Test your wine knowledge with quiz questions from our expert.
The name of the Italian island of Pantelleria translates to what phrase in English?
Daughter of the winds
The home of Passito di Pantelleria, the island of Pantelleria means "daughter of the winds," a tribute to the very strong winds that blow across the island from the north coast of Africa.
A mural in the Egyptian tomb of Khaemwaset (from about 1480-1425 BC) depicts wine grape growing in what type of trellising?
Pergola
Khaemwaset's tomb shows a fairly comprehensive overview of winemaking at the time in ancient Egypt, including the depiction of grapes growing on a high pergola system.
True or False: the British learned the modern method of creating sparkling wine from techniques used in the beer industry in the 1600s?
False
It was the cider industry that provided the know-how for sparkling wine creation in Britain in the 1600s. In 1662, Christopher Merret presented findings to the Royal Society in London, detailing the addition of sugar and to cause secondary fermentation, resulting in sparkling wine. He learned the technique from cider-makers.
True or False? Czar Alexander II favored Dom Perignon Champagne?
False
According to wine personality Oz Clarke, Czar Alexander II had a favorite Champagne, but it was Roederer Cristal (created for the Czar in 1876, and commonly considered the first prestige cuvee), not Dom Perignon.
According to IVDP president Manuel de Novaes Cabral, what country commanded the biggest market for Douro table wine in 2014?
Angola
Angola, a former Portuguese colony, was the Douro region's biggest market in 2014. Angola was followed by Canada, the USA, and Brazil (another country with Portuguese ties).
What Greek figure once wrote the following about wine: "The best measure of Bacchus is that which is neither great nor very little, for he is the cause of either grief or madness?"
Euenus
Euenus penned those words when describing how to dilute wine in order to mitigate its intoxicating effects.
True or False? King Alexander III of Scotland once had to bargain for payment of a debt that involved Bordeaux wines?
True
In the 1200s, Scotland was a substantial importer of Bordeaux claret. King Alexander III at once point was forced to pledge all revenues from the port of Berwick in order to promise payment of debts owed to a Bordeaux merchant, including about 115,000 litres (400 hogsheads) of wine.
Which of today's top wine producing countries had hit a low point of wine production at the end of the Napoleonic wars?
Italy
According to historian Rod Phillips, in the early 1800s France was on top of the wine world with two million hectares of vineyards and commanding forty percent of world wine production. In contrast, Italy - now one of the world's top producers by volume - at the time had only about 400,000 hectares (one fifth of France's area under vine).
Some of the earliest evidence of viticulture and winemaking were found in what wine region of Turkey?
Anatolia
In central Turkey's Anatolia region, evidence of viticulture dates back 7000 years. At the time, each vintage may have celebrated with a holiday as a matter of custom.
