Food Vancouver - Good Vices - Health Benefits of Wine

We know that broccoli and spinach are good for us and we know that generally the more colour in the fruits and veggies we eat, the more vitamins they have. We appreciate these facts and try to consume our leafy greens and vibrant oranges diligently.

But honestly, who among us doesn't truly wish that our vices and passions and secret guilty pleasures weren't also good for us? There are some things in life we are just not willing to give up-without them life would be colourless and well, boring. Wine is my "vice" if you chose to name it (actually there are a few others, but that's another story) and wine is also my business. I pretty much have to taste wine every day. So the benefits of wine and the research done on those benefits rarely escape me.

Wine has been consumed for centuries as an integral part of every day life. But, instead of approaching wine as a part of everyday life, a glass with lunch or dinner, we have placed it on a gilded pedestal and called it an indulgence. We modern wine drinkers have managed to attach some kind of guilt to treating ourselves to something as extravagant as wine. Get over it. It's grape juice after all. Really good grape juice, but grape juice nonetheless. And studies have shown, something our forefathers already knew (including Hippocrates) that the glass of red wine you have with your dinner is actually good for you.

Teeth Yes, red wine can stain, but good oral hygiene will help keep stains from setting in and making you look like a zombie. Studies have shown that certain components in red wine can help prevent inflammatory periodontal disease or periodontitis. Periodontitis is a progressive infectious disease caused by certain bacteria that affect the gums and bone surrounding the teeth. In the worst case scenario tooth loss can occur. However the anti-oxidant phenolic compounds in red wine can help alleviate these disease causing bacteria.

If you eat the cheese, make sure to drink the wine! Resveratrol-Researchers at Harvard Medical School and the National Institute on Aging have found that a natural substance found in wine called resveratrol can help offset some of the negative effects of a high-calorie diet. Perhaps giving us insight to the maddening reason why French women rarely get fat! The study placed two groups of mice on a high-fat diet giving one group a large daily dose of resveratrol and the other group none. Results were striking. The group of mice that did not receive any resveratrol gained weight but also quickly began showing signs of diabetes and enlarged livers. The group of mice that were given the resveratrol also gained weight but they maintained a normal liver size, avoided the onset of diabetes and lived months longer (and for a mouse this a long, long time!!!).

Many studies suggest that a moderate amount of red wine, one glass per day for women and two glasses per day for men (no, life is not fair ladies) can help prevent the chances of blood clots, help reduce blood vessel damage caused by fatty deposits and increase HDL (the good cholesterol). People from the Mediterranean region whose diet includes, among other things, the regular consumption of red wine have been found to have a lower risk of heart disease.

There are benefits to drinking both red or white wine but its no secret that red wine contains far higher levels of those all important anti-oxidants. Both red and white increase HDL but red wine is better at keeping LDL (the bad cholesterol) at bay while reducing the clotting of blood which can help reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.

Yes there are trace amounts of vitamins in that glass of wine:Vitamin B1 (Thaiamin), Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin) and Vitamin B3 (Niacin). Hey, I'll take them where I can get them! Who says they have to come in a pill!!

It seems difficult to find any solid statistics on whether or not wine can play a beneficial part in your sex life, but with Valentine's around the corner, wine is romantic, no research needed there. And, if wine leads to romance, and romance leads to love and companionship well that seems pretty heart healthy to me.

So, take the wine off the pedestal. Live a little (longer) and enjoy wine every day. Here are some suggestions;

The Grao Vasco (named after the famous Portuguese painter) is a member of the SoGrape wine family and has red berry and cherry aromas, vanilla spice, leather, sweet oak and tobacco. It also has that wonderfully reserved and earthy rustic charm of old world wines hinting at dried fruit and culminating with a lovely, soft finish. At this price having a glass with dinner means you can invite the neighbours!

The grapes for this delicious Cabernet Franc are picked from a single Similkameen vineyard (a real up-and-coming BC region). Juicy red cherry and sweet plum fruit, smoke, leather and a whiff of bacon fat on the nose. On the palate it's earthy and meaty with dried fruit, and a rich mocha coffee flavour. It is super smooth on the tongue with soft tannins on the finish. This wine would be wonderful with rich flavoured stews or meaty dishes.

The Il Ducale is a modern twist on traditional Italian style with upfront sweet red cherry, leather, vanilla soaked plums and tobacco with a suggestion of rose petals. Smooth sweet and earthy on the tongue with spiced, dried fruit and herbal flavours lifted with a lovely hit of acidity. A perfect wine for pasta, pizza or hearty Italian dishes.

Daenna Van Mulligen (aka Wine Diva) is a Vancouver based writer, sommelier and wine educator. You can read her cheeky wine reviews at www.winediva.ca.

Articles on Food Vancouver:

Vancouver's best-kept restaurant secrets

Good Vices - Health Benefits of Wine