March 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.

• Simon de Brion, later known as Pope Martin IV was born in 1210 (or 1220).  In the Divine Comedy, Dante sees the pope in purgatory for his fondness for Lake Bolsena eels and Vernaccia wine.

• Abraham Mignon, artist of painter of still life and flower images including “Still Life with Fruit and a Goldfinch” died in 1679.

• Horace Walpole in a letter dated 1764 to Charles Churchill the satirist about the events of Lady Cardigan’s ball that evening where he tried to get fellow guests drunk, “but as they are not at all familiar chez moi, they formalize at wine, as much as a middle-aged woman who is just beginning to drink in private”. (He seems nice)

• The movie, Wine, Women and Song debuted in 1933

• Stacy Ann Ferguson Duhamel, the singer known as Fergie, was born in 1975.  She is founder of Ferguson Crest Winery.

February 20th - 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.

• Andreas Hofer of St. Leonhard in Passeier died in 1810.  He was a Tyrolean Innkeeper, and wine and horse tradesman who was a leader of the Tyrolean Rebellion against Napoleon.  He was eventually captured and executed.

• Paul Kane, Irish-Canadian painter died in 1871.  His family emigrated to Upper Canada where his father operated a wine shop in York (later Toronto).

• Pope Leo the XIII was born in 1878. He appeared in advertisements for Vin Mariani, a wine made with Coca leaves.

• California's Mt. Veeder AVA was designated in 1990.

January 24th - 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.

• Pope Stephen IV died in 817.  Under Stephen, the Frankish clergy was reformed requiring men and women be housed in separated convents, which were to hold community property jointly.  He also regulated how much food and wine they could consume.

• Peter IV of Aragon was crowned King of Aragon, Valencia, Majorca and County of Barcelona in 1336. He once had a friendly dispute with his Jewish physician about why Jewish people were not allowed to drink kosher wine touched by a Christian.  The Doctor had water brought to wash the king’s feet which he then drank to prove that impurity was not the reason for the prohibition.

• Spain's Tierra del Vino de Zamora DO was created in 2008.

• It is the feast day of St. Cadoc.  At his baptism a holy well that flowed milk and wine appeared. He is the patron saint of Glamorgan; Llancarfan; famine victims; deafness; and glandular disorders.

December 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.

• Charlemagne was crowned as Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire by Pope Leo III.  The Emperor celebrated mass where he presented the wine and his Empress the water for the Eucharist.

• In 1213, King John of England ordered 3,000 capons, 1,000 salted eels, 400 hogs, 100 pounds of almonds and 24 casks of wine for his Christmas feast.

• The Eggnog Riot ends at West Point in 1826.  Eggnog was often enriched with sherry, brandy, whisky and rum at the time.

• The Macau Wine Museum opens in 1995.

June 18th - 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 Battle of Civitate took place in 1053.  A battle between the Normans and a Papal Coalition, the Pope Leo himself was taken prisoner.  He was treated as an honored (albeit a prisoner) and was continually provided bread, wine, protection and other necessities.
• Frederick I Barbarossa crowned as Holy Roman Emperor in 1155.  He died during the third Crusade and his soldiers tried to preserve his body in a cask of vinegar.  It didn’t work.
• The Ship La Bourgogne left Le Havre in 1887 with a shipment of wine bound for NYC.
• Robert Mondavi was born in 1913. 
• The Greco di Bianco DOC was created in 1980.

May 20th - 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.

• Pope John XXI died today in 1277.  One of the things accomplished during his 9 month papacy was to ensure that the cardinals electing popes were given sufficient food and wine during their deliberations.  Previously, supplies with progressively restricted to ensure a quick election.
• Eduard Buchner was born in 1860.  He was a German chemist  who won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his work on fermentation. He showed that an extract that was free of living yeast cells could still lead to fermentation.
• Albano Carrisi, Italian singer, actor and winemaker was born in 1943. He is the owner of Carrisi Wine Company in Apulia.
• The French have a saying, « S’il gèle à la Saint-Bernardin, adieu le vin. » or, “If it freezes at St. Bernardino of Siena’s day, goodbye to wine.”

May 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.

• The Henri IV died in 1610.  He is said to have been baptised with a spoon of wine and garlic.
• Octavianus, son of Albert II of Spoleto, a Patrician and prince of Rome who was later known as Pope John XII died in 964.  As Pope he was accused of depravity and worldliness and even of toasting Satan with wine.
• Mondovino, a film exploring the impact of globalization on the various wine-producing regions, debuts in 2004.
• It is the feast day of St. Matthias.  He is patron saint of alcoholics.

May 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.

• Leonardo da Vinci died in 1519.  He is said to have employed his lifelong servant Gian Giacomo Caprotti da Oreno, known as Salaì who worked in his vineyards and a model before becoming a student of da Vinci and eventually companion.  Upon da Vinci’s death Salaì received half of the vineyards.
• Cardinal Rodolfo Pio da Carpi died in 1564.  After the death of Pope Paul IV, it was thought that he was thought to be the favorite candidate of King Philip II of Spain.  He and Cardinal Ricci started the rumor that Cardinal de’ Medici had Lutheran tendencies and was going to loosen the requirements on celibacy in the clergy and allow the hoi polloi (laity) to receive both the bread and wine during communion.  This knocked Pio da Carpi out of the running.
• The United States passed a law about collecting duties on wine in 1792.
• Michael Broadbent, British wine critic, writer, auctioneer and preeminent authority on wine tasting and old wines was born in 1927. 
• Julio Gallo died in near Tracy California 1993.
• The French have a saying, « C'est à la Saint-Antonin, que vend son vin le malin. » or, “Sell your wine at St. Antoninus day before the Ice Saints come.”

March 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. 

• Simon de Brion, later known as Pope Martin IV was born in 1210 (or 1220).  In the Divine Comedy, Dante sees the pope in purgatory for his fondness for Lake Bolsena eels and Vernaccia wine.
• Abraham Mignon, artist of painter of still life and flower images including “Still Life with Fruit and a Goldfinch” died in 1679.
• Horace Walpole in a letter dated 1764 to Charles Churchill the satirist about the events of Lady Cardigan’s ball that evening where he tried to get fellow guests drunk, “but as they are not at all familiar chez moi, they formalize at wine, as much as a middle-aged woman who is just beginning to drink in private”. (He seems nice)
• The movie, Wine, Women and Song debuted in 1933.
• Stacy Ann Ferguson Duhamel, the singer known as Fergie, was born in 1975.  She is founder of Ferguson Crest Winery.

March 2nd - This Date in Wine History

Photo by USDA-Agricultural Research Service

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. 

• St. Benedict of Nursia was born in 480.  He is the saint invoked against poison.  His monks tried to poison his wine and then his bread but he was saved by miracles.
• Henry Clay charged 14shillings for billiards and wine in 1804 from John Postelthwait in Lexington, KY.
• Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci, the future Pope Leo XIII was born in 1810.  He appeared in ads for Vin Mariani a wine and coca leaf tonic.
• The Texas High Plains AVA was designated in 2003.

February 20th - 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. 

• Andreas Hofer of St. Leonhard in Passeier died in 1810.  He was a Tyrolean Innkeeper, and wine and horse tradesman who was a leader of the Tyrolean Rebellion against Napoleon.  He was eventually captured and executed.
• Pope Leo the XIII was born in 1878. He appeared in advertisements for Vin Mariani, a wine made with Coca leaves.
• California's Mt. Veeder AVA was designated in 1990.

January 24th - 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.

Jan 24

• Pope Stephen IV died in 817.  Under Stephen, the Frankish clergy was reformed requiring men and women be housed in separated convents, which were to hold community property jointly.  He also regulated how much food and wine they could consume.
• Peter IV of Aragon was crowned King of Aragon, Valencia, Majorca and County of Barcelona in 1336. He once had a friendly dispute with his Jewish physician about why Jewish people were not allowed to drink kosher wine touched by a Christian.  The Doctor had water brought to wash the king’s feet which he then drank to prove that impurity was not the reason for the prohibition.
• Spain's Tierra del Vino de Zamora DO was created in 2008.
• It is the feast day of St. Cadoc.  At his baptism a holy well that flowed milk and wine appeared.  He is the patron saint of Glamorgan; Llancarfan; famine victims; deafness; and glandular disorders.

January 21st - 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.

• Pope Paschal II died in 1118.  During his reign he appointed a Bishop to oversee the territories of Greenland and Vinland (Newfoundland)
• Jefferson Davis resigned from the United States Senate.  A step before becoming the President of the Confederacy.  He was a participant in the  West Point Eggnog riot.  He escaped punishment.
• Thomas Munson, the American horticulturist who's work with grape rootstock led to phylloxera-resistant stocks died in 1913
• It is the feast day of St. Agnes of Rome.  She is the patron saint of crops and gardeners as well as Girl Scouts.
• Happy Babinden!  This Russian, Bulgarian and Serbian holiday celebrates midwifery and includes Young Mother’s Feast which includes grilled chicken and wine.

January 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.

• Charles II of Navarre, known as Charles the Bad died in 1387.  At the end of his life, he was so decrepit that his doctor ordered him wrapped like a mummy in linen soaked in brandy (aqua vitae).  A maid dropped a candle and WHOOSH! This was seen as a sign of God’s justice.
• Pope Alexander VI, the former Roderic Borgia was born in 1431.  He was known for frequently poisoning the wine of rivals, using the Cup of Borgia, and then confiscated their wealth.
• Henry, Duke of Cornwall was born in 1511.  He was the first living child of Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon.  To celebrate guns were fired, bells were rung, fires lit and free wine was given to the public.  The baby did not survive.
• Pieter Claesz, Dutch golden age painter died in 1660.  Wine was often featured in his still life paintings.
• Gregory Blaxland, the first exporter of Australian wine died in 1853.

November 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.

• Today is the feast day of St. Martin of Tours.  St. Martin is the patron saint of vintners, wine growers and winemakers.
• The Fourth Lateran Council meets today in 1215.  The doctrine of transubstantiation by which  bread and one are transformed into the body and blood of Christ was formalized. It was led by Pope Innocent III.
• Spain's Bierzo DO was created in 1989
• The French have a saying, « À la Saint-Martin, jeune ou vieux, bois le vin. » or "At Saint-Martin, young or old, drink wine. " 
• À la Saint-Martin, bois le vin et laisse l'eau aller au moulin. » or "At Saint-Martin, drink the wine and let the water go to the mill. " 
• «Si les feuilles de la vigne ne tombent pas avant la Saint-Martin, l'hiver sera froid. » or "If the leaves of the vine do not fall before Saint-Martin, the winter will be cold. " 

August 18th - 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 Siege of Málaga ended in 1487.  This was part of the Reconquista of Moorish Spain, specifically the Emirate of Granada.  The Spanish victors brought “legal” wine back to Málaga.
• Pope Alexander VI dies after drinking poisoned wine in 1503.
• Virginia Dare, the first English child in the New world was born in 1587.  She disappeared with the rest of the Roanoke Island settlers.  There is a winery named in her honor.
• Hacienda de San Lorenzo, the first winery in the Americas was begun in 1597 by Don Lorenzo Garcia in Santa María de las Parras, Coahuila de Zaragoza, Mexico.
• California's Anderson Valley and Willow Creek AVAs were designated in 1983.

August 7th - 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.

• Pope John XXII was elected in 1316. Under his reign wines of the region began to be referred to as "Vin du Pape”
• Mata Hari the Dutch courtesan, dancer and spy was born in 1876.  While she was awaiting execution she was brought a steady supply of champagne and meals from nearby restaurants.
• The Wine and Spirit Bulletin of 1908 has an announcement of the Marriage of Lee Mida of Mida’s Criterion was married to Miss Louise Henrietta Gueth.

July 20th - 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 reports in his diary that in 1663 he met with Captain George Cocke at his home and drank some of the Malago Sack (Malaga) which was purchased for his wife Anna Marie Cocke to improve her health, “who is, he fears, a little consumptive, and her beauty begins to want its colour”.
• Pope Leo XIII, a proponent of Vin Mariani, a wine made with coca leaves, died in 1903.
• The Cortese dell'Alto Monferrato DOC was created in 1979. The wine is made from Cortese grapes in the Piedmont region of Italy.

May 20th - 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.

• Pope John XXI died today in 1277.  One of the things accomplished during his 9 month papacy was to ensure that the cardinals electing popes were given sufficient food and wine during their deliberations.  Previously, supplies with progressively restricted to ensure a quick election.
• It is the feast day of Alcuin.  He scholar, ecclesiastic, poet and teacher from York, Northumbria and first known wine writer.
• Albano Carrisi, Italian singer, actor and winemaker was born in 1943. He is the owner of Carrisi Wine Company in Apulia.

May 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.

• Cardinal Rodolfo Pio da Carpi died in 1564.  After the death of Pope Paul IV, it was thought that he was thought to be the favorite candidate of King Philip II of Spain.  He and Cardinal Ricci started the rumor that Cardinal de’ Medici had Lutheran tendencies and was going to loosen the requirements on celibacy in the clergy and allow the hoi polloi (laity) to receive both the bread and wine during communion.  This knocked Pio da Carpi out of the running.
• The United States passed a law about collecting duties on wine in 1792.
• Michael Broadbent, British wine critic, writer, auctioneer and preeminent authority on wine tasting and old wines was born in 1927. 
• Julio Gallo died in near Tracy California 1993.