August 6th - This Date in Wine History

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Alban Hills by Louis Gurlitt

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Wine has a long established history of being our drink of choice for celebrating, entertaining, and savoring life; but it didn't start out that way. From the invention of the barrel to the designation of the separate viticultural areas, wine has a long and sorted history.  In our daily feature This Date In Wine History, we share an event of critical importance in wine history. 

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• Ben Jonson, the English poet died in 1637.  After the death of Henry IV of France, Jonson decided to re-join the Church of England and showed his renunciation of the Catholic faith by drinking a full chalice of Communion wine which at the time was supposed to only be drunk by the priests.
• The Colli Albani DOC and Marino DOC were created in 1970.  These wines come from the Alban hills outside of Rome in Lazio.