Summer is winding down, so what better way to celebrate than with some wine. As the temperatures cool, it is especially appropriate to transition from white to red.
Today (August 28) marks National Red Wine Day, so there’s no time like the present. Let’s learn some fun facts about wine before we delve into where to get pours that won’t make you poor.
How is wine made?
Winemaking seems deceptively simple on paper, but that doesn’t mean it’s an easy undertaking.
The core ingredients are grapes and yeast, but a thousand decisions have to be made along the way: When to harvest the grapes, how to sort them, how to crush them, and whether to add additional yeasts and sulfites are just some of the questions that winemakers have to answer during the process.
After the grapes are harvested and crushed, the yeast feeds on the juice. This creates ethanol and carbon dioxide gas.
To make white wine, the skins are typically removed from the juice right away. Red wine gets its color from extended contact with the skins.
Who invented wine?
The truth is, no one really knows. The leading theory among historians is that wine was one of those happy-accident inventions.
Early humans were nomadic and would gather fruits such as grapes to eat. Grapes that were not consumed immediately fermented, and the rest is history.
Pottery found in ancient Georgia dating back to around 6000 BCE had traces of wine in it. Similarly, in Armenia, archaeologists believe the presses, seeds, jars, and vines found in the Areni-1 cave are from around 4100 BCE.
The Phoenicians, ancient seafarers, helped spread wine around the Mediterranean basin. The ancient Egyptians used wine in rituals. And Greek colonization helped spread wine to Italy.
During the Roman Empire, wine was democratized and accessible even to the common people. Grapes were planted throughout the vast empire. After its collapse, Christian monasteries helped continue the tradition. Wine has been an important beverage throughout history and remains so today.
National Red Wine Day deals
Now that we know the history and how wine is made, it’s time to swirl our glasses at a tasting or two.
- Hitching Post Wines in Buellton, California, is offering two-for-one tastings on pinot noir flights (samplings), so grab a friend. Afterward, you can head to the Hitching Post II, the restaurant next door, where scenes from the 2004 movie Sideways were filmed. Paul Giamatti’s character, Miles, would prefer if you didn’t ask for merlot.
- No matter what your location is, Becker Vineyards has you covered with a virtual tasting. The action took place on Facebook Live on Wednesday, but you can still catch the replay.
- The Hotel Biron, a wine bar and art gallery in San Francisco, wants to feed you delicious organic vegetarian food by VegOLicious. All you have to do is buy a glass of red wine.
- Hannah Nicole Winery, located in Brentwood, California, is offering 35% off all red wines. This even includes their reserves. If you can’t make it to their physical location, you can have it shipped.
- Perhaps the most unusual offering on this list comes from the Marquis Restaurant & Lounge in Atlanta, Georgia. This hot spot is located above the Cascade Skating Rink. On the big day, they are offering red wine specials from 11:30 p.m. to 2:30 a.m.
Whether you celebrate on roller skates or two feet, cheers to vino!