Tag: Wine

Choose A Wine For Your Meal And Order It Online

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If you want to throw a dinner party for family and friends what food and wine would you serve? Many of us get confuse with which wine to pair with which food? It is really not that difficult, but at times even experts make mistakes with doing so. The key to knowing what food to club with what wine is, heavier meals and sauces require bigger wine to match their weight and lighter meals and sauces will require lighter and more subtle wines. Here are a few suggestions;

What appetizer to match with what wine?

If The Appetizer is

* Spicy & Creamy : Sharp, young, light-to-medium bodied fruity whites or reds

* Salty & Creamy : Light-to-medium bodied fruity whites or Champagne

* Smoky & Tangy : Light-to-medium bodied reds

* Salty & Crunchy : Crisp, dry sparkling wines

* Sweet & Spicy: Fruity, dry whites

* Meaty & Creamy : Medium-bodied fruity reds with soft tannins

* Sweet & Pungent : Young, light-bodied fruity rose, whites or red

What food to match with what wine?

* With Vegetarian you can have any wine mentioned below

* With Beef you can have Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot Noir or Chianti

* With Cheeses you can have Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon

* With Chicken you can have Chardonnay, Zinfandel, Merlot

* With Fish you can have Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, fruity reds

* With Lamb you can have Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Zinfandel, Pinot Noir, Chianti, Barolo

* With Pasta you can have Reds

* With Pork you can have Merlot, Zinfandel, Beaujolais

* With Turkey you can have Beaujolais, Zinfandel, Riesling, Gewurztraminer, Pinot Noir

* With Veal you can have Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Blanc, Barolo, Chianti, Syrah

What wine to serve after dinner?

After you have had your meal you can end by having or serving a port or a chocolate dessert wine.

Now that you have a whole list of food items and wine that can be paired together, you can successfully throw your dinner party and can even order wine online now to make it easier. Just in case you are worried about getting the right type of wine you need, all you have to do now is click your mouse and order wine online. To begin with you can always visit www.holidaywinecellar.com where you can order wine online (San Francisco). Holidaywinecellar.com accepts payment through American Express, MasterCard, Visa, and Discover.

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Carbohydrates In Wine

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First, researchers say one to two (and no more) drinks of wine is beneficial to your heart and brain health. The wine contains antioxidants that have reported benefits for years. The alcohol itself has positive benefits in moderation. While you could get this second benefit from beer or hard alcohol as well, you lose the antioxidants. Second, wine is a food drink.

One suggestion as to why some of these antioxidants are present in red wines is that grapes that have been distressed during their growth will exhibit the highest level of antioxidants. Red-skinned grapes seem to have better growing success in less temperate climates but exhibit the effects of stressful weather conditions in the form of higher levels of resveratrol. Before all you wine enthusiasts start shouting, “I told you so!” let me point out that many of the same antioxidant benefits can also be found in dark beers, too.

White wines can be found in several varieties, and these can range in calories and carbohydrates significantly. Though most white wines contain between 100 and 120 calories per five-ounce glass, some can run as high as 217. Grams of carbohydrates per glass can vary even among those wines with similar caloric content. If you are concerned about the calories in white wine, you’ll want to examine the specific type of wine for more insight.

So, what about carbohydrates? Many nutritionists may not think a lot about low-carbohydrate diets. However, in case you’re following one of these faddish plans, then you may find it difficult to fit in much wine. The amounts may differ, but a 5-ounce serving of dry white table wine can consist of 1.25 grams of carbohydrates, whereas a glass of red can go up to 2.5 grams and sweet wines may have considerably more

According to Atkins refined carbohydrates, in particular sugar and flour, are the main cause of obesity. He also felt that saturated fat was not a major nutritional problem, and was much less a factor in developing vascular disease than the trans fats often found in hydrogenated oils. At the risk of oversimplifying, this diet tells you to cut the carbs and not worry about dietary fat. It also recommends nutritional supplements and exercise.

Good carbohydrates are high in fiber or high in good fats, and have a low glycemic index, which means they are digested and absorbed slowly. Preferred carbohydrates have more nutritional value than the alternatives. The South Beach Diet allows brown rice in moderation, but discourages white rice. When you eat carbohydrates, you should also eat fiber or fat to slow digestion of the carbohydrates.

One drawback of the Zone Diet is the need to measure your food intake quite precisely. The food groups are broken into ‘blocks’ subdivided into ‘mini-blocks’. A typical meal might involve one block of Carbohydrates, composed of three mini-blocks such as 1 cup of green beans, 2 cups of yellow squash, and 1 glass of red wine. As with many diets, you should buy a specialized cookbook. Let’s talk about the pros and cons of this diet.

Different types of grapes and different strains of grapes are responsible for the production of different types of wines. Apples and berries are also utilized for the preparation of wines and the wines obtained are named after the name of the fruit like apple wine or elderberry wine or are popularly name as fruit wine or country wine. Barley and rice wine are prepared from the starch based materials and resemble beer and spirit more than wine and ginger wine is fortified with brandy.

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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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Storing your Wine

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Wine consumption has become more and more popular over the years. As they say older the wine the better it tastes, storing and preserving wine properly is very essential.

Storing a wine in a right way can lead to euphoria while in a wrong way can lead to depression. Drinking wine from a bottle while has been poorly stored can be a letdown. Poorly stored wine can taste like vinegar.

Factors to consider while storing a wine bottle are humidity, temperature, lighting, the cleanliness of your storage area and the angle at which the bottle is kept on the rack. The temperature is one of the most important factors and you should maintain around 50 degrees at all times. Avoid sudden temperature changes and if any change in temperature occurs make sure it happens slowly. The wine should be ok as long as the temperature does not rise too much and if the temperature fluctuates slowly.

To maintain proper humidity is also very important. Try to maintain 70% of humidity and its ok if it goes above or below this level by 10%. In high humidity the label can easily rot and affect the value of the wine. On the other hand if the humidity is too low it could shrink the cork and bring air into the wine which can completely ruin the wine.

Light causes wine to age prematurely so make sure you store your wine bottle out of light. It’s best to store wine in a dark location. Also if the wine stays in contact with the cork it doesn’t dry out. If wine doesn’t stay in contact with the cork then the cork could dry out and let air into the wine bottle. Keeping wine bottle at the right angle so that the wine is always in contact with the cork is important.

To maintain the quality of your wine it is very important to consider all the above mentioned factors while storing it. Take proper care while storing your wine and you are sure to enjoy it for several years. It is not a difficult task but just needs a little more care and attention.

 

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17 things About Wine

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You might think you like wine, sipping the occasional glass of fruity Pinot in glorious sunshine or cuddling up with a bottle of cabernet Shiraz on a cold winter night, but how much do you actually know about the tasty tipple we all so regularly indulge in.you like wine, sipping the occasional glass of fruity Pinot in glorious sunshine or cuddling up with a bottle of cabernet Shiraz on a cold winter night, but how much do you actually know about the tasty tipple we all so regularly indulge in. Finish the test and see that you can answer all of wine questions below. Then use them on your friends and show off how knowledgeable you are.

1. When did winemaking begin? The Mesopotamians were credited with producing the first wines in 6000 B.C.

2. Where was the world’s oldest bottle of wine was found? Germany.

3. How much wine is in a bottle? Generally a bottle of wine measures the liquid in milliliters, with 750 ml being the standard amount in most bottles (or about 25 fluid ounces).

4. How many grapes does it take to make your average bottle of wine? It takes about 2 ½ pounds (about eight bunches) of grapes to make a bottle of wine.

5. How many gallons of wine are produced from one acre of grapevines? About 800.

6. How many varieties of wine grapes exist in the world today? Over 10,000.

7. How many grapevines generally make up an acre? 400.

8. How many acres of vines are there in the World? Wine grapes are the single most widely planted fruit crop. There are 20 million acres of grapes planted worldwide.

9. What is wine made up of? Wine Composition: 86% water, 11.2% alcohol, 2.8% other. Over 250 compounds have been identified in “other”. That is why wine making is an art and not a science.

10. How many calories are in a four ounce glass of red wine Approximately 85.

11. Approximately how many bubbles are in a bottle of Champagne? 49 Million.

12. When was the corkscrew designed? Mid-1800’s.

13. How far can a champagne cork travel? The longest recorded champagne cork flight was 177 feet and 9 inches.

14. How much pressure is there in a champagne bottle? The pressure in a champagne bottle is typically between 70 and 90 pounds per square inch. That’s two to three times the pressure in your car’s tyre, about the same as in a double-decker bus’ tyre.

15. Why does a wine bottle have an indentation in the bottom? The purpose of the indentation at the bottom of a wine bottle is to strengthen the structure of the bottle.

16. Does wine turn to vinegar with age? No, old wine almost never turns to vinegar. It spoils by oxidation.

17. How much wine does the biggest wine bottle hold? Nebuchadnezzar is the largest wine bottle and holds 15 litres or 120 glasses of wine.

 

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