permeation. Permeation is like filling a bucket with a garden hose that cannot be controlled or even turned off. You can adjust the rate, but once established, the rate will not change. Natural cork does not involve permeation. Cork introduces a finite amount of oxygen, and when complete, the oxygen entry ceases. The compression of the cork in the bottle and saturation of the cork seals to container. In reality, cork is a wood of the oak tree species that also offers tannin values.

Using the visual image of the garden hose illustration, it is important for wine that is to be stored for several months not to be constantly being inundated with oxygen; kind of the magic of cork.

Natural Cork – Diffusion

Oxygen ingress with natural corks is primarily a result of diffusion. A typical 44mm cork contains an estimated 3.5ml of oxygen. When the cork is compressed the internal air pressure increases to between 6 and 9 atmospheres. (1 atmosphere = 14.6 psi- thus 6-9 atmospheres equals 88-132psi.) Cork compression is from 24mm to 15.5mm, then expands to 18mm to fit inside bottle neck.

This establishes a pressure imbalance that is solved by the gradual equalization of gasses between cork and headspace.

The exchange of gasses explains why studies of oxygen ingress show that bottles with natural cork “pick up” a small amount of oxygen over the first 6-9 months of aging. After that, oxygen ingress is no longer significant (the referenced study ran for 36 months).

Variations in oxygen diffusion between corks appear in the first six months of storage and likely reflect differences in cellular structures. After the initial diffusion period, additional variation was not observed.

Alternative Closures – Permeation

Artificial closures provide oxygen ingress primarily through permeation. Oxygen passes directly through the closure from the outside air. This can happen at a controlled rate, but unlike diffusion, the permeation does not stop. Oxygen continues to enter the bottle at whatever rate is determined by the closure.

The majority of synthetic closures will exhibit significant oxygen permeation within 18 months. Some manufacturers now advertise optional products with reduced permeation rates. Recent developments with screwcap manufacturers show an interest in fitting screwcaps with a permeable seal, so that more oxygen can be introduced into the wine.

In both instances, the mechanism for oxygen ingress is by permeation of outside air. This will occur for the duration of wine storage.

The Solution

A permeable closure is fine if you know how much oxygen you want to introduce and you know how long it will take for that to occur. In the absence of that control, a natural cork is the preferable solution. Natural cork introduces a small amount of oxygen over the first 6 to 9 months. After that, additional oxygen ingress is virtually nonexistent, and if stored properly the wine will develop without reductive or oxidized flavors.

Ms. Jancis Robinson, MW has written a review of all closure options and does state a preference for natural cork on ascetic reasons and does go into specifics on what some oxygen permeation is needed to make for a good wine. “We still do not know enough about exactly how different fine wines will age under screwcaps to be able to give very precise advice… It is thought that red wines destined for long ageing may require a greater degree of interaction with oxygen than is currently permitted by screwcap, though further research is needed in order to give definitive advice,” says Robinson.

In a study done by Lopes, P.; Saucier, C.; Teissedre, P.L. Glories, Y. which appeared in J. Agri. Food Chem, 2006 their study of various closure on Oxygen Ingress by Closure Type noted that a premium natural cork allowed small amounts of oxygen to come into contact with the wine for approximately 12 months then remained sealed to oxygen ingress for the test period of 3 years. In the case of screw caps oxygen interaction was for a period of approximately 2 months and then virtually no ingress appeared. Synthetic corks allowed oxygen ingress at ever increasing levels with no measureable sign of abating.

For hundreds of years, cork has been a preferred closure without any understanding of why, except it was easy to install and it did keep wine sealed naturally. With the advent of synthetic closure options, science started taking a look at wines interaction with these closures and “lo and behold” some oxygen became recognized as a benefit to wine’s aging qualities; but not to much and/or to little. Whether oak barrels or cork, oxygen plays an important role in the ways these natural materials impact fine wine making.

Are you ready for a screwpull wine opener? Like the venerable “mousetrap”, someone is always trying to make a better one, and Metrokane has a winner with their Houdini wine opener. Also referred to as a lever opener, the Houdini model wine bottle opener makes the task so easy, even a “caveman” can do it. The Metrokane name gained recognition among wine enthusiasts with its famous Rabbit lever model, and now they have followed that with their less expensive model – the Houdini.

Just like its more expensive big brother, the Rabbit, the Houdini wine opener uses a pair of grip handles to hold to the wine bottle, and a lever-action to impale the wine cork and extract it from the bottle. It does this safely and securely with a simple pull and push of the lever. No more struggling to center the corkscrew tip, or twisting and pulling to extract the cork. And a lot less chance of wine spillage.

To use the Houdini, simply use the included wine foil cutter to remove the foil. Then place the Houdini over the wine bottle neck and grip the “rabbit ear” handles to hold the bottle. Pull the lever down and it drives a Teflon-coated corkscrew into the cork, then push the lever back to its starting position and it pulls the cork from the bottle. A lot easier than the twisting and yanking of traditional t-handle corkscrew. And even easier than the twisting and prying method of a waiters corkscrew. To retrieve the cork, just pull the lever to expose it and remove it from the corkscrew worm.

Just because it is less expensive than the Rabbit doesn’t mean the Houdini screwpull wine opener is “cheap”. Manufactured to meet the same high standards of all Metrokane wine accessory products, the Houdini has a 5-tear warranty. All Houdini openers include a handy acrylic storage tray that also hold the addition wine tools that come with it. They include a “twist” wine foil cutter, and an extra spiral corkscrew worm. There are several wine gift set models that include of to 6 additional wine accessories like; a wine drip-stop ring, wax button whacker, wine bottle sealer/stopper, and foil cutter. All the Houdini wine opener sets come in attractive gift boxes that serve as their storage box. The Houdini is available in the colors of; matte’-finish black and silver, glossy black and silver, metallic red, metallic blue, and candy red.

The Houdini retails from $39.99 to $59.99, (depending on accessories and sets), but nobody has to pay retail. You can expect to find the basic Houdini model with foil cutter and extra worm for $18 – $25, and the various wine opener gift sets for $25 – $39. A screwpull wine opener set like the Houdini would make a terrific gift for any wine lover, (even yourself), and with the dependability of a Metrokane wine opener, backed by a 5-year warranty, you can be sure it will be a gift appreciated each time its used in the years to come.

Chardonnay Wine is the most popular wine in the world today. Wine lovers in Australia, Netherlands, New Zealand, United States, Denmark and Belgium are enjoying this very versatile wine.

Chardonnay is made from the green-skinned grape variety used in the production of white wine, originating in eastern France, but is now grown wherever wine is produced from every part of the world.
Chardonnay has a wide-range reputation for ease of cultivation and ability to adapt to different conditions.

Harvesting time is crucial to wine making, with the grape rapidly losing acidity as soon as it ripens. Some hazards include the risk of damage from springtime frost, as Chardonnay is an early-budding vine.

The Chardonnay grape itself is very neutral, with many of the flavors from the mineral wines of Chablis, France. Chardonnay tends to be medium to light with flavors of green plum, apple, pear and oak. In warmer locations, such as Australia and New Zealand, the flavors become more citrus, peach, and melon. Warmer locations, like California, have more fig and tropical fruit flavors such as banana and mango.

Chardonnay is an important ingredient to many sparkling wines around the world, including Champagne. Very popular in the late 1980s, but wine enthusiasts saw the grape as a negative ingredient of the global growth of wine. It remains one of the most widely planted grape varieties worldwide. Chardonnay grapes are planted in more wine regions than any other grape – including Cabernet.

With food:

Due to the wide range of styles, Chardonnay is paired with a variety of food types. It is most commonly paired with roast chicken and other white meats. Heavily oak tasting Chardonnays do not pair well with fish and seafood. Instead, those wines tend to go better with smoked fish, spicy foods and foods with garlic. Chardonnays from Washington, which have more acidity, tend to pair well with tomato-based dishes and foods with sweet onions. Older, more mellow Chardonnays are often paired with more "earthy" dishes like aged cheese and mushrooms.

Although most famous for its, dry wines, Chardonnay is used to produce a variety of wine styles. The variety is put to use in sparkling wines all over the world, such as Champagne, when it is usually paired with Pinot Noir. Canada even produces sweet Chardonnay ice wines.

Chardonnay has been the fastest-growing white variety over the last decade.

The worst thing you can say about Chardonnay is that it's bland or over-oaked.

The wine industry is quite lucrative and if you are passionate about the area you definitely will be looking forward to land a good job in your area of interest. But one fact about wine jobs is that it can be very difficult to land a top job, especially without relevant experience even though you may have the papers. Those in business love hiring candidates who are familiar with the field and it would therefore be a very good idea to be willing to start small and even take an internship so you have the chance to gain some experience then start making your way to the top.

It is however still very possible for you to find wine jobs and land a good one. When you apply for a position and you are lucky enough to be called in for an interview, you should strive to be your best so you can increase your chances of being hired. Here are some of the do’s and don’ts that can help you get good results in a wine job interview.

The don’ts

Do not show up late. This is bad for any interview and it can rob you a good chance of standing out from the rest. It is best to make sure that you get there early enough in that you even have time to get composed and ready to give an impressive interview.

Do not wear perfume. This also goes for any other scented product you may think of using on the morning of the interview. Remember that wine has a lot to do with taste and smell and when you wear perfume, it will be interpreted to mean that you are not really a wine-savvy person. Keep it neutral.

Don’t badmouth other wineries. Just because you worked at a bad winery does not give you the right to bad mouth, it even if the people eccentric you feel the people there were or are. Badmouthing another winery only gives the interviewer the feeling that you will be doing the same for their business and it can’t be good.

Do not talk about the high end market. Just because a winery is high end does not necessarily mean that it only targets high end clientele. Doing so only makes you look elitist and it will not do you any favors getting the job.

The do’s

Research the winery. The more you know the winery the better you are in preparing for the interview and answering the questions or engaging the panel. Use social media pages and website to get as much basic information as you possibly can.

Dress appropriately. It can determine how seriously you are taken and it should be guided by the brand you are interviewing for. For instance, if you are going for an interviews in a family owned winery that is small or medium sized and they all wear jeans, choose a good shirt and jeans because a three piece suit would be an overkill. For ultra-premium winery, then a suit should be perfect.

Introduction:

In the northern part of the Philippines, coconut wine or tuba is referred to as Lambanog. It is made of pure sap (no bark mixed), milky white in color or almost colorless. It is usually consumed fresh as it easily turns sour. Some are distilled to make a harder and more potent alcoholic drink. In Visayas Islands, particularly in Leyte, tuba or coconut wine is made of coconut sap mixed with Barok (The bark of a red mangrove tree, and according to Wikipedia a red lauan tan bark tree) which serves as colorant and preservative that offset fermentation.

The step by step guide to making coconut wine or tuba wine:

• The tuba gatherer prepared bamboo containers. One kind of container serves as a receptacle, and the other kind is for the coconut sap to transfer to.
• The Barok is chopped into fine pieces and put it in a container that he can bring up the tree.
• The tuba gatherer climbs up the tree the first time and look for an unopened flower. He puts a handful of Barok into the bamboo receptacle, cuts the tip of the flower and attached the container to the flower and then ties it securely so it won’t fall down.
• Morning collection- The tuba gatherer climbs the tree carrying the bigger container on his shoulder. Then he untie the flower, transfer the juice to the bigger container and cleans the receptacle before attaching it back to the flower. Sometimes bees get into the container so he has to clean it first. One tree produces one liter of sap or more.
• In the afternoon, the tuba gatherer climb up the coconut tree again to cut the tip of the flower and put Barok into the receptacle before attaching it back to the flower, making it ready for the morning collection.

Fermentation and Distillation:

• After the coconut wine has been collected it is put in a container, preferably glass. Do not cover the container. Coconut wine is going to release some bubbles. Allow the bubbles to flow. Leave the container for about 3 to 4 days until the bubbles subside and sediment is thick.
• When the bubbles subside after the 3 or 4 days time, it is time to distill it. By using a small hose, transfer the wine to another glass container, leaving the sediment behind. Make sure not to move or shake the container so the sediment will stay intact. You can throw the sediment away. Always keep an extra wine reserved in another bottle to be used in refilling the main container, as you can see the wine will become less and less every time you remove the sediment. This will take another 5 days. You may cover the container at this point.
• After 5 days, you will see that the sediment is mostly gone. You may transfer it to another container one more time and fill it up to the neck and cover it tightly this time. After a few weeks, if you see some sediment, you may repeat the process. And after that you can leave the container alone for months, full and tightly covered. Just be sure to check for sediment once in a while.

Coconut wine that is distilled for less than a year is called Bahal. When it is distilled for one year or more, it is called Bahalina. The longer it is aged, the finer and mellower the taste is. A high pitch echoing ring when you tap the glass is a sign that the coconut wine is now mature or Bahalina.

If you want to read more story about coconuts you may check my Website and my Hubs.

There is nothing surreptitious about selling wine in a tasting room or at a tasting event; the visitor is there anticipating buying a new-found wine that will make life more pleasant. And tasting room staffs should understand–wine sales is not a debate forum; everybody has different taste and expectations. The visitor arrives with preconceived notions that they are predisposed to finding a wine in which they are emotionally enamored. At this point it is up to the tasting room staff to create the atmosphere that could be called the “romance of wine”.

How is an effective atmosphere created that encourages the purchase of wine? There are a lot of factors in creating atmosphere: the setting, visual ques, lighting, sounds, smells, temperature, staff interactions, marketing and of course brand identity. There is a lot of research about the science of psychology in selling, everything from the type of background music, ambience created from special lighting, even the smells that stimulate the senses. All the elements that make up a tasting room, knowingly or unwittingly, do impact a positive disposition toward a product (wine).

As an aside. Assume you bought a $40 bottle of Napa Valley wine that you truly enjoyed and wanted to visit that winery on a visit to Northern California. You have already conjured up in your mind what you expect that tasting room experience should be to you. Based solely on your experiences with the wine, the logo (branding) and the website (marketing). If that visit to the winery does not measure-up to expectations, you may not want to buy more wine from that winery. However, well trained and motivated staff can overcome many deficiencies in setting, ambiance, smells, sounds, etc.

If the tasting room experience does not support the brand and advertising message, there is a disconnect with the visitor and their willingness to bond with the product. Without an emotional connection, the sales function is almost an exercise in futility. Sales is not a dirty word or shady endeavor, it allows people to enjoy an experience, be informed, make buying decisions intelligently and, selling makes it possible for the wine enterprise to exist.

So, what should a winery tasting room be doing to maximize or improve their odds of a sale that allows visitors to be emotionally satisfied with the purchase? With wine, tasting room/direct to consumer selling is all about selling the sizzle and the steak. Wine is bought because it provokes imagination and emotional appeal, addresses a need/desire, and offers tangible benefits. Wine purchases (sales) are human senses working together to give a visitor an ah-has moment with a winemaker’s creation. Tasting room sales staff are there to guide the experience of the offered wines.

If a tasting room is going to be successful in their direct-to-consumer sales effort, the staff needs to be a host, counselor, educator and understand selling wine is about addressing the 5 senses. (Daven Hiskey in “Today I Found Out”, says there are really 9 senses.)

Ideally, Marketing and branding have lead the way for a visitor’s expectations. In the tasting room, the visitor is given the opportunity to touch and feel the brand and product and now it is time to get personally involved with the winery. This is the start and finish line of the actual sale process.

Having sat through or conducted, too many to count, sales seminars. There seems to be a standard blueprint for conducting sales meetings. The only difference may be that there are some nuances that are industry specific.

Looking at tasting room sales specifically, maybe we can tweak the diehard standard attributes of good sales practices and incorporate some current thinking.

Relative to tasting room staff: (We are assuming some consistency in personnel, which is a concern.)

• Know, or at least understand, the winemaking process from vineyard to the tasting room.
• Be familiar with and at least occasionally read wine blogs and have an opinion of their comments.
• Staff should not sound like they are spewing out facts based on rote; make the comments sound like fresh thoughts. For example, the Ritz Carlton Hotel group train their staff to respond to their guests in a fresh welcoming manner and are rated on always following that standard. It appears to them, “if it isn’t broke don’t fix it”.
• Engage the visitor; find out what they should expect by way or aroma’s and taste of the wine before they sample the wine. Ask if they are interested in a wine of a specific characteristic. Always direct expectations.
• Wine is never the cheapest or most expensive-it is either budget friendly or premium.
• If the visitor seems to be torn between what wine to buy, then offer them a “premium sample pack” at a multi-bottle discount.
• Offer the visitor a “private e-mail” address of the server staff because: “I want to hear how you liked our wine when you got home”.
• Try to get the visitors name so they can be communicated with on a first name basis. Use the introduction process to get information about their favorite varietal, or where they are from, how many wineries they have visited that day. People tasting a lot of wine in a compressed time frame will not get a good tasting experience for example; that is good to know up front.
• People like to be made comfortable at their level of wine experience. When comfortable in a buying experience, the visitor will be willing to buy wine because they were directed by staff who understood the experience level of the visitor. People never want to be talked down to or made aware of any deficiencies in their wine experiences.

Then the standard attributes of good sales attributes may include:

• Be passionate about the products/wines and know the wines first-hand and in one’s own words.
• Be a keen listener, do not interrupt visitors when they talk. Look at the visitor to indicate the server is interested.
• Understand the customers options.
• Sincerity breeds trust in product options and suggestions.
• Through actions and communications, make the customers feel they are getting value.
• Lead the purchaser to conclusions by employing a friendly smile and a personalized warm welcome. If they do not purchase still wish them well and “Cheers”.
• Don’t pressure customers, wine is an emotional/experience sale and not like selling a set of tires on a one day only sale. Persuade always and never pressure.

Selling wine to visitors at a winery’s tasting room as a winemaker or winery owner probably requires skill sets that are not common at senior management levels; there may be passion, but the psychology of the sale must be learned and developed through experience. For example, I know how a painter applies paint to a canvas, but I am not a painter and never will be a successful painter.

If selling wine successfully, direct to the tasting room visitor were easy, everybody would be doing such. Many are not doing it at a spectacularly high level of proficiency. A visitor who buys a wine is potentially a long-term customer and winery ambassador for life, because they have voted with their dollars that the connection they have with the winery is emotional. Now the task is to convert the visitor/buyer to join the wine club and be effective communicators with that customer going forward. Personal communications can be expensive and time consuming, but it can be rewarding with repeat sales.

“Selling is something we do for our visitors – not to our visitors,” said Zig Ziglar.

Cheers!

Imagine. You are hanging out with some friends. In the cupboard you have those bottles of wine you are “saving” for a special occasion. Suddenly you a an epiphany. If I don’t drink those bottles of wine now I never will! So you say, “Hey guys anyone interested in a bottle of gold medal winning wine I picked up last year in Sonoma?” Everyone says, “yes!” and is suddenly impressed by your class and taste. You get the wine from the cupboard and start your search for the wine opener….

Guess what? You can’t find it. In this situation, one in which I don’t have a tool handy that I absolutely need, I reach for my Leatherman Wave Multi Tool. But, the Wave doesn’t actually have a corkscrew on it. So what do you do? Well here is how you open a wine bottle using the Leatherman Wave:

1. Slide out the knife tool

2. Place position the knife in the center of the cork

3. Work the knife in to the cork with a back and forth motion.

4. Make sure the knife is deep in to the cork. The knife has to be as far in as it can go or this won’t work. I’ve done this many times and this is the step that if not done properly will cause this not to work.

5. Twist the Leatherman and slowly pull out at the same time.

If everything is done correctly the cork should come right out. Congratulations you are now a Leatherman Wave hero and not only do you have good taste in wine, you are resourceful and know how to get things done.

There are some people who wish they could bring a little glitz and glam to what they believe to be fairly mundane lives. They accessorize a bit with their wardrobe, add little touches of color & texture to their home décor, and they try to socialize in hip places like wine bars.

If you happen to have heard a scratched record sound just now, you wouldn’t be alone in being curious. In fact, It might not make any sense to you because the juxtaposition of wine in a bar setting just seems a bit too extreme. Bars are all about staying loose and having a cold mug of domestic beer. Yet, it might surprise you to know that wine bars have been a thing for quite a while.

As with most things that are a little different, the idea was born out a way to marry things that people love into one, cohesive unit. Everyone loves the convivial aspect of a bar, but they are also looking to keep things little more refined. Sipping on wine is about as cool & classy as it gets for many people. It was only a matter of time before the notion of a wine bar became popular.

But why are there so many of them? As with most things, there can be too much of a good thing, but wine bar proprietors have found the right mix by doing this:

Defined Sophistication with A Laid-Back Feel – Though most think of wine as being only for the super-rich or first-class elites, it really is an Everyman elixir. It’s refined in terms of the process of making it & enjoying it, but it doesn’t mean that it can’t be a social centerpiece.

Combined Rustic with Chic – Wine is an “old-world” product that fits beautifully with in any setting. Wine bars happily combine elements of rustic & chic decorations to create a nod to wine and its social & historical merit.

Made A Learning Experience Of It All – Patrons are genuinely interesting in learning about wine, and this pertains to how best to drink it, store it, and pair it with food. Wine bars are more than happy to bring this knowledge to the people.

Invited A Group Atmosphere – Too many places looking for a first-class model are quick to keep numbers from getting too big. Wine bars know that business model excludes too many folks, and that means less profit.

Major Players in Helping Support Local Businesses Grow Audience – Many local wineries & artisan food producers haven’t scored major distribution in larger venues. Luckily, many wine bars are quick to want to share local wines and fine foods with their customers because it really hammers home the idea of keeping things local & supporting local business all the way around.

Wine bars are nothing new, but their approach to business certainly is a breath of fresh air. Where many might have written off the idea of making wine seem easily accessible to the “Regular Joe” in us all too lowbrow, these settings understand that they want to invite the masses to know more about wine and why there is such a global appreciation for it.

Red wine is the purest and most loved liquor of the world. Red wine is preferred over other wines because of its various qualities that make it a cherished drink. It is rated very highly for being a health drink by some leading health bulletins. The alcohol content generally ranges between 12 to 15 %. The most common varieties of red wine are shiraz, pinot noir, merlot, zinfandel and cabernet sauvignon.

It is made of dark grapes, it takes intense violet color initially but later it takes red brick color as it matures with time. Its production is a long tedious process but it could be understood in short. This red color comes from the skin of the grapes which consists of anthocyanin pigments which give rich texture, taste, besides colour that attracts all. Red wine is given treatment at the winery during fermentation. The process starts with selected grapes going through stainless steel crushers and later preservatives are added which help on timely fermenting as well as maintain good quality and texture to the drink. Yeast is added and later is goes through the cooling process and then the pressing, the second transformation through microbiological takes place. This is a very important process in wine making. Later it is kept to mature and the process is called racking and ageing. The older the wine is the better quality it would be. Then fining is done to rectify any faults in post production of the wine. Wine is filtered and finally bottling takes place. Bottling is generally done in glass bottles with cork stoppers which give it a classic look.

Consumption of wine depends on the menu being served with it. Red wine is always preferred with heavy red meat and roasted, roasted, cuisine whereas white wine is taken with light snacks like fish and poultry items. Red wine is the most loved liquor or drinks in this universe for various reasons. The foremost reason is that it is good for health if taken in a moderate quantity. It lowers the cholesterol and its consumption prevents heart ailments and some form of cancer as well. As grapes contain antioxidants which prevent oxidative damage to our body and act as a preventive measure in many types of cancer. In a recently published journal is stated that intake of red wine lowers the blood sugar level. In women, if taken in small quantity, it can prevent type 2 diabetes and it lowers sex hormonal levels and protect against breast cancer. Thus we can make out why it is so highly rated by everyone, as it takes care of our heart which is the most important part of our body. Today’s life is full of stress and pressures and we take various measures to release stress including medicines which may have some side effects but your friend red wine can relieve stress and relax your nerves. Well if you catch a cold you do not have to take any specified medicine for it, just a regular glass of red wine will solve your problem. We do not have to think twice as it takes care of our health as a trusted doctor and friend.

Now on a lighter note, it is the most loved drink at dinner time, as it goes well with our cherished hot, spicy red meat. Intake of it with food helps in digestion of heavy food. Ladies are very particular of their looks and slim fit body and take some drastic measures to bring it back to shape. Many go for surgery, medication, yoga, aerobics, but for all this, we need time and guidance or it may backfire too. In such a case lovely ladies prefer to have an enjoyable glass of red wine and get rid of extra fat and toxins is their body.

We always want a true genuine friend in our life and red wine is our true companion and friend which gives us good health as well as gives us makes our dinner and life interesting and enjoyable. So “cheers” and enjoy our life.

Merlot wine is first class.

Not only does it command the highest respect in the wine world, Merlot also tastes great with food.

Merlot a dark blue-colored wine grape variety, that is used as both a blending grape and for a variety of wines. The name Merlot is thought to be the French name for the blackbird.

Merlot grapes are identified by their loose bunches of large blue berries. The color has less of a blue / black hue than Cabernet Sauvignon grapes and with a thinner skin. It normally ripens up to two weeks earlier than some other grapes .. Merlot grapes tend to have a higher sugar content and lower acidity. The wine has seems to claim some of it's best characteristics from its parent varieties-its fertility and easy ripening ability

Merlot thrives in cold soil, particularly ferrous clay. The vine tends to bud early which gives it some risk to cold frost and its thinner skin increases its susceptibility to the hazard of bunch rot. If bad weather occurs during flowering, the Merlot vine is prone to develop coulure.The vine can also be susceptible to mildew (though it has better resistance to powdery mildew than other Bordeaux varieties) and to infection by leafhopper insect varieties

Red fruits, easy tannins and a soft finish are the characteristics of Merlot wmerlotine. But there's more to Merlot than being smooth. It's actually a bit of a chameleon, partly because of where it's grown.

This flexibility has helped to make it one of the world's most planted grape varieties.

France is home to nearly two thirds of the world's total plantings of Merlot but is grown in regions all over the world.

Cool climate Merlot wine carries flavors like tobacco and tar.

Warm climate Merlot wine is more fruit-forward. Producers use oak-treatment of up to 24 months to give their Merlot wine more structure.

A classic example of hot climate Merlot is California Merlot, such as Paso Robles and Napa Valley.

Merlot is essential to the most famous wine region in the world -Bordeaux.

Food pairing with Merlot:

Merlots pair well with grilled and charred meats. Fruitier Merlots go well with dishes like salmon, mushroom-based dishes and greens like chard and radicchio. Light-bodied Merlots can go well with shellfish like prawns or scallops. Merlot tends not to go well with strong and blue-veined cheeses that can overwhelm the fruit flavors of the wine.