As a wine enthusiast you'll have an opinion on the best type of closure
for wine.
Please spare two minutes to complete our short online questionnaire:
http://www.wineloverspage.com/cork.
• Magnum Wines: The Online Auction House for Specialty Wines
http://www.magnumwines.com
• Corkmasters.com
http://www.wineloverspage.com/cork
• Special announcement: Corkmasters.com
• Why 12 bottles in a case?
• Italian Wine Guide: Prosecco
• MoCool 2002: You're invited!
• Last Week's Wine Advisor Index
• Administrivia
Let's take a break from serious wine tasting today to toy with an ultimate wine-trivia question: Why are there (usually) 12 bottles in a case of wine? My pal Tom Troiano asked this question yesterday in our interactive Wine Lovers' Discussion Group, and to this point he has stumped the experts.
I'll confess that I don't know, either. But my best guess is that it's simply a matter of tradition based on the size and shape of a box that's reasonably easy for one person to lift and that can be stacked securely in warehouse or store.
The magic number also has to fit neatly into rows in the box, so a prime number like 11 or 13 wouldn't work. Nine bottles in a 3-by-3-bottle box would probably be too small, and a 16-bottle case (4-by-4) would be almost too heavy. A 10-bottle box (5-by-2) would be too long and narrow to stack stably (although I'm told that an occasional 10-bottle box does turn up in the wine industry), and a 14-bottle case (7-by-2) would be even worse. This leaves the 12-bottle case (3-by-4) as the most reasonable alternative, although you'll occasionally see an oversize case of 15 (3-by-5).
The weight of a "fifth" (750 ml) bottle of wine varies quite a bit, by the way, but a random sample from my wine rack suggests that a typical full bottle weighs a little under 3 pounds, making a case a hefty 30 to 35 pounds or so.
It's also worth noting that beer bottles usually come 24 to a case, a box that's in the same general order of size and weight as a case of 12 wine bottles.
I TOLD you this was a trivial topic ... but you should have seen Tom's other question: Why are there 18 holes in a golf course?
If these topics intrigue you or if you think you have a better theory, please feel free to drop in on the Wine Lovers' Discussion Group, where you'll find this subject under consideration at
http://www.wineloverspage.com/cgi-bin/sb/index.cgi?fn=1&tid=32064. Or if you prefer to contact me privately, send E-mail to wine@wineloverspage.com.
Next time, back to tasting notes!
Italian Wine Guide: ProseccoProsecco is Italy's answer to refreshing, well-made sparkling wine at a reasonable price. Made primarily in the district of Valdobbiadene near the town of Conegliano in Veneto, Prosecco has quickly become one of the most successful sparkling wine types made today.
We're featuring Prosecco this month as our highlighted article from Italian wine expert Tom Hyland's Guide to Italian Wines, complete with tasting notes. Click to
http://www.wineloverspage.com/italwineguide/prosecco.phtml
for the full story, or go directly to Tom's Website,
http://www.northshorewine.com/newslettersubscribe.htm
to subscribe to his excellent newsletter.
La-deeeeez and gentlemen, and Pinotphiles of all ages (21+), here's your invitation to MoCool 2002. Please join us as we celebrate the 11th year of the MOtown COoperative Off-Line in the Ann Arbor and Detroit area, the world's longest running gathering for 'net-wired wine lovers.
This year's topic will be PINOT ENVY - an exploration of wines made with grape varieties that start with the word Pinot. Pinot Noir, Pinot Blanc, and shades of Pinot Gris (or is that Grigio?), plus Pinot Meunier and even Pinotage! Consider spending the weekend of Aug. 23-25 in the Ann Arbor/Detroit area, socializing with wine buddies, drinking great wines made from your favorite flavor of Pinot, and eating incredible food!
MoCool, Ltd. is a not for profit corporation. MoCool has been organized since 1992 by a volunteer group of wine lovers whose goal is a non-snobby, cooperative, affordable weekend for cyberwine fans to get together and enjoy wine, food, and each other's company.
For complete information, click to the MoCool page,
http://www.wineloverspage.com/mocool.
Or if you're already ready to sign up, hit the registration page,
http://www.signup4mocool.com.
To subscribe or unsubscribe from The 30 Second Wine Advisor, change your E-mail address, switch from weekly to daily distribution, or for any other administrative matters, click to
http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor/admin.phtml.
In all administrative communications, please be sure to include the
exact E-mail address that you used when you subscribed, so we can
find your record. If you must unsubscribe, please take a moment to tell us why you're leaving, and to offer any comments or suggestions you may have. We do not use our E-mail list for any other purpose and will never give or sell your name or E-mail address to anyone.
I welcome feedback, suggestions, and ideas for future columns. To contact me, send E-mail to wine@wineloverspage.com.
All the wine-tasting reports posted here are consumer-oriented. In order to maintain objectivity and avoid conflicts of interest, I purchase all the wines I rate at my own expense in retail stores and accept no samples, gifts or other gratuities from the wine industry.
Wednesday, July 17, 2002
Copyright 2002 by Robin Garr. All rights reserved.
