National Wine Day

NATIONAL WINE DAY

We don’t typically need an “official” reason to celebrate over a bottle of wine, but today we have one – it’s National Wine Day in the US, celebrated annually on May 25, but we can drink a bottle to that in Europe too, right?

The growing number of wineries across the world coupled with the proliferation of social media options has prompted more creative ways to celebrate with wine for people of all (legal drinking) ages and beverage preferences. Whether you host a wine tasting at your place to try the latest rosés or meet friends for an evening of professionally paired food and wine, the celebration begins as soon as the cork is popped. Cheers!

HISTORY OF NATIONAL WINE DAY IN THE US

With references to National Wine Day found as early as 2009, today, wine enthusiasts unite to celebrate our favourite fermented fruit juice.
Since its establishment in 1812 by Spanish missionaries, California’s wine country in the northern Bay Area of northern California has dominated American wine production and our vision of the elegant American vineyard. There were a mere 25 wineries in this area of California in 1974. Today, over 800!
While California still leads US wine production and is now home to over 4,000 wineries state-wide, wineries are found across the entire world, with around 120 in the UK, 4500+ in Spain, 8500+ in France, 5000 in Argentina, 4300 in Burgundy, 2572 in Australia, and many more. So, pack your bags and set your GPS to the winery nearest you!

WINE DAY TRADITIONS

Traditions for National Wine Day all revolve around indulging in and celebrating with wine! Friends and family get together and uncork their favourite bottles of wine. Splurging on expensive wine is also the norm today, so treat yourself to that fancy vino you’ve always wanted to buy.
Wine tasting events are hosted, where wine lovers and connoisseurs enjoy different flavours and varieties of wine. Wine bottles are aesthetically pleasing, so reusing them for a DIY project, or making a rack from scratch to display them are also go-to celebratory traditions for National Wine Day.

WINE DAY ACTIVITIES

Cool down with a sangria bar

What better way to celebrate the beginning of summer than with friends over a sangria bar? Sangria is an easy, make-ahead beverage with wine as its base. Red, white and rosé recipes abound but don’t limit yourself to the obvious. Peach and blueberry lemonade sangria stand-out at any party.

Buy a new gadget

Chances are, if you’re making plans for National Wine Day, you don’t consider yourself an amateur. Aficionados need gadgets. Enhance the holiday with an electric wine bottle opener or a wine aerator.

Know your glasses

The extensive variety of stemware can be confusing. Why so many choices? The shape of the bowl controls the amount of air reaching the wine surface which impacts the taste and aroma. Celebrate National Wine Day by researching the recommended glass to use based on wine type and impress your friends with your new-found knowledge.

5 FASCINATING FACTS ABOUT WINE BOTTLES

Size matters

There are over a dozen different sizes of wine bottles, many named after Biblical kings or other historical figures.

Who’s the king?

At 30 litres, the largest wine bottle size is named “Melchizedek” or “Midas” holding 200 glasses of wine.

Sealed with a cork

Almost 70% of wine bottles are sealed with natural cork; the majority of this cork comes from Portugal.

Judging a bottle by its cover

There are over 60,000 wine labels in the market today.

It takes a lot of grapes

One bottle of wine holds an average of 600 grapes.

WHY WE LOVE NATIONAL WINE DAY

We love varietals

While there are 5 basic types of wine (red, white, rose, sparkling and dessert), there are thousands of varietals of wine grapes. The options you have for trying a new wine are practically endless. You’ll never get bored in your pursuit for trying something new in the wine world.

We savour life with wine

Wine is not the type of beverage you drink quickly. You sip it, savour it, linger with it. Which means, you are likely lingering with whomever you’re sharing the wine. Taking your time to enjoy a glass of wine allows you to enjoy other things with it – people, scenery, food.

Wine allows you to travel the world in a bottle

Each bottle of wine tells a unique story. If you close your eyes, wine’s aromas and flavours can transport you to faraway lands, giving you hints about the soil and weather the grapes grew in, the landscape of the country the wine originated in, and what was happening in the world at the time the wine was bottled. The best part? You don’t even have to get on a plane to travel the world!