Today’s celebration of this beloved beverage lands on a Friday, the day of choice for online wine parties with friends and family.
Our six months of virtual online wine parties during isolation have increased wine sales by 28% in 2020 yet the store shelves have remained fully stocked.
The History of Wine
About 6,000 years ago, the first winery was established in what is now Armenia. The ancient Greeks used wine for trade, religion and health as early as 800 BC. They cultivated grapes in Italy and Spain as they conquered their lands. In the 1300s, Europeans had no steady supply of clean drinking water causing the public (including children) to drink wine. In the 1500s, Spain introduces wine to the new world as a completely new alcoholic beverage.
California wines earn recognition in the 1970s after being snubbed for decades by critics worldwide. The domestic wine industry was ignited by this and today there are over 10,000 wineries in the US. Wineries exist in all 50 states.
Wine by the numbers
California boasts 4,613 wineries in 2020 producing 86% of all domestic wine, followed by Washington, Oregon, New York and Texas.
Of the legal drinking population, 49% drink wine. 54% of those consumers are Women while 46% are men and Red Wine is preferred over White Wine by a 65/35 ratio. The Wine Institute reported in 2018, the average consumer drank 2.95 gallons of wine per year making the US the largest wine consuming country by volume but the per capita rate is lower than many other countries.
Baby Boomers are 34% of the wine market, matched only by the Millennials, also at 34%. Gen X’ers and Gen Z’ers trail at 21% and 7% respectively.
Take it for a Swirl
Swirling your glass of wine aerates the beverage to release the aromas. Much of the pleasure in drinking wine comes from the many scents you inhale as you raise the glass to your nose. Once swirled, the aromas will settle in the glass so you don’t need to swirl every sip.
Many experts agree that red wine does not have to be served at the optimal room temperature of 65 – 70 degrees but rather, drink the wine at the temperature you enjoy. Chilling red wine in Summer months make it a more refreshing choice.
So tonight when your saying ‘cheers’ your virtual friends in front of your computer screen, enjoy the variety of wine that you like best at whatever temperature you like and toast National Red Wine Day.
Cheers!