PH - WineSpeed - Karen MacNeil

PH

A measure of the strength of the relative acidity versus the relative alkalinity of wine (or any liquid) on a logarithmic scale of 0 to 14. The lower the number is below 7 (the neutral pH of water), the greater the relative acidity. Winemakers consider the pH of a wine in relationship to other factors (ALCOHOL, TANNIN, EXTRACT, and the like) to determine if the wine is in BALANCE. As grapes mature, plotting the change in the pH of their pulp is a way of determining ripeness.

Women and men of the same size and body weight are equally affected by the alcohol in wine.

Answer: False.

Women are more susceptible than men to the effects of wine—and of all other types of alcohol—even when weight is eliminated as a factor. Women have less aldehyde dehydrogenase-2 (ALDH2), the enzyme in the lining of the stomach that begins to break down and metabolize alcohol. Also, women’s bodies are 45% – 50% water, while a man’s is about 55% – 65%. As a result of both, when a man and a woman each drink the same amount of wine, more alcohol winds up in the bloodstream of the woman. According to one blood-alcohol concentration (BAC) study, 30 minutes after a 150-lb man and a 150-lb woman consume one drink with 0.6oz of alcohol, the man’s BAC is 0.018 and the woman’s is 0.027.

The Napa Valley: Circa 1971

Our friend Steve Burgess of Burgess Cellars sent us this map of Napa Valley in 1971 when it had only 40 wineries. Today (how things have changed) the valley has approximately 475 wineries.

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