Food & Wine — Wine Blog

As Americans approach a wine-filled season of festivity, it might be interesting to learn how the rest of the world celebrates wine. Wine festivals date back to the Ancient Greeks’ celebration of Dionysis, the god of wine. The passage of time has led to many variations in these celebrations. Many are still centered around religious observations, but some have jumped into the new millennia with gusto. These observances run the gamut from religious themes to beauty pageants to Bacchanalian wine-soaked parties. But, they have one thing in common: reverence for the grape. This non-exhaustive list of festivals around the world...

  Most wine drinkers know that wine bottle shapes are loosely related to the elixir inside, but the exact meaning behind that connection is rarely understood. Burgundy, Bordeaux or Alsace — the vessel shapes are familiar. How and why they became that way is less known. In ancient times, wine was fermented and stored in earthenware jugs coated in beeswax, or in amphorae. As the Roman empire expanded and amphorae proved too delicate to bounce in wagons over good Roman roads, wooden wine barrels were used both for the making and transport of wine. Thus it remained for millennia, until...

Following family tradition, PR Bottle Shop's founder Christina Coulourides has been involved in the wine industry for over 40 years. She shares her expertise below and her approach to wine as an essential part of life. Q & A with Christina Coulourides What is your favorite wine quote and why? “Wine is one of the agreeable and essential ingredients of life.” Julia Child. Julia Child continues to be an inspiration, teaching Americans how to enjoy food and wine thereby enhancing lifestyle. Often her message is delivered humbly, seasoned with humor. What sparked your interest in wine? In the 1980s when the California...

When travelers come to wine country, they are first greeted by neatly trellised vineyards repeating at various angles to the passing landscape. This topiary-like vision is not just for the delight of visitors. The method to this geometric madness originates from how a grapevine captures the sun’s energy. Left to its own devices, the vitis vinifera, or wine grape, grows and vines with reckless abandon, climbing over anything in its path to reach blessed sunlight. From rootstock to tendril, the plant has many essential structures. These are nurtured, controlled, enhanced, or tamed by skilled growers through vineyard row direction, pruning,...