Since 2008, two dozen French wine estates fell under Chinese control, like the Château de Viaud acquired by the food group Cofco, or the Château Grand Mouëys purchased by NingXia. As if vineyards, domains and châteaux weren’t enough, Chinese investors are now interested in the French wine trading industry. Last year, …
Cork, synthetic or screw tops… Is there one better than the other? Yesterday, I bought 2 bottles of wine with a screw top. Don’t judge! The opening procedure was quite unorthodox and far from being romantic. The scratchy, metallic sound approximating that of a bottle of soda being opened was quite …
Re-corking wine bottles is a rare practice that consists of retiring the old cork of a wine bottle and replacing it with a brand new one. As an average, some wineries suggest replacing the cork every 20-30 years. Some recommend doing it after 15 years. Since a lot of wine consumption is …
Where does cork come from? Corks are made out of… well, cork. It is harvested from a tree called “Quercus suber“, Latin for oak cork (chêne liège in French). These trees have a life expectancy of two to six hundred years. They primarily grow in countries that run along the coast …
To all my followers and avid readers, I wish you a WINE-derful new year full of joy, happiness and wine discoveries. Remember one simple rule: “Wine is a shared Experience.” – Wine Ponder Stay connected in 2013, and be the first one to read the latest wine news from Wine Ponder. …
Get your fill of funny wine names! Then go to the store and buy wine with funny wine names… Because it’s fun and in some cases, quite tasty ; ) Funny Wine Names From the rudest to the most absurd, from the unorthodox to the conventional, wine names have …
“One glass a day keeps the doctor away.” – One glass of wine per day… Is this true? or is this just a clever marketing scheme that allows us to enjoy a glass of wine guilt free? Who knows… but when a reputable health insurance proclaims that very statement on their …
Wine is the original alcoholic beverage. It dates back 8,000 years! With so many intriguing and insightful stories, it would take years and hundreds of thousands of people to tell them all. Some of them will be mentioned in this humble space called “Wine Stories”. This is part 1 of an …
It’s like a game of world domination, except the main commodity is wine, and China is on a roll! Another Saint-Emilion Grand Cru has been sold to a Chinese investor. After being on the market for quite some time, the 32 acre Château Bellefont-Belcier is the latest property to fall into …
By now, I’m sure you’ve heard me talk about wine and its effortless ability to reunite people for a good time. Well, this couldn’t be more accurate when describing a popular event that originates in France on the 3rd Thursday of November, every year: the release of the Beaujolais Nouveau… …
![Wine Cork Story [Part 2]](https://i0.wp.com/www.wineponder.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/corkandcorks2.jpg?resize=941%2C300&ssl=1)
![Wine Cork Story [Part 1]](https://i0.wp.com/www.wineponder.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/corkandcorks1.jpg?resize=941%2C300&ssl=1)
![Wine Stories [Part 1]](https://i0.wp.com/www.wineponder.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/winestories.jpg?resize=400%2C300&ssl=1)
