BOTTLED POETRY As a lover of occasions and all things grandeur, I have noticed that most Nigerians serve more beer than any other beverage at ceremonies, well, that’s because most Nigerians drink more beer and spirits than wine. That part I pondered too and came to the conclusion that local breweries have invested heavily on promotions and publicity to drown our awareness and interest in other drinks that add colour and class to our ceremonies. To this effect, most Nigerians do not know much about the enormous goodness embedded in a bottle of wine. Martin Luther once said that “beer is made by men, wine by God”. Talk about class, style, elegance, grandeur, and that air of royalty that comes when you are having a conversation with that gorgeously dressed lady at that classy function with a tall glass of wine in hand, only two words could describe it ‘sheer beauty’. I guess that’s why Robert Luis Stevenson said that “wine is bottled poetry” because that’s when you reveal that aspect of you that screams renaissance. Although wine making and drinking has a pretty long and past history, it still remains the modern form of entertaining guests at major functions all around the world. According to Ernest Hemingway, “wine is the most civilized thing in the world”. Wine making could be traced back to 6000 BC in Egypt and Mesopotamia. Greece, Spain, Mexico, Rome and United States followed this trend. Wine became the valuable trade, ‘the crude oil’ of the time. The rich enjoyed it and the rulers tried to hide this treasure as a clandestine. GRAPES, the major raw material in wine making is a juicy fruit found in a variety of colours. More than 10, 000 grape varieties exist but only a few are used for commercial purposes. White and red grapes are the major grapes varieties which could be mixed or used individually to create fine wine. Varietal wines are wines that are made from single grape breed. However, many wines combine numerous grape varieties. The grape variety determines each wine taste and colour. To create a high quality wine, the wine maker knows how to choose and merge the grapes from different varieties. Although grapes come in great variety, some of them are more popular. The wine makers and consumers prefer them the most than any other variety. However, these grape varieties basically fall under the red or white grape category. Red grapes are basically red and are rich in vitamin c with a sweet pulp. Pinot noir, syrah, nebbiolo, and zintandel are some famous red grapes. White grapes are grapes that are green, yellow, pink, or brown in colour. The world famous white grape is the chardonnay because of its garmut flavours and styles. Wine making is an art, like every other art, it also needs patience. This art starts from the vineyard where the grapes are planted at the right place and soil texture, and then they are chosen and picked at the right time. Wine is basically a mixture of water, alcohol and grape flavours. By crushing the grapes and adding yeast to activate the fermentation process, the wine makers begin their job. Sugar and oxygen content in the juice are converted to ethyl alcohol by the yeast. Vinification is the process that transforms the grapes into wine. This process differ from region to region, financial state of the winery, as well as grape types. The first step employed in wine making is harvesting or picking the grapes. This is done manually or mechanically. After this, the grapes are sorted, the under ripped ones and the rotten ones are cut out. The next step is called destemming, which is separating the grapes from the stem. Some of the wine makers prefer to keep some fragments of the stem to increase the wine tannin. When this is done, the grapes are crushed to extract the juice from the skin. After crushing the grapes, juice will flow freely, selected wineries use pressers to make sure maximum juice is released. Once the grapes are pressed, they are introduced into the process of fermentation. During this process, the grape juice is converted into an alcoholic beverage. The yeast interacts with the sugar in the grape juice and converts them to ethanol and carbon dioxide. There are two distinct stages in wine fermentation. They are primary fermentation (Aerobic) and secondary fermentation (Anaerobic). Primary fermentation will last for the first 3 to 5 days. Mostly, 70 percentage of the fermentation process will take place during this period. Considerable amount of foaming may be seen during this rapid fermentation. Here the fermentation vessel is left open since air plays a very important role in the yeast cell multiplication process. Secondary fermentation takes care of the remaining 30 percent of the fermentation process and lasts for one to two weeks depending on the amount of nutrient and sugar available. During this process, the air exposure is kept at minimum. This is done to stop the yeast from multiplying and thus, release their energy fully to make alcohol. After fermentation, purification and refining of wine takes place. Here any solid parts that are left after fermentation are removed. Simultaneously, during this process, wines will be combined with other types of wines to produce preferred flavour, tannin, and acidity. Once the wine is purified and refined, they are preserved with sulphur dioxide or potassium sorbate. The preservatives added to the wine form an anti-oxidation or anti-microbial agent. These agents stop the ongoing meioiactic fermentation. However, wines are aged for a particular amount of time to get a more inviting taste. After purification, wines are moved to wooden barrels for aging. During aging, wine softens and slowly oxidizes. The final process is the bottling. During this process, a final dose of sulphite is added to the wine to prevent it from uninvited fermentation in the bottle. The bottles are then sealed with cork and screw caps. As a final step, capsule is added to the top of the wine bottle which is heated to get a tight seal. In both the northern southern hemisphere, the grapes are mostly grown between the latitudes of 30th and 50th degrees. But some grapes grow beyond this latitude and minor amount of these grapes are used for wine preparation. France, Spain, Italy, United States and Argentina are the five largest producers of wine in the world. Wines are classified primarily by the grape variety used to prepare it. Basically there are two categories; white wines which are colourless and red wines which are basically reddish in colour. Wines can be classified by their taste. Apart from the schemes of wine classification, the general types are as follows; RED WINES are colour wines; they are made from the red grape variety. These wines get their colour by allowing the skin of the grapes to get contact with the grape juice during the wine making process. They are available in different varieties and taste, the most popular red wines are; Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot Noir, Zinfrandel. WHITE WINES are generally colourless and are made from the white grape variety. Some of them are made from the red grape variety. In such a case the skin of the grape is not allowed to have contact with the juice during production. The most popular white wines include; Chardonnay, Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Gewurztraminer. ROSE WINES are also called Blush Wines, they are not truly red wines, instead they have enough reddish tinge to make them different from the white wines. They are mostly a mixture of red and white grape varieties SPARKLING WINES have a small amount of intense effervescences. Champagne is the most famous sparkling wine in many regions of the world. SWEET WINES or DESSERT WINES are prepared from the residual sugar that is left from the wine production. This gives the wine a very sweet taste. They vary from off-dry to super sticky sweet wines and are considered to be the sweetest wine. FORTIFIED WINES are produced with a small addition of the grape spirit. They generally include the dry and sweet styles. Some of them include; Port Wine, Madeira, Sherry TABLE WINES are also called “dry wines”, they are mostly produced in most of the regions of the world WINE AND YOUR HEALTH Wine has a long history of use as an early form of medication, being recommended variously as a safe alternative to drinking water, an antiseptic for treating wounds and a digestive aid as well as a cure for a wide range of ailments from lethargy and diarrhea to easing the pain of child birth. Study shows that wine drinkers have a 34 percent lower mortality rate than beer or spirit drinkers. Drinking wine moderately, that is having one or two glasses per day, will actually do well for the health according to medical history. Generally, wine has been recommended by physicians to treat iron deficiency anaemia. The conventional use of wines along with meals offer many health benefits like helping with the digestion process, stimulating the absorption of nutrients and also reduces the level of cholesterol, thus, reducing the risk of heart disease. Moderate drinking of wine also has the following benefits; Lower the level of cholesterol, lower blood pressure, increase the density of the bones, reduce the risk of kidney stones, enhance memory power, promotes longevity, reduces heart-attack risk, lowers risk of heart disease, reduces risk of type 2 diabetes, lowers risk of stroke, cuts risk of cataracts, cuts risk of colon cancer, wines have some anti-coagulation effect which makes blood clothing rare. Antioxidants in red wine called polyphenols may help protect the lining of blood vessels in your heart. A polyphenol called resveratrol is one substance that has gotten attention. Resveratrol is a key ingredient in red wine that helps prevent damage to blood vessels, reduces ‘bad’ cholesterol and prevents blood clots. Now that you have gotten a taste of the enormous goodness wines present, make it a point of duty to get some of the best wines you can afford for that classy ceremony you are planning to host. In the words of Clifton Fadiman “if food is the body of good living, wine is its soul” Promise O’nali Artist/artiste/writer/designer 08134932103 Port Harcourt

BOTTLED POETRY As a lover of occasions and all things grandeur, I have noticed that most Nigerians serve more beer than any other beverage at ceremonies, well, that’s because most Nigerians drink more beer and spirits than wine. That part I pondered too and came to the conclusion that local breweries have invested heavily on promotions and publicity to drown our awareness and interest in other drinks that add colour and class to our ceremonies. To this effect, most Nigerians do not know much about the enormous goodness embedded in a bottle of wine. Martin Luther once said that “beer is made by men, wine by God”. Talk about class, style, elegance, grandeur, and that air of royalty that comes when you are having a conversation with that gorgeously dressed lady at that classy function with a tall glass of wine in hand, only two words could describe it ‘sheer beauty’. I guess that’s why Robert Luis Stevenson said that “wine is bottled poetry” because that’s when you reveal that aspect of you that screams renaissance. Although wine making and drinking has a pretty long and past history, it still remains the modern form of entertaining guests at major functions all around the world. According to Ernest Hemingway, “wine is the most civilized thing in the world”. Wine making could be traced back to 6000 BC in Egypt and Mesopotamia. Greece, Spain, Mexico, Rome and United States followed this trend. Wine became the valuable trade, ‘the crude oil’ of the time. The rich enjoyed it and the rulers tried to hide this treasure as a clandestine. GRAPES, the major raw material in wine making is a juicy fruit found in a variety of colours. More than 10, 000 grape varieties exist but only a few are used for commercial purposes. White and red grapes are the major grapes varieties which could be mixed or used individually to create fine wine. Varietal wines are wines that are made from single grape breed. However, many wines combine numerous grape varieties. The grape variety determines each wine taste and colour. To create a high quality wine, the wine maker knows how to choose and merge the grapes from different varieties. Although grapes come in great variety, some of them are more popular. The wine makers and consumers prefer them the most than any other variety. However, these grape varieties basically fall under the red or white grape category. Red grapes are basically red and are rich in vitamin c with a sweet pulp. Pinot noir, syrah, nebbiolo, and zintandel are some famous red grapes. White grapes are grapes that are green, yellow, pink, or brown in colour. The world famous white grape is the chardonnay because of its garmut flavours and styles. Wine making is an art, like every other art, it also needs patience. This art starts from the vineyard where the grapes are planted at the right place and soil texture, and then they are chosen and picked at the right time. Wine is basically a mixture of water, alcohol and grape flavours. By crushing the grapes and adding yeast to activate the fermentation process, the wine makers begin their job. Sugar and oxygen content in the juice are converted to ethyl alcohol by the yeast. Vinification is the process that transforms the grapes into wine. This process differ from region to region, financial state of the winery, as well as grape types. The first step employed in wine making is harvesting or picking the grapes. This is done manually or mechanically. After this, the grapes are sorted, the under ripped ones and the rotten ones are cut out. The next step is called destemming, which is separating the grapes from the stem. Some of the wine makers prefer to keep some fragments of the stem to increase the wine tannin. When this is done, the grapes are crushed to extract the juice from the skin. After crushing the grapes, juice will flow freely, selected wineries use pressers to make sure maximum juice is released. Once the grapes are pressed, they are introduced into the process of fermentation. During this process, the grape juice is converted into an alcoholic beverage. The yeast interacts with the sugar in the grape juice and converts them to ethanol and carbon dioxide. There are two distinct stages in wine fermentation. They are primary fermentation (Aerobic) and secondary fermentation (Anaerobic). Primary fermentation will last for the first 3 to 5 days. Mostly, 70 percentage of the fermentation process will take place during this period. Considerable amount of foaming may be seen during this rapid fermentation. Here the fermentation vessel is left open since air plays a very important role in the yeast cell multiplication process. Secondary fermentation takes care of the remaining 30 percent of the fermentation process and lasts for one to two weeks depending on the amount of nutrient and sugar available. During this process, the air exposure is kept at minimum. This is done to stop the yeast from multiplying and thus, release their energy fully to make alcohol. After fermentation, purification and refining of wine takes place. Here any solid parts that are left after fermentation are removed. Simultaneously, during this process, wines will be combined with other types of wines to produce preferred flavour, tannin, and acidity. Once the wine is purified and refined, they are preserved with sulphur dioxide or potassium sorbate. The preservatives added to the wine form an anti-oxidation or anti-microbial agent. These agents stop the ongoing meioiactic fermentation. However, wines are aged for a particular amount of time to get a more inviting taste. After purification, wines are moved to wooden barrels for aging. During aging, wine softens and slowly oxidizes. The final process is the bottling. During this process, a final dose of sulphite is added to the wine to prevent it from uninvited fermentation in the bottle. The bottles are then sealed with cork and screw caps. As a final step, capsule is added to the top of the wine bottle which is heated to get a tight seal. In both the northern southern hemisphere, the grapes are mostly grown between the latitudes of 30th and 50th degrees. But some grapes grow beyond this latitude and minor amount of these grapes are used for wine preparation. France, Spain, Italy, United States and Argentina are the five largest producers of wine in the world. Wines are classified primarily by the grape variety used to prepare it. Basically there are two categories; white wines which are colourless and red wines which are basically reddish in colour. Wines can be classified by their taste. Apart from the schemes of wine classification, the general types are as follows; RED WINES are colour wines; they are made from the red grape variety. These wines get their colour by allowing the skin of the grapes to get contact with the grape juice during the wine making process. They are available in different varieties and taste, the most popular red wines are; Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot Noir, Zinfrandel. WHITE WINES are generally colourless and are made from the white grape variety. Some of them are made from the red grape variety. In such a case the skin of the grape is not allowed to have contact with the juice during production. The most popular white wines include; Chardonnay, Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Gewurztraminer. ROSE WINES are also called Blush Wines, they are not truly red wines, instead they have enough reddish tinge to make them different from the white wines. They are mostly a mixture of red and white grape varieties SPARKLING WINES have a small amount of intense effervescences. Champagne is the most famous sparkling wine in many regions of the world. SWEET WINES or DESSERT WINES are prepared from the residual sugar that is left from the wine production. This gives the wine a very sweet taste. They vary from off-dry to super sticky sweet wines and are considered to be the sweetest wine. FORTIFIED WINES are produced with a small addition of the grape spirit. They generally include the dry and sweet styles. Some of them include; Port Wine, Madeira, Sherry TABLE WINES are also called “dry wines”, they are mostly produced in most of the regions of the world WINE AND YOUR HEALTH Wine has a long history of use as an early form of medication, being recommended variously as a safe alternative to drinking water, an antiseptic for treating wounds and a digestive aid as well as a cure for a wide range of ailments from lethargy and diarrhea to easing the pain of child birth. Study shows that wine drinkers have a 34 percent lower mortality rate than beer or spirit drinkers. Drinking wine moderately, that is having one or two glasses per day, will actually do well for the health according to medical history. Generally, wine has been recommended by physicians to treat iron deficiency anaemia. The conventional use of wines along with meals offer many health benefits like helping with the digestion process, stimulating the absorption of nutrients and also reduces the level of cholesterol, thus, reducing the risk of heart disease. Moderate drinking of wine also has the following benefits; Lower the level of cholesterol, lower blood pressure, increase the density of the bones, reduce the risk of kidney stones, enhance memory power, promotes longevity, reduces heart-attack risk, lowers risk of heart disease, reduces risk of type 2 diabetes, lowers risk of stroke, cuts risk of cataracts, cuts risk of colon cancer, wines have some anti-coagulation effect which makes blood clothing rare. Antioxidants in red wine called polyphenols may help protect the lining of blood vessels in your heart. A polyphenol called resveratrol is one substance that has gotten attention. Resveratrol is a key ingredient in red wine that helps prevent damage to blood vessels, reduces ‘bad’ cholesterol and prevents blood clots. Now that you have gotten a taste of the enormous goodness wines present, make it a point of duty to get some of the best wines you can afford for that classy ceremony you are planning to host. In the words of Clifton Fadiman “if food is the body of good living, wine is its soul” Promise O’nali Artist/artiste/writer/designer 08134932103 Port Harcourt