Notes From the Vintner Welcome to our column. We hope that you will return to learn interesting notes on wine, and related subjects. Wine is a great gift from God to be used for the enjoyment of man. It is a food, and should be treated as such. It is meant to lift up the body and lighten the soul. 5/1/00 Wine Lover or Wino ... ? So you tell your friends that you are trying wines. And now they think that you have become a wino.... Education about wine and its joy, health benefits, fellowship, and history is lacking in this nation. Not so with beer which is a part of everyday life for many in the South. There is much enjoyment in a glass of wine, and you become a part of the goodness of creation when you drink the wine. The mind can rest, and the body feels relaxed as you savor the wine. You can close you eyes and go mentally to the vineyard and cellar to recall the journey of your wine. You can taste the change of yeast and aging upon the grape juice into wine. You have entered a New World that is quiet and joyful ... a peaceful place. Your heart is glad for the glass of wine, and your blood has received help in fighting heart disease. The glass or two of wine enjoyed each day is an aid to good health. Look at the folks of Europe who drink wine as water ... long life, good hearts, happy people, and few drunks. They know that wine is a food to be enjoyed and not abused. It is good to enjoy a glass of wine alone but even more so with a friend or lover. It is a bond that says that you care about life and friends. I can remember when I was young, going to visit and being offered a glass of wine. "There was sun, laugher, and good red wine..." Many of these people have died, but the joy and fellowship that we enjoyed over a glass of wine lives on. The history of wine is many centuries old, and we will begin a slow journey though them. History is knowledge of what was ... the glass of wine you enjoyed last. Grapes, wine, peoples, lands, art, and events are what wine has been, It is a large history, so we need to get started. A WINO drinks wine to get drunk, and a wino you are not. A lover of wine, you are to become... Robert G Cowie Wine Maker Email The Vintner Vintner Notes Archive - 4/01/00