While some wine lovers might enjoy a glass without giving it too much thought, others enjoy educating themselves so that they can show off their knowledge at cocktail parties and other events.
 

  • An experiment conducted at the University of Bordeaux revealed a lot about how our mind can control how we feel about different wines. For example, all of the 54 participants thought that they were tasting a red wine when, in fact, it was a white wine that had been coloured! In addition, they were asked to compare wines of various prices but, what they didn’t know was that all of the glasses were filled with the same wine! They praised the more expensive wine and lacked enthusiasm when it came to the so-called cheaper glass. Which just goes to show how much of the wine tasting experience is created by the brain.
  • In Ancient Greece, a special wine glass helped ensure that the drinker enjoyed their wine in moderation. The special design caused the wine to spill out if it was filled beyond a certain mark.
  • A panel of wine experts scored a cheaply packaged Bordeaux with an incredibly low score. The same wine was repackaged in a more expensive-looking bottle and label. This earned it one of the highest scores! Again – it’s all about perception for many wine drinkers!
  • In Vietnam, you can order a drink called a “Cobra Blood Wine”. A live cobra is brought to the table where the waiter kills the snake. He then drains the blood into a shot glass (of rice wine) and tops your drink off with the snake’s heart. This is obviously NOT for the faint of heart!
  • Soy sauce is said to contain 10 times more antioxidants than wine but, let’s face it, wine goes down a lot easier!
  • Drinking two glasses of wine results in decreased performance equivalent to that of being awake for 17 hours. Of course, if you drink responsibly and you avoid driving, this shouldn’t be of too much concern to most.
  • Have you ever wished to take a dip in a large pool of wine? Well, in Japan you can! There are pools that allow you to swim in coffee, tea, and wine!
  • The oldest bottle of wine is on display at a museum in Germany. It’s almost 1700 years old!

 
Now you have a few fun facts to remember the next time you need a conversation starter!