It was a pleasure for me to visit one of the wineries in the Niagara region two weeks ago. It was one of the stops on our day tour. This was a trip going to the Peach Festival held at Niagara-on-the-Lake which is a picturesque and charming little town. The trip included several stops, one of which, was this winery. I took all the images while we were there and thoroughly enjoyed myself.
In many social circles, drinking wine is the refined thing to do. Hard liquor seems to have gone very much out of style these days. A fine dinner isn’t had without a fine wine. Many people pride themselves on all the wines they have tasted and talking about wines makes a good conversation piece. Wine tasting was available while we were there. However, while this was going on, I had the opportunity to walk around the vineyard and the garden and imbibe the beautiful sights outdoors.
My own limited knowledge about wine led me to think that it was only from Biblical times that humans were wine-drinkers. I held this belief based on hearing the story about Jesus changing water into wine at the wedding where the wine had run out. However, we have actually been into wine long before that. “The history of wine making probably begins with the history of civilization itself. The earliest known wine production may have been in the region of Iran as long ago as 6000 BC, and there is evidence of domestication of the vine in the Near East from around 3000 BC. Certainly there was wine made in the times of the expansion of the Greek empire, some thousand years before Christ. It appears that wine making spread to Italy, North Africa, and France.”
It’s very strange for me to discover that wine production may have begun in the region around Iran. I always associated Europe and most particularly, France, with wine. It goes to show how much I still have to learn about so many things.
Grapes in a bunch and grapes on a vine have an earthy, sensual appeal. I like to see a plate of cheese and crackers set off with a bunch of grapes in the middle. A bottle of wine nearby makes the spectacle complete. Taste buds come in to play and add to the sensuality. All our senses make us human.
Quite apart from the lovely time spent at the winery and learning a little bit about the history of wine-making, this collage reminds me of something Marcus Aurelius said: “We ought to do good to others as simply as a horse runs, or a bee makes honey, or a vine bears grapes season after season without thinking of the grapes it has borne.”
Hope your knowledge of wine is better than mine and may we aspire to be like the vine, bearing good fruit, season after season – and not think about it. Let it come naturally. Enjoy the collage!