Test your wine knowledge with quiz questions from our expert.
True or False: as of 2014, Champagne shipments to the U.S. have been on the rise?
True
According to the Bureau du Champagne, 2014 saw in excess of 19.2 million bottles of Champagne shipped to the United States, an increase of over 1.3 million bottles when compared to 2013.
What do the cellars of Champagne, the Great Wall of China, the Taj Mahal, and Machu Picchu all have in common?
All have achieved Unesco World Heritage status.
In 2015, the cellars and vineyards of Champagne were granted Unesco World Heritage status, putting them on a very exclusive list with sites like Machu Picchu and the Great Wall of China.
True or False: The initials "SR" on a bottle of Champagne indicate that the wine was produced by a cooperative?
False
CM indicates a Coopérative de manipulation, or that the Champagne was produced by a cooperative. SR stands for Société de récoltants, or an association of growers that produce a shared Champagne but who are not part of a cooperative.
True or False: 80 percent of California's 80,000 acres of Cabernet Sauvignon plantings can be traced back to Concannon Cabernet clones?
True
Concannon's "mother vine" Cabernet Sauvignon plantings in Livermore Valley - clones 7, 8 and 11 - are the most widely planted Cabernet vine clones in the state.
True or False: California's Livermore Valley is lower than the wine-growing valleys located to the north of the San Francisco Bay?
False
The floor of Livermore Valley is actually higher than the nearby valleys to the north, ranging from 340 feet on the valley's western end, to one thousand feet on the eastern side of the valley.
The first varietal-labeled Petite Sirah in the U.S. appeared in what year?
1961
Concannon Vineyard, a pioneer in both California Petite Sirah and Cabernet Sauvignon plantings, introduced America's first varietally labelled Petite Sirah wine in 1961.
The first California wine to win a competition in France was from what region?
Livermore Valley
Charles Wetmore's Livermore Valley dry white wine took home the Grand Prix prize at the Paris International Exposition of 1889, making the first California wine to garner top honors in a French competition.
Italy's Moscato di Pantelleria and its Passito di Pantelleria winemaking areas were granted DOC status in what year?
1971
Moscato di Pantelleria and Passito di Pantelleria achieved DOC status in August of 1971. They represent the third Sicilian wine style to gain DOC status; Etna was first in 1968, followed by Marsala in 1969.
True or False: the Italian island of Pantelleria, famous for Passito-style dessert wines, is actually closer to Tunisia than it is to Italy?
True
Pantelleria is located about 100 kilometers (or 62 miles) south-west of the Italian island of Sicily. However, it is a mere 60 kilometers (about 37 miles) east of the coast of Tunisia.
Which of the following grape varieties is not native to Sicily?
Negroamaro
Negroamaro is probably native to southern Italy (though exactly where is a matter of some debate). The variety is thought to be loosely related to both Verdicchio and Sangiovese, and is widely grown in Apuglia, its most important area for at least the last 1,500 years.
