Ellen Wallace
Pinot Noir: a little red combined with a good southern European diet could keep your heart safer, major new study shows
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – In a rare move, a medical study of a Mediterranean diet’s impact on cardiovascular problems proved so conclusive the study was abandoned early, after nearly five years. The study, published 25 February in the New England Journal of Medicine, included 7,447 persons considered at risk, and it put them on three diets.
A Mediterrean diet’s “salient components … reportedly associated with better survival include moderate consumption of ethanol (mostly from wine), low consumption of meat and meat products, and high consumption of vegetables, fruits, nuts, legumes, fish, and olive oil”, the authors write.
The study provides the strongest support yet from researchers on the potential for the diet from the region to help prevent heart attacks and strokes. Wine producers, who have long argued that small quantities of wine can be beneficial, will be pleased to see support for their arguments, an antidote to growing pressure in some countries to limit advertising because of alcohol abuse.
The authors conclude that “In this trial, an energy-unrestricted Mediterranean diet supplemented with either extra-virgin olive oil or nuts resulted in an absolute risk reduction of approximately 3 major cardiovascular events per 1000 person-years, for a relative risk reduction of approximately 30%, among high-risk persons who were initially free of cardiovascular disease. These results support the benefits of the Mediterranean diet for cardiovascular risk reduction. They are particularly relevant given the challenges of achieving and maintaining weight loss.”
The work was carried out at several research centres in Spain and has a long list of authors.
Ellen Wallace
Wine tasting notes, Swiss red wines (blind tasting)
Red wine, fruity yet somber, slightly spicy, dry
Grape variety: Gamay
Winery: Les Celliers du Chablais
Location: Aigle, Vaud
Price at the winery: CHF18.00
View this wine reviewed in French by Laurent Probst and in German by Gabriel Tinguely
Complete list of GenevaLunch Swiss wine videos, produced by RomanDuVin
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Ellen Wallace
Wine tasting notes, Swiss red wines
Red wine, dry
Grape variety: Gamay
Winery: Cave Beetschen
Location: Bursins, canton Vaud
Price at the winery: CHF13
View this wine reviewed in French by Laurent Probst and in German by Gabriel Tinguely
Complete list of GenevaLunch Swiss wine videos, produced by RomanDuVin
Click on image to view larger
Ellen Wallace
Will our children thank us for drinking red wine?
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – It is a heartening week in the research news corner, as seen from Canada. Researchers in Lausanne have measured the long-term metabolism in humans of lycopene, found in tomatoes, and coupled with recent research from the UK we now know it can do wonders for the skin.
Another group in Canada are seeing that rats given Resveratrol, the substance that has given red wine a good name in recent years, don’t pass diabetes on to the next generation.
Lycopene has long been known to have antioxidant qualities and tomatoes are one of the rare sources of it, in useful quantities. It is quickly absorbed into the skin, where it can play a useful role in protecting against ultraviolet rays, and it can still be found six weeks later, AB Ross and his team at the Nestle Research Center near Lausanne say (full story, Toronto Sun/QMI agency).
The Toronto Star also carries an article about research in Alberta that shows Resveratrol, found in red wine pigments, could be useful in fighting diabetes. The antioxydant, which came to fame in the 1980s when research showed it could help stave off cancer, has another preventive role in rats. Lab rats genetically susceptible to developing diabetes and that are fed the compound do not develop abdominal fat, which is linked to diabetes.
This still leaves a lot of questions. Do the offspring need Resveratrol frequently? Daily? A short, quick dose in infancy? And when the research moves on to humans, will we find that a glass a day keeps the diabetes away, or if we drink it regularly will our children benefit?
Meanwhile, the garden tomatoes are ripening and at least we can keep our skin looking bright and young while we ponder the impact of red wine on our health.
Cheers! Here’s to the Alberta research team carrying on with its research, and to the rest of us just carrying on carrying on with red wines while we wait for the outcome.
May our children bless us for it.
Ellen Wallace
Serendipity: two Vaud gold winners at Mondial du Merlot holding weekend openhouses
World's best Merlot 2010, Cave Cidis in Tolochenaz, near Morges, Switzerland
Morges, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - Two of the top Merlots in the world, named late Thursday 25 November at the Mondial du Merlot in Ticino, are grown quite close to each other in canton Vaud. The competition, in its third year, had entries from 25 countries.
Happily for local winelovers, both are holding open houses this weekend, so head for the Morges area!
Cave Cidis, a well-respected wine cooperative in Vaud, won the overall Merlot best of competition title at the Mondial du Merlot in Ticino, for its “Inspiration” (CHF23), no small feat considering that eight Ticino wines, generally considered home to Switzerland’s best Merlots, won gold.
Vaud made an impressive showing, with two other wineries taking gold, showing the potential for Merlot in the Lake Geneva region. Domaine de Chantemerle, Tartegnin, and Domaine Terre-Neuve, in Saint Prex. David Kind (who speaks English) at Terre-Neuve (on the lake road heading towards Morges) is holding his annual open house Saturday 11:00-17:00 and Cidis in Tolochenaz is holding a three-day Autumn Tasting 24-27 November.
The two wineries are about less than 2 km from each other. Terre Neuve is a relatively small family winery in a beautiful setting and Cidis is one of the largest wineries in the area, with a large selection of their own and other wines, including imported bottles.
Tartegnin is on your route if you’re coming from Geneva, and the fourth generation of the Chantemerle winery family, the Jaccouds, is gaining a reputation for innovation and interesting fine wines. The winery, with English web pages, is open Saturday.
David Kind, Terre-Neuve in Saint Prex
Ellen Wallace
New edition of Swiss Wine Guide launched
Update 23:45 Bern, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – And the winner is: Meinrad Perler, named the best winemaker in Switzerland for 2010! The news was announced Thursday evening, 28 October at a gala event and dinner for the world of Swiss wines, the award ceremony for the Grand Prix du Vin Suisse competition. From the Vinea Association and the Vinum wine review, who co-produce the competition comes this (details on GenevaLunch Friday):
“The Vinissimo Prize was given for the wine with the overall highest number of points in the competition. It went to Meinrad Perler of Agriloro SA in Arzo, Ticino, for his Sottobosco Rosso del Ticino 2008.
Meinrad Perler was also named Swiss Winemaker of the Year for achieving the best overall result in the competition, ahead of Diego Mathier from Salgesch/Salquenen in Valais and Provins Valais in Sion. Four criteria were taken into consideration in naming the Winemaker of the Year: the number of wines nominated, the number of categories with wines nominated, the number of winning wines and the best ratio of wines registered to wines nominated.”
Six wines were nominated for each of the 11 categories of wine and two of these 11 gold winners, for Switzerland’s leading white and red grape varieties, are from the Lake Geneva region:
- Chasselas – Saint-Saphorin, Le Sémillant 2009, Jean-Michel Conne, Chexbres, Vaud
- Pinot Noir – Le Satyre Pinot Noir La Côte 2009, Noé und Noémie Graff, Le Satyre, Begnins.
Agriloro has, for the past 15 years, been considered one of the top wineries in Ticino. Vinification is overseen by oenologists Sacha Pelossi and Philipp Ruettimann. Merlot is the leading wine on the 22-hectare domain, with vines in Tenimento dell’Or and Tenimento La Prella.
The 2011-2012 Swiss Wine Guide, co-published every two years by Vinea and media company Ringier Romande, was launched during the evening. This is the fourth edition of the reference work, which provides details about 450 top Swiss wine producers and is arguably the most complete source of information on Swiss wines in English. It is the second edition in English.
Note: I lead the team that produces the English text for the Swiss Wine Guide, which can be purchased for CHF39, online, from Vinea.