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PDO / PGI Wine
Wine is an alcoholic beverage produced through the partial or total fermentation of grapes.
Grapes belong to the botanical family vitascope, of which there are many species. The species that are most widely used in wine production are Vitus labrusca and, especially, Vitus vinifera, which has long been the most widely used wine grape throughout the world. The theory that wine was discovered by accident is most likely correct because wine grapes contain all the necessary ingredients for wine, including pulp, juice, and seeds that possess all the acids, sugars, tannins, minerals, and vitamins that are found in wine. As a natural process, the frosty-looking skin of the grape, called "bloom," catches the airborne yeast and enzymes that ferment the juice of the grape into wine. Wine is characterized by color: white, pink or rose, and red, and it can range in alcohol content from 10 %to 14 percent. Wine types can be divided into four broad categories: table wines, sparkling wines, fortified wines, and aromatic wines. Table wines include a range of red, white, and rose wines; sparkling wines include champagne and other "bubbly" wines; aromatic wines contain fruits, plants, and flowers
Cider
The History of Cider begins some 50 million years ago when it’s believed the first apple trees began fruiting. But it would be a very long time before the first apple cider alcohol would be made. In this article, I’ll explain the earliest history of modern apples (malus pumelo), how they spread across the world, how they were first turned into cider, and how cider became an international phenomenon across Europe and then the USA – including the story of American folk hero, Johnny Apples.
Everywhere in the world, apart from USA, Cider is an alcoholic fermented fruit beverage. The most standard form is made from apples, known simply as cider. Other fruit ciders include perry – pear cider, and a multitude of other varieties like strawberry cider, rhubarb, passionfruit and many more. In the USA apple cider alcohol is called Hard Cider.
Cider making, in its most basic form, is a relatively simple process that could have been performed for as long as fermentation has been used by humans. First apples are picked, then crushed into a pulp. The pulp can be pressed and strained to collect the raw juice. Natural yeast in the air begins the process of converting sugars in the apple juice into alcohol.
Vinegar
Vinegar has a very old history. It is often mentioned in the Bible (homez), some residues were found in a ten thousand year – old vase dating back to pre- Pharaoh times in Egypt, thus confirming that the Egyptians, just like the Babylonians and Persians, knew and used it to preserve food. Thanks to the vinegar, food could be transported on long journeys. Mixed with water, it was used in ancient times by farmers and travellers to quench the thirst.
The most common drink in ancient Greece, the drink of the people, was called Oxycrat. It was obtained by mixing water, vinegar and honey and kept in special vases (oxydes). Hippocrates, the “father of medicine”, an extraordinary physician whose doctrines dominated the western civilisation till the 18th century, i.e. for more than 2000 years, prescribed it to treat wounds, sores and respiratory diseases.
Vinegar was also used during the military campaigns to quench the thirst, mixed with water, to clean the body, prevent and treat conditions caused by the life in the camps and small wounds.
Vinegar is one of the essential seasonings in food preparation. It is also good for health maintenance, as well as acting as a medicine. The raw materials for vinegar include glutinous rice, sorghum, rice, corn, wheat, sugar, and wine.
