Encruzado (en-crew-ZAH-doh)

Important grape in the dry white wines of Portugal’s Dão region.

What is one of Pope Francis’ favorite drinks?

A. Pisco sour (traditional South American cocktail)

B. Grignolino (Italian red wine from Asti in Piedmont, Italy)

C. Vermouth (Italian fortified wine flavored with herbs and spices)

D. Campari and soda (Italian aperitif originally from Piedmont, Italy)

Despite being born in Argentina, Pope Francis—Jorge Mario Bergoglio—comes from an Italian family with deep wine roots. His grandfather, Giovanni Angelo Bergoglio, was a winemaker near Asti in Piedmont, Italy, known for its bubbly dessert wines. However, Giovanni made a still red from the area, called grignolino (GREEN-yoh-LEE-noh). While still Cardinal Bergoglio in Buenos Aires, the Pope wrote often to his relatives in Piedmont, asking them to send more bottles of grignolino. Derived from grignòle, a Piedmontese dialect word for “many seeds”, grignolino is the source of light-reddish colored, frothy, crisp wines that can also have a tannic bite.

The Birthday Present You Always Wanted

It is an old tradition among the wealthy British upper classes to give a newborn child a “pipe” (about sixty-one cases!) of Port from the newborn’s birth year. In the past, vintage Port and single… Continue reading

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