According to a very recent news report from Reuters, in the next 5 years the United States is expected to overtake France as the world’s largest wine market according to a study conducted by VinExpo organizers.The study predicted that U.S. consumption of still wine, that is, not sparkling wine, would rise to 721.2 million gallons, in 2010 from 23 million in 2005.

That would exceed French consumption, which is predicted to fall to 24.9 million hectoliters from 27.4 million.

I’m not entirely sure this surprises me given the population of the United States and the quick growing trend that we call wine. Whether it is because of the health values that are associated with it, or the fact that wine is no longer just something for the posh, wine consumption in the United States in my opinion would naturally exceed that of France given the correct amount of time.

I, not being a native to North Carolina, was not aware that there was a wine industry there worth merit. However, after reading an article this morning online I have been corrected and quite surprised to find that North Carolina is the 10th largest wine producing state in the United States.

According to The Business Journal online, a study by Gov. Mike Easley was released stating that the wine and grape industry contributes $813 million a year to the economy of North Carolina. There are 55 wineries in 31 counties and is continuing to grow.

The study found that the state’s wine and grape industry, along with affiliated businesses, creates 5,700 full-time jobs and $158 million in wages. The industry also pays annually $56 million in federal taxes, $38 million in state and local taxes and $2 million on wine excise taxes. But this didn’t stop North Carolina wineries from being host to more than 800,000 visitors in 2005.

Borrowed this from news.com.au and thought it was interesting.Members of the World Wine Trade Group, an informal body of government and industry representatives from Australia, the US, Canada, New Zealand, Argentina, Chile and South Africa, signed a treaty yesterday to standardise label placement requirements for mandatory product information.

The agreement means each country will have the same rules for the placement of information such as country of origin, product name, net contents and alcohol content on wine labels.

Existing laws in each country often require producers to print different front and back labels for each export market.

Under the new protocol, wineries will be able to print a single front label regardless of the market, saving on design, printing and production costs.

While labels on the back of the bottle will still need to be different for each export market, Winemakers Federation of Australia spokesman Simon Birmingham said Australian wineries would save a total of $25 million a year once the new measures were in place, anticipated in 2008.

Mr Birmingham said the WFA hoped to use the protocols as a model for agreements with other wine markets.

Not sure how this will affect us as wine consumers, but I assume the biggest advantage will be being able to recognise that bottle of wine you had in Australia on the shelf at you local liquor store. So good news all around!

Just a quick announcement that our Designer Series Wine Racks have changed a little bit. We no longer carry our racks in Mahogany, but we have added some new woods including Poplar and Oak so instead of having 3 woods/finishes you now have 8 to choose from. Be sure to check them out!

Found this on uncork.com.au and thought I would pass it along as it’s pretty interesting

DUMB: Characteristic description of a young wine with yet-to-develop aromas and flavours. A synonym for “closedin”. Named so because it seems “unable to speak”.

BACKWARD: Describes a wine that retains youthful characteristics despite considerable aging. This usually indicates that it will take longer to reach maturity and requires even more aging in the bottle or barrel.

VANILLIN: A component contributed by the oak. Considered to add a degree of “sweetness” to red wines when present in barely detectable amounts, so adding to a desirably complex style. Different from VANILLA which you usually just pick up when smelling the wine.

BRIARY: Denotes a wine having an aggressive, prickly taste best described as “peppery”. Sometimes combined with the adjective “brawny” to characterize a young red wine with high alcohol and tannin content.

ASCESCENCE: “Ascescence” is the term used to mark the presence of acetic acid and ethyl acetate. Detected by sweet and sour, sometimes vinegary smell and taste along with a sharp feeling in the mouth.

BREED: Term reserved for wines from the best grape varieties, the socalled “noble grapes”. Denotes wines judged to have reached classical expectations of aroma, balance, structure and varietal character.

HOT: Defines a wine high in alcohol and giving a prickly or burning sensation on the palate. Accepted in fortified wines, but not considered as a particularly desirable attribute in Cabernet Sauvignon or Chardonnay. Positively undesirable in light, fruity wines, (eg: Rieslings).

LEGS referred to as TEARS: We know about legs, but not about tears. Term used when referring to the liquid rivulets that form on the inside of a wineglass bowl after the wine is swirled in order to evaluate the alcohol concentration present. Usually the higher the alcohol content, the more impressive the rivulets appear because of reduced surface tension effects. (Some still cling to the erroneous belief that glycerin content causes these rivulets).

There is good news out here for people under the impression that alcohol kills brain cells. In fact, the consumption of alcohol doesn’t ‘kill’ brain cells, rather it just makes the new cells grow less quickly. The fallacy that alcohol kills brain cells go as far back as the early parts of the 19th century when temperance campaigners wanted to have all types of alcohol banned.

Scientists have done studies with both alcoholics and non with the results showing no difference between the overall numbers of neurons in either group of people. Other studies have actually shown that moderate drinking can in fact improve overall cognition and there was even a study done in Sweden that showed mice who were given alcohol grow more brain cells than those that were not.

Your brain feels nothing, even if you stuck a knife in it, so a hang over is not physically your brain hurting. A hang over comes from your brain shrinking from dehydration causing tugging on the covering membrane which is what becomes sore.

People often wonder if they are allowed to bring their own wine while travelling onboard an airplane especially if they are bringing their own sandwich or something else to eat. The answer to this is that while you might be allowed to bring a bottle or two of wine with you onboard an airplane (the Federal Aviation Administration does not specifically prohibit you from bringing wine onboard but individual airlines might have different rules) you won’t be able to open it or serve it to yourself. The FAA states that all wines consumed onboard an airplane must be served by airline personnel.

Here’s a little known fact, even though it is considered “America’s grape” zinfandel has it’s origins in Croatia. The first grapes did not arrive in the United States until 1820 according to wine historian Charles Sullivan. The grapes arrived in Long Island after George Gibbs brought cuttings back from the imperial collection plant species in Vienna. Today, thanks to the gold rush in California there is more zinfandel there than anywhere else in the world.

On of the hardest courses to match with wine without a doubt has to be the soup course. From a texture point of view, matching a liquid with a liquid is not an easy feat regardless of what you are serving. Soups that are a thick puree or one with lots of chunky ingredients can handle being paired with wine but don’t even try to pair a consommé or a broth based soup! Why? Because both of those will have a very hard time differentiating themselves from wine. Because the bubbles will set it apart from a broth, serving Champagne or sparkling wine is your best bet. The citrus flavour and acidity profile make it a versatile partner from minestrone to wonton soup. Bon Appetite!