Brushing up on our wine knowledge (written by our Resident Wino)

Common Wine Myths:

1.       Wine Snobs know tons about wine.

HA! Like snobs in any category they’re just trying to make you feel dumb before they can look dumb. People who know anything about wine know there is an overwhelming amount of information out there and would be patient with your confusion and questions.

I am not saying I do not mock Carly when she drops ice cubes in her wine or sigh heavily when I see friends drinking cheap pink wines. But what I do after I am done rolling my eyes is offer an alternative. Good info to have – whisky rocks (flavorless stones people freeze and drop in whisky so not to water down with ice cubes) go a long way in a glass of un-chilled wine. And for you pink wine drinkers – the wine industry has made a number of sweet wine alternatives like sweet Rieslings, moscatos, and red blends to let you keep it secret you haven’t moved on to dry wines yet.

2.       You’re allergic to the sulfites in wine.

You’re wine headaches are (probably) not from the sulfites. Unless you also get headaches from raisins, prunes, or other dried fruit – which have tons more sulfites – that is probably not the cause of your headache.

Here’s what it could be:               

Dehydration is an obvious one.  Like any alcohol you drink it will leave you dehydrated if you are not having water between or after your wine drinking. Another possibility that ties in to that is alcohol sensitivity – table wines have 12-15% alcohol which is much more than your average beer.

More of a vodka on the rocks/gin martini/Jack and Coke kind of girl/guy? Than it probably is a histamine issue. I have found this to be relatively common in people who have seasonal allergies. You know how your Claratin D box says “do not take with alcohol”? Part of it is because it’ll knock you on your ass. The other part is that there are histamines in wine and ANTIhistamines in allergy meds. Wine from grapes which are plants which start as a blooming flower – pollen and histamines can turn in to a headache.

BUT REALLY!!! DON’T LET THIS STOP YOU! Drink more water, limit your intake and if the headaches persist go for lighter and less tannic wine like white wines and some Pinot Noirs – they tend to go easier on allergy sufferers.

3.       Alcohol is bad for you!

There’s a saying that goes “Even sunshine burns if you have too much.” I only encourage responsible drinking … moderation… don’t drive… don’t do it under age… I won’t keep going because I am not your mom. The important thing to know is that most studies show moderate, responsible drinking is actually pretty good for you.

Red wine consumption is shown to help women lose weight. This is for a few reasons but first is that women are likely to replace their food calories with their wine calories and end up eating fewer unhealthy foods… whereas men will drink their calories and then go on and eat everything they were planning to eat anyway.  Wine also has many antioxidants that will help kick start your metabolism. Pinot Noir has the most of these antioxidants (the same that is found acai) and sweeter and white wines have the least of it.

There’s also a study that has resulted in my favorite findings outside of cures for diseases. Have 1-2 servings of alcohol a day helps you live longer. Hang on. Let it sink in. People who drink in moderation will live longer than those who do not drink at all. But people who drink too much will still not live as long as non-drinkers and moderate drinkers. And no – you cannot save ALL your drinks for Friday night.

           Phew!!! Thats enough myth busting for today!!!
           But lets do something fun for WIN IT WEDNESDAY!
           Carly and Lindsay have a FUN wine night coming up on April 22nd in Davenport.
           I am bummed that I can't make it, but here is what I will do....giveaway a drink!!!

           To enter: please comment below with your answer to the following question:

          Do you love red wine (like Carly) or white wine (like Lindsay)?

          We will pick a random winner tonight! WOOHOO!