Anbaugebiet

One of thirteen specified winegrowing regions in Germany. Plural anbaugebiete.

The croissant is a French pastry that was baked into its crescent moon shape in order to look more appealing than traditional round or oblong loaves.

Answer: False.

In fact, the croissant isn’t even really French but Austrian. For centuries, imperialistic Turkish tribes hoping to invade western Europe considered Austria a militarily strategic foothold. Austria usually managed to defend itself against these periodic sieges, but occasionally the Turks prevailed. A brief occupation in the late 1600s had two redeeming results—both culinary. Coffee beans were brought to Vienna, instigating a revolutionary change in Austrian drinking habits, and Viennese bakers created the croissant to commemorate the end of the Turkish siege. The rich dough’s shape was not, alas, a marketing strategy: it was modeled after the crescent moon emblem on the Turkish banners.

“I liken making pinot noir to waking up a woman at three in the morning. You never quite know what you’re going to get.”

—Luke Smith
Owner and winemaker, Howling Bluff Winery, British Columbia

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