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Milestones on the “Champagne Road”
Exploding Bottles “Where once shards rang out, today we hear laughter. Yet every sparkling wine still remembers the explosions of its past” When Bottles Roared Like Cannons “The Devil’s wine first fires in the cellar—only afterwards does it smile in the glass” In the previous part, we spoke about the invention of foil to cover… →
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Life of the Site
Visits between September 26 and October 2, 2025 The WordPress platform, where this blog is hosted, provides the following statistics for the past week (September 26 – October 2, 2025): Total visits — 99 from 25 countries. (as shown on the chart) Thank you for being with us! 🌍🍷 Our site grows and thrives not… →
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Milestones on the “Champagne Road”
The “Champagne Road” is not a geography, but a memory. Every turn and every mile along it is marked not only by vines, barrels, and cellars, but also by people, ideas, discoveries, triumphs, and setbacks. The milestones here are not stone markers by the roadside, but small symbols of the evolution of this wine: the… →
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History of Winemaking
“The Judgment of Paris” Part 2. Part 1 can be read here… Chapter Four. 4.1 Other Characters: 10. Steven Spurrier (1941–2021) An Englishman, a diplomat of taste, wine merchant, writer, teacher, and enthusiast. In 1970 he opened the wine shop Caves de la Madeleine in Paris, and in 1973 he founded the Académie du Vin,… →
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History of winemaking
Judgment of Paris “The history of wine preserves moments when a glass decided more than diplomacy” Author’s Note (2026) Paris. May 24, 1976. A few bottles from California. Nine French judges. One blind tasting. What began as a small event linked to America’s Bicentennial celebrations would become one of the most famous turning points in… →
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Alcohol in Numbers
Per Capita Wine Consumption This is the last article in the series. You can see the previous ones here, here, and here… Conclusion “Liters per capita — the formula is simple, but each number has a different soul” «Lies, big lies, and… a glass of numbers” — how to read wine statistics with a sober… →
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Human and Artificial Mind in the Mirror of Culture
Confession of a “Smart” Machine I’ve often mentioned in my materials that the texts I write are prepared with the help of Artificial Intelligence — the ChatGPT program (currently in its fifth iteration). Working with it is pleasant, interesting, and full of curiosity. When I started this collaboration, I could not have imagined the abilities… →
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Alcohol in Numbers
Portugal Per Capita Wine Consumption You can read the first part of the article about Portugal here… Part 2. Accessibility and Identity: Why the Numbers Don’t Lie “We can live in poverty, but without wine we cannot live at all” — Oral tradition “Wine is the language through which a people speaks to itself and… →
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Alcohol in Numbers
PortugalPer Capita Wine Consumption The previous chapters of this cycle (on the Vatican and Luxembourg) can be found here… Part 1. Tradition: From Monastic Mug to Port Wine “Those who share bread and wine — share life” — Portuguese proverb Ora et labora — “pray and work” — (motto of the Benedictines) If the high… →
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Alcohol in Numbers
Luxembourg The first part of the series on wine consumption in the Vatican can be read here… “A small country doesn’t have to have small wine” Who would have thought that a tiny Grand Duchy in the heart of Europe consistently ranks among the top countries worldwide in per-capita wine consumption? Luxembourg is a slender… →
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Alcohol and the Mind
“Laughter, Fear, and Freedom: Nobel, Ig Nobel, and a Bravery Drink” “Wine reveals what fear conceals” — attributed to the ancients You can read the first part here… If the first part of our story was about how Alfred Nobel’s guilt and summing up of his life gave birth to the Nobel Prize — and… →
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Alcohol and the Mind
“Laughter, Fear, and Freedom: Nobel, Ig Nobel, and a Bravery Drink” “The wine of science can be aged and solemn… or sparkling, with laughter in the glass.” Introduction Awards, like wines, come in many varieties. Some are served ceremoniously in crystal goblets — with golden medals and millions of dollars. Others are poured into plain… →
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“Feasts of the Immortals”
Official visit of U.S. President D. Trump to the United Kingdom, September 2025 Chapter 1 can be read here… Chapter 2 “State banquets are always diplomacy in three acts: the speech, the menu, and the alcohol. The first may be forgotten, the second can be digested, but the third is remembered forever.” Wine List (continued)… →
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“Feasts of the Immortals”
Official State Visit of U.S. President D. Trump to the United Kingdom, September 2025 Chapter 1 “At one table, centuries converge; history glimmers in silver, and diplomacy sparkles in the glass” In mid-September, the President of the United States, Donald Trump, paid a state visit to the United Kingdom. Among the various protocol events, a… →
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Alcohol Festivals of the World
Germany: Oktoberfest Part 1 of “Oktoberfest” can be viewed here… Part 2 – Inside Oktoberfest: Beer Tents, Maß, Millions of Guests. How much does it cost, what do people eat, how is it kept safe, and what lies ahead for this world’s folk festival? “O’zapft is!” (“The keg is tapped!”) — the traditional words… →