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Anshu:
Hello and welcome to The Wineitupanotch Podcast, a podcast where we talk about wine, life, and everything in between.

My name is Anshu, I am your host, and I am so thrilled that you've decided to join me today. Thank you so much for doing so. 

It always makes my day when I get some positive comments or feedback on the podcast or even just sitting down in front of the mic and knowing that I'm going to have the opportunity to talk to you.

It's always an interesting thing because I can't see who I'm talking to and it isn't until somebody sends me a comment that I know who's listening, but I do know there are folks listening and it really is such a special spot in my day to think about the fact that I'm able to touch you with this podcast and hopefully bring some happiness to your day and of course some wine knowledge and I do appreciate your time! 

Now before we get into the topic for today's podcast, I thought I'd give you a little bit of a life update. If you don't want to hear this part, feel free to go ahead and skip ahead to the main crux of today's episode.

But let me kick off just by telling you what has been going on this week for me. And that is that we just finished celebrating my little man, my little son's birthday, and unfortunately he's not so little anymore. He turned 11 and as a mom, I might've shed a tear or two because I cannot believe that my baby is so old.

I have an older daughter as well, a few years older, but he is and always will be my baby. A baby no longer is he, as he keeps reminding me. And it's just amazing to see how quickly time goes. I have spent a lot of time this week reminiscing over how he's grown and changed and how I've grown and changed and what it was like to be a young mom of a young bab and a toddler to where I am now. 

And man, I can tell you life really does keep moving and it keeps us changing and growing. And that's a good thing. And really, there's nothing like the passage of time to keep you in check and help you to see and humble you a little, I guess….to really help you to see where life is taking you and what life is really about.

And I think if you're a parent like me, 

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then you know that as your children grow, you're definitely grounded in change because they keep changing and you keep changing and you see, you know, how their change is impacting you and vice versa. It's a beautiful thing. Life is a beautiful thing, isn't it? 

Okay.

Well, that was the life update. I promise to bring a little bit more of that. But with that, let's flip over to the topic for today's podcast episode, and it's kind of a fun one. 

Today, actually, we'll be kicking off a series of podcast episodes where we're going to be doing the same thing, which if you looked at the title of the episode is exploring some wine facts.

At Wineitupanotch, we have run a project for the last little while where we have been sharing wine facts with people who have signed up to the project. So what the focus of this project from my perspective was, was really to share interesting wine facts with people who are interested in wine in an easy and digestible way and by sending one email a day to someone's inbox, really helping them to, you know, either reinforce what they already know or learn something new. 

I've done two rounds of this project now with the audience that has signed up to it and it's been quite a success. I've been getting some really great feedback and I thought, Hey, why not bring it to the podcast? 

So I plan over the next couple of episodes to share the first round of the 30 days of wine facts project with you! 

I will share the facts and give you an opportunity to think about whether you know the answer. And then I'll share the answer.

So that's what we'll do in this particular episode. I'm going to be taking the first round of the 30 days of wine facts project that I did and splitting that into six facts across five episodes. And we'll go through those facts together. 

As I said, I will share the fact. I will pause for a little while, give you a chance to think about whether you know the answer and then I will come back with the answer and I think it should be a lot of fun.

So let's kick that off and hopefully you will enjoy this little series of 30 different wine facts brought to you by 

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The Wineitupanotch Podcast. Let's get going. 

Okay, so let's start with wine fact number one. Here is your question. Let's see if you know the answer. When it comes to winemaking in the United States, you could probably guess that the state that produces the most wine is California.

But can you correctly guess which state ranks number two and number three in terms of wine production in the U. S.?

Wine fact number two. What in the world are lees - that's spelled L E E S - and why do so many winemakers always talk about lees?

Wine fact number three. Why is the life cycle of a grape variety important?

Wine fact number four. What is a 225 liter wood vessel called in the wine world?

Wine fact number five. Have you ever noticed that wines made from the Malbec grape have a deep rich color? Why is this?

And lastly, wine fact number six. What is the black grape variety that is often described as being Chile's signature grape?

Okay, so those were the questions and I don't know, I maybe should have told you to grab a pen and paper so you could take note of your answers. I forgot to do that. I'll remember to do that tomorrow when I record again and release another episode. But for now, hopefully you had a chance to think about what you think some of the answers would be and I will now reveal what they are.

And you can see how you did, and hopefully you did well, and this reinforces some of what you already know. But if not, that's cool. This is an opportunity to learn something new and continue to grow as it relates to your knowledge of wine. So let's go back to those facts, starting with fact number one.

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So the first fact that I shared with you - I'm about to read out again - is when it comes to winemaking in the U. S., you can probably guess that the state that produces the most wine is California. But can you correctly guess which state ranks number two in terms of wine production? And what about number three in terms of wine production in the U.S.? 

And the answer to this question is number two is Washington State, and number three is New York State. That's in terms of the total volume of wine produced. 

Fact number two.

I had asked what in the world are lees and why do so many winemakers always talk about lees. Now lees is the term used for the sediment that settles at the bottom of a vessel after the fermentation process.

Lees are made up of dead and dying yeast cells and bacteria, grape fragments, nutrients, and other insoluble compounds. The sediment that forms within the first 24 hours after fermentation is called gross lees, while the sediment that settles more slowly over time is called fine lees. 

Wine fact number three.

Why is the life cycle of a grape variety important? The answer is, not all grape varieties are created equal. Like people, different grape varieties have different life cycles, and the term life cycle in this context refers to when the grape buds and when it ripens. Any given grape variety's life cycle is important because it directly impacts how well it will grow, thrive, and prosper in a given climate.

For example, a grape variety with a short life cycle, such as Pinot Noir, will yield better grapes in a cool climate environment than it will in a climate that is too warm, or worse yet, downright hot. This is why you will often see certain grapes being planted in the same types of conditions, or not being planted at all in certain conditions, over and over again all over the world.

It's important to note that quality minded grape growers pay a lot of attention to managing and optimizing the life cycle of the varieties of grapes in their vineyards. 

How are you doing so far? Hopefully having fun. 

Okay, let's go on to wine fact number four. 

The question was, 

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What is a 225 liter wood vessel called in the wine world?

The answer is it's called a barrique. Barriques are elite wooden vessels that are primarily used for maturing the world's finest wines in the winery cellar before they are bottled and released for sale. Barriques are commonly made from French oak, though they can be made from other sources, generally always wood.

But the origin of that wood can vary. And here's a bonus fact for you. Not all wines are aged in wood and not all wooden vessels used in the winery are barriques. Barriques are special. They do imply quality, a higher level of care, and higher production costs. 

Wine fact number five. 

The question was, have you ever noticed that wines made from Malbec have a deep rich color? Why is this? 

The answer - Malbec is a grape variety with a high level of anthocyanins (anthocyanins being water soluble pigments in their grape skins). Not all grape varieties have the same level of anthocyanins. For this reason, when all other things are equal, this characteristic of the Malbec grape conveys deeper color pigment in wines made from Malbec vs.other grapes that don't have equally high levels of anthocyanins. 

And the last wine fact. 

What is the grape variety that is often described as being Chile's signature grape? The answer is Carmenere. Now, if you guessed Cabernet Sauvignon, I can completely understand why, because Chile obviously makes examples of Cabernet Sauvignon that are amazing and makes a lot of Cabernet Sauvignon.

However, Cabernet Sauvignon is not really the signature variety of Chile per se, even though there is plenty of it planted and produced. 

If you want to impress a wine geek, or you are a wine geek (aspiring or realized!) yourself, you want to know that it is in fact Carmenere that is most closely associated with the idea of a signature grape variety when it comes to Chile.

And there you have it, six wine facts delivered fairly quickly, and 

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hopefully you enjoyed that and got something out of it! 

As I always say to the people who get these emails as part of the 30 Days of Wine Facts project, learning about wine is not an easy undertaking. It takes a really, really long time.

And the best way to get at your learning is through repetition and digesting things in small doses over longer periods of time. And that's really what the 30 Days of Wine Facts project is designed to do. 

So if you did well or you didn't do well on these six wine facts that I just shared, it really doesn't matter. I want to commend you for taking the time to invest in your learning if you tried to answer any of these questions or just listened intently for the answer. Any of those things count because all of those things are accretive in terms of your understanding. And while I, you know, I do think and do believe that the world of wine is vast and complicated, I also believe it can be mastered through continuous learning and through continuous feedback loops in which you teach yourself what you want to know. 

Like anything in life, right? Practice makes perfect. 

And with that, I will bring this episode of The Wineitupanotch Podcast to a close. 

I will be back again with another set of six wine facts in the next episode, and we can play this little game again and I hope that you will join me. 

Until then, I wish you lots of peace, love, light, and of course, great wine. Chat with you soon. Bye.

Thank you for listening to the Wine It Up a Notch podcast. I hope you're enjoying the podcast thus far. Be sure to hit subscribe to be notified of future episodes, or leave a review to let me know what you think. Take care!