Did you know Clinton is the name of banned grape in Europe?

     I have a few pleasant memories of reading ‘information’ during the Communist period.
     I am not talking about the masterpieces of literature that we still had access to, which not even an intrusive ideology could touch.
     But in the daily news formats which tried and failed to guide us, because they were swamped in a ‘red fog’, there was an exception.
     It was a column that I looked forward to reading in newspapers, almanacs and magazines, while rejecting all the propaganda that surrounded it.
     Looking back, and indebted to the field I serve, I would like to revive it here:
     The DID YOU KNOW? column.

So did you know:

? There is a type of grape named Clinton? This is a natural American hybrid which has been forbidden in Europe since 1930.

? The Jewish people have a special wine for religious services called Kasher? The process of making the wine is undertaken following very strict rules and only if a rabbi is present.

? Nuclear Magnetic Reso-nance (NMR) is a technique used in the wine industry as well? Through this method one can detect mistakes in the wine-making process, like its mix with water, the presence of some unauthorised type of grapes and forbidden chemical substances.

? There is a corkscrew museum in France in the town of Menerbes? Here you can see 1,000 corkscrews from the 17th century until today. This includes a corkscrew with a shaving bursh attached, a double-bladed corkscrew and some erotic and euphemistic styles involving fishermen and sailors.

? Vinegar, which is nothing else than the result of wine’s acidic fermentation, is also used as a remedy, flavoured and mixed with garlic and camphor, for cholera epidemics?

? The meaning of ‘cabaret’ was different several centuries ago? ‘Cabaret’ means ‘small room’ and such a chamber was reserved for drinkers to stand while tasting wine.

? The temperature at which a wine is served is one of the determining factors in its appreciation? The classic storing of red wine at room temperature is no longer correct, because house climates, especially in the winter time, are way above the optimum needed for proper tasting.

? The term ‘Tender’ can be considered as an epithet for wine? This term defines a wine with moderate acidity, delicate, fresh, light and with a few grammes of residual sugar. Quite the description of the perfect man, don’t you think?

Catalin Paduraru
www.vinexpert.info