Vintage Champagne

Champagne made from a single year’s harvest. Aged a minimum of three years and often four or five. Called MILLÉSIME in French.

Where in the world did apples originate?

A. Peru

B. Kazakhstan

C. China

D. Nova Scotia

All of those Fujis, Romes, Deliciouses, and Granny Smiths in your market can be traced back to one place where apples still grow wild—Kazakhstan. According to Gastro Obscura, the ancestor of the domestic apple is the Malus sieversii, which grows wild in the Tian Shan Mountains. Scientists believe that Tian Shan apple seeds were transported out of Kazakhstan by birds and bears long before humans ever cultivated them. By the time humans did begin to grow apples the Malus sieversii was growing in Syria. The Romans discovered it there and then spread the fruit around the Roman Empire. Wild apple forests still exist in Kazakhstan in protected patches within National Parks.

Very Schnappy

In Austria schnapps is said to be made from every fruit and berry you have heard of and every fruit and berry you haven’t. Schnapps, like eau-de-vie in France and grappa in Italy, is a… Continue reading

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