Red Wine - Heart Health benefits?

Written by Gloria Tsang, RD

(HealthCastle.com) Does red wine protect against heart disease? Maybe. Many studies investigated the benefits of red wine suggested that moderate amount of red wine (one drink a day for women and two drinks a day for men) lowers the risk of heart attack for people in middle age by ~ 30 to 50 percent. It is also suggested that alcohol such as red wine may prevent additional heart attacks if you have already suffered from one. Other studies also indicated that red wine can raise HDL cholesterol (the Good cholesterol) and prevent LDL cholesterol (the Bad cholesterol) from forming. Red wine may help prevent blood clots and reduce the blood vessel damage caused by fat deposits. Indeed, studies showed that people from the Mediterranean region who regularly drank red wine have lower risks of heart disease

What's in Red Wine that are good for heart?

Red wine is a particularly rich source of antioxidants flavonoid phenolics, so many studies to uncover a cause for red wine's effects have focused on its phenolic constituents, particularly resveratrol and the flavonoids. Resveratrol, found in grape skins and seeds, increases HDL cholesterol and prevent blood clotting. Flavonoids, on the other hand, exhibit antioxidant properties helping prevent blood clots and plaques formation in arteries.

Should I start drinking more red wine now?

The answer is No. Studies showed that alcohol drinking may increase triglycerides (another Bad blood lipids) and result in weight gain due to its empty calories. Other studies also suggested that alcohol consumption is associated with cancer risk. Read Alcohol and Cancer. The American Heart Association cautions people NOT to start drinking if they do not already drink alcohol. If you already drink alcohol, do so in moderation. AHA recommends one to two drinks per day for men and one drink per day for women. (A drink is one 12 oz. beer, 4 oz. of wine, 1.5 oz. of 80-proof spirits, or 1 oz. of 100-proof spirits.)

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Five Reasons To Drink Pink Wine

by Eric Arnold

There are few better wines than rose for summer sipping. Try one (or all) of these.

Reputations can be tough to shed. Perhaps none are more stubborn than rosé's. Why? The wine industry--by cranking out millions of bottles and casks of bland, too-sweet white zinfandel in the 1980s--did its best to kill the notion that pink wine can be a tasty, refreshing, refined drink.

Today, though, rosé is no longer the pink-headed stepchild of the wine shop. According to data from the Wine Market Council, of those Americans who drink at least one glass of wine each week, 18% of the time they drink pink.

Chalk it up to a competitive global wine market, improved grape-growing and winemaking practices and a few important flag wavers such as highly regarded New Zealand winemaker Kim Crawford (in his case, with a rosé called Pansy!, mostly marketed to the gay community). Maybe it's a combination of all three that's made rosé one of the best value-for-dollar wine categories on the shelf.

That's what Charles Bieler of Three Thieves Wines (click here to see Bieler's recommended rosés), has been saying for years. He started out in the wine business in the early 1990s, promoting and marketing the rosé his father then made at Château Routas in Provence, France, by driving around the U.S. in a pink Cadillac--wearing a pink tux and top hat, no less.

Today, such gimmicks are unnecessary. Wine shops carry dozens of high-quality rosés from several different countries, including Bieler's--one from France that his family still makes, called Bieler Père et Fils, and the other called Charles & Charles, from Washington, in partnership with local winemaker Charles Smith.

But even though rosé has regained acceptance, the same rule applies for this style of wine as any other: Education equals better buys.

Rosé is made in the same manner as white wine, but using red grapes. The bunches are picked and crushed, and depending on how long the juice and grape skins sit together in the tank, the more red color is passed on to the juice. The juice is then drained off and fermented separately.

The hue shouldn't have as much an impact on flavor, however, as the vintage date. With only a few rare exceptions, rosés are not designed to age. It's 2009, so right now you should be drinking 2009 rosés from the southern hemisphere, and 2008s from the northern. Fresh rosés will be bright, vibrant and juicy; after a year or even less, the wines tend to dull in aroma and flavor.

Unfortunately, this was the case when we tried Domaine Ott from southern France, arguably the most highly sought-after and expensive ($40) rosé available. The 2007 we tried was still tasty, but not exuding the fresh aromas and flavors it likely did a year ago when it first arrived on store shelves.

Normally, buying according to pedigree is a good strategy. South Africa's Mulderbosch, for example, has a great reputation for its sauvignon blanc and chenin blanc; by association, the winery's rosé ($11) should deliver as well. And it did in our video tasting with Bieler--the flavors and aromas were all strawberries and raspberries, with a rush of acidity that makes the mouth water for more.

Also consider regional pedigree. As mentioned, southern France is where most of the rosés in your local shop are likely to come from; this is because pink wine has been a hallmark of summer drinking in southern France for decades. If you've had one southern French rosé that you liked, you're bound to enjoy another.

Finally, feel free to experiment. Most good-tasting rosés shouldn't cost more than $10 or $12--some even half that amount. So don't get discouraged if your first few tries don't result in a wine you love. After all, it's just a drink--no one's forcing you to wear a pink tuxedo to sing its virtues.

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