February 26 - This Date in Wine History

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.

• Samuel Pepys drank a draft of wormwood wine with Sir William Batten at the Steelyard in 1662.

• Musician Jonathan Cain was born in 1950. He is owner of Finale Wines in Sonoma County.

• California's Fair Play AVA was designated in 2001.

• Oregon and Washington's Walla Walla Valley AVA was designated in 2001.

February 15th - This Date in Wine History

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.

• King John of England (known as Lackland) invaded La Rochelle, France in 1214.  John was known as a connoisseur of jewels and his love of bad wine.

• Gotthold Ephraim Lessing died in 1781.  He was a German writer, philosopher, dramatist and art critic. He died during a visit to the wine dealer Angott in Brunswick.

• Ernest Shackleton, antarctic explorer was born in 1874.  During his Nimrod Expedition of 1907-1909 he packed 1600 lbs of “finest York hams,” 1260 lbs of sardines, 1470 lbs of tinned bacon, 408 lbs of ox tongues, 384 lbs of sheep tongues, 144 lbs of pork tongue.  For beverages, he included 25 cases of whisky, six bases of brandy, 6 cases of Champagne and 3 cases of Port.

• Drink some Red, Red Wine, Ali Campbell of UB 40 was born in 1959.

February 11th - This Date in Wine History

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.

• Emperor Claudius’ heir Britannicus is thought to have been poisoned by Nero in AD 55 by poisoning the water used to cool Britannicus’ wine.  The water had been previously tasted and found safe.

• Carl Michael Bellman, a Swedish composer, musician, poet, and songwriter died in 1795.  He is best known for Fredman’s songs and Fredman’s epistles which included themes of pleasure, drunkenness and sex.

• Lydia Maria Child was born in 1802.  She was an abolitionist, novelist, and activist for women’s and native American rights.  She is famous for writing “Over the River and Through the Wood” and the American Frugal Housewife which included recipes for food and cures that include wine as well as for wines themselves.

• The term Eiswin was coined on this day in 1830 to describe the wines of the 1829 harvest in Bingen-Dromersheim. 

• William Thomas Brande died in 1866.  A chemist, he was the first to be able to calculate the alcohol content of  wine, cider and ale.  He also believed that distilled spirits were toxic, while wine and beer, wholesome.

• Seyssel AOC was named in 1942.

February 2nd - This Date in Wine History

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.

• "Wein, Weib und Gesang" ("Wine, Women and Song"), Op.333 by Johann Strauss II was performed for the first time in 1869.

• Teinturier Mâle grapes that had been grown from the J.T. Doyle, Experimental Plot in Cupertino were checked for the last time in 1891.  The wine was bright, with good color, no bouquet, slight acetic smell, and of fair quality.”  (It was reared with electricity in April and had deteriorated since then.)

• Tom Smothers of the Smothers Brothers was born in 1937.  He owns Remick Ridge Vineyards in Sonoma.

• Spain's Méntrida DO and Ribeiro DO was created in 1976.

• New Mexico's Middle Rio Grande Valley AVA was published in the Code of Federal Regulations  in 1988.

February 1st - This Date in Wine History

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.

•  "He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored" The Battle Hymn of the Republic is first published in 1862.

• In 1888, New York City Excise Board Commissioner revoked licenses for individuals with licenses to sell beer, ale and wine for selling “spirituous liquors”.

• The California Agricultural Experiment Station reports that the wine from Ploussard grapes from J.T. Doyle’s experimental plot in Cupertino was checked.  The lees were found to contain much lactic ferment in 1890.

• It is the feast day of Saint Tryphon. He was from Campsada in Phrygia (Turkey) and is the Eastern Orthodox patron saint of gardeners and winegrowers. His head is located in the Cathedral of St. Tryphon in Kotor, Montenegro.

January 25th - This Date in Wine History

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.

• Francis I of France was crowned in 1515.  He undertook many construction projections, including the Chateau at Fontainebleau which included a fountain that  sprayed watered wine.

• The State of Maine in 1871 revised their weights and measures to include a bushel, half bushel, peck, half peck, ale quart, wine gallon, wine half gallon, wine quart, wine pint, wine half pint, and wine gill.

• Maria Louise Ramé died in 1908.  The grand-daughter or a wine merchant, she was an English novelist better known as Ouida.

• French Football star, David Ginola was born in 1967.  He is in partnership with the Coste Brulade co-op at Puget-Ville in the Côtes de Provence in the Coste Brulade winery.

• “I Heard It Through the Grapevine,” by Marvin Gaye was the number one song in 1969.

December 27th - This Date in Wine History

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.

• Guillaume Du Fay, the Franco- Flemish Renaissance composer first identified as the Canon of Cambrai in documentation when he received 36 lots of wine for the feast of St. John the Evangelist in 1440.

• The Methuen Treaty, that established the wine trade between Portugal and England was signed in 1703. This gave Britons access to Portuguese wine during war with France.

• Louis Pasteur, French chemist and microbiologist who demonstrated that microorganisms contaminated fermenting beverages thus allowing him to invent the process of "pasteurization" was born in 1822.

• French actor, Gérard Depardieu was born in 1948.  He also owns Chateau de Tigne in Anjou, Loire Valley, France but also owns vineyards in Bordeaux, Languedoc, Algeria, Argentina, Morocco, Spain, Sicily and the United States.

• The Valpolicella DOC designation was established in 1990.  It is made in the Italian region of Verona.

• The Australian Geographical Indications "The Peninsulas” "Far North” "Fleurieu" "Limestone Coast” and"Mount Lofty Ranges" were registered in 1996.

• National Fruitcake Day (Fruitcake is preserved with brandy or fortified wines).

December 16th - This Date in Wine History

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.

• Catherine of Aragon was born in 1485. After the birth of her first child, Henry, Duke of Cornwall was born guns were fired, bells were rung, fires lit and free wine was given to the public.

• George Whitefield, one of the founders of Methodism and the evangelical movement was born in 1714.  He was the son of an inn keeper who was “bred to the wine-trade” at least according to The General Assembly’s Missionary Magazine.

• Barbe Nicole Ponsardin born in 1777, she is the future Veuve Cliquot.

• Birthday of Noël Coward in 1899 who wrote: The air is like a draught of wine. The undertaker cleans his sign, The Hull express goes off the line, When it's raspberry time in Runcorn. in On With the Dance, 'Poor Little Rich Girl’.

December 14th - This Date in Wine History

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.

• George Washington died in 1799.  He was a member of the Virginia’s House of Burgesses from 1758-1765.  He plied the voters with 170 gallons of rice punch, beer, wine, hard cider and brandy.

• Pierre-Cécile Puvis de Chavannes the French painter was born in 1824.  He is known for his work, The Wine Press.

• ‘I heard it Through the Grapevine’ by Marvin Gaye was #1 on the charts in 1968.

• Spain's Conca de Barberá DO was created in 1989.

• Chile's Declaration of Appellations was approved in 1994.

• Oregon's Applegate Valley AVA was designated in 2000.

November 27th - This Date in Wine History

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.

• Roman poet, soldier and senator, Quintus Horatius Flaccus, known as Horace died in 8 BC.  He is known for odes such as “Nunc est bibendum, nunc pede libero pulsanda tellus” or “Now is the time to drink, now the time to dance footloose upon the earth.” FYI, the symbol of the French tire  company, Michelin is named Bibendum.

• Guillaume Du Fay, the Franco- Flemish Renaissance composer died in 1474.  He is noted as the Canon of Cambrai in documentation when he received 36 lots of wine for the feast of St. John the Evangelist.

• Illinois' Shawnee Hills AVA was designated in 2006.

• Oregon's Chehalem Mountains AVA was designated in 2006.

October 15th - This Date in Wine History

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.

• Virgil born today in 70 BCE wrote the Georgics, whose second volume deals with viticulture matters and includes a description of early ice wines.

• Flemish painter, Simon de Vos, died in 1676.  His paintings often depict people at social gatherings with wine, such as the “Wedding at Cana” and “Gathering of Smokers and Drinkers”.

• Mata Hari the Dutch courtesan, dancer and spy was executed by firing squad in 1917.  While she was awaiting execution she was brought a steady supply of champagne and meals from nearby restaurants.

• ‘Red Red Wine’ by UB40 was number 1 on the charts in 1988.

• Today is Pennsylvania Wine Day.

September 27th - This Date in Wine History

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.

• The anniversary of the death of Walter, abbott of Westminster, who died in 1191. The celebration was required to provide 5 gallons of wine for each friar attending.

• Jean François Champollion deciphers the Rosetta Stone.  It contains records from Ptolemy V including donations of wine to temples and vineyard harvests.

• Jimmy Dorsey and his orchestra enjoy the #1 hit Blue Champagne in 1941.

• Valle de Guimar DOC was created 1996.

• Happy California Wine Month!

September 25th - This Date in Wine History

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.

• “Wine, Women And Loud Happy Songs" (Larry Kingston) and recorded by Ringo Starr was released in 1970

• Spain's Terra Alta DO was created in 1985

• The Cirò DOC was created in 1989

• It is the feast day of Saint Cadoc.  An Angel announced his birth and a well sprang from his baptism and flowed with wine and milk.

• Happy California Wine Month!

September 15th - This Date in Wine History

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.

• One of the first known serial killers, Gilles de Rain was taken into custody in 1440.  Young victims were dressed in expensive clothing, given an extravagant meal and hippocras, a sweetened, spiced wine before being tortured, murdered and dismembered.

• The movie, Wine of Youth was released in 1924.

• Sherry, by The Four Seasons hits number one in the US.

• Happy California Wine Month!

• The French have a saying, “La rosée de Saint-Albin est, dit-on, rosée de vin.” or The dew of St. Albin is, it is said dewy with wine.

August 27th - This Date in Wine History

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.

• The Roman festival of Volturnalia was celebrated. dedicated to Jupitur Volturnus, god of the waters and fountains is celebrated with feasting and wine drinking at the pools near the temple of Vesta.
• Tiziano Vecellio, known as Titian died in 1576.  He is famous for painting red-haired women.  He also painted the Bacchanale of the Andrians and Supper at Emmaus. 
• Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel the German philosopher was born in 1770.  At one point in his career, he became the tutor for a wine merchant’s family in Frankfurt.
• The Internal Revenue Record and Customs Journal issued an opinion on the duty regarding the importation of glass wine bottles known as brown hocks. in 1872.
• Eric Burdon & War’s song, ‘Spill The Wine’ hit number 1 on the charts in 1970.

August 22nd - This Date in Wine History

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.

• Agoston Haraszthy on a fact-finding mission for the State of California had a conversation with a clergyman in Germany about vines and vineyards and the use of hydraulic pressing for wine grapes.
• Dorothy Parker, who once memorable said, "Three be the things I shall never attain: envy, content and sufficient champagne" was born in 1893.
• The American Wine Company in St. Louis Missouri received a trademark in 1905 for their sparkling wine.
• Eric Burdon & War’s song, ‘Spill The Wine’ hit number 3 on the charts in 1970.
• The Cisterna d'Asti DOC was created in 2002.  These wines are produced around the town of Cisterna d’Asti and is made with the Croatina grape.

July 17th - This Date in Wine History

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.

• Phylloxera was discovered for the first time in Meursault in 1878.
• The Carso DOC was created in 1985.
• "Wine in the Afternoon" a song written by Alex Kapranos of Franz Ferdinand was released in 2006.
• California's Lodi sub-appellations of Alta Mesa, Borden Ranch, Clements Hills, Cosumnes River, Jahant, Mokelumne River and Sloughhouse were designated in 2006.
• California's Saddle Rock-Malibu AVA was designated in 2006.
• Oregon's Eola-Amity Hills AVA was designated in 2006.

May 17th - This Date in Wine History

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.

• Anne of Denmark was coronated as Queen of the Scots in 1590.  Her marriage to James VI of later James I of England was fractious due to his drinking and adultery.
• The Pirate, Bartholomew Roberts was born in Wales in 1682.  Impressed into piracy he was elected as Captain six weeks later, after the previous captain was ambushed on the way to the fort in Príncipe to share a glass of wine with the Governor. He is said to be the model for the Dread Pirate Roberts in the Princess Bride.
• California's Merritt Island AVA was designated in 1983.
• California's Northern Sonoma AVA was designated in 1985.
• Lawrence Welk, purveyor of champagne music, died in 1992.
• Happy National Aperifif day! (established by Maison Lillet)

April 13th - This Date in Wine History

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. 

• Krum, Khan of Bulgaria died in 814.  He used the skull of the Byzantine Emperor as a wine cup.
• Thomas Jefferson, Founding Father and wine lover was born in Virgina in 1743.
• The first elephant in America was brought from India in 1796.  It was fed rice, hay and stray, “all kinds of wine and spiritous liquors”  it could also draw a cork from a bottle in its trunk. It was a sad existence.
• Baron Philippe de Rothschild was born in 1902.
• "Red Red Wine" written and performed by Neil Diamond was released in 1968 it was and later covered by UB40.

February 15th - This Date in Wine History

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. 

• King John of England (known as Lackland) invaded La Rochelle, France in 1214.  John was known as a connoisseur of jewels and his love of bad wine.
• Gotthold Ephraim Lessing died in 1781.  He was a German writer, philosopher, dramatist and art critic. He died during a visit to the wine dealer Angott in Brunswick.
• Ernest Shackleton, antarctic explorer was born in 1874.  During his Nimrod Expedition of 1907-1909 he packed 1600 lbs of “finest York hams,” 1260 lbs of sardines, 1470 lbs of tinned bacon, 408 lbs of ox tongues, 384 lbs of sheep tongues, 144 lbs of pork tongue.  For beverages, he included 25 cases of whisky, six bases of brandy, 6 cases of Champagne and 3 cases of Port.
• .Drink some Red, Red Wine, Ali Campbell of UB 40 was born in 1959.