Wine's world

Two studies have recently demonstrated a protective effect of wine compounds against coronavirus:

- American researchers discovered last January that polyphenols in grapes and wine prevent the virus from attaching to human cells (www.vitisphere.com/news-93204).

- More recently, the Taiwan Medical University found that tannins in wine inhibit two key enzymes of the virus, preventing it from entering cell tissue.

No hasty conclusion about the benefits of a hydro-alcoholic solution for internal use...

The Ministry of Agriculture [source Agreste] has published the quantity of plant protection products used per unit of surface area in vineyards in 2016.

Here are the results per wine-growing region (IFT = treatment indicator) :

- 21.50 IFT in Champagne, penalized by its chalky soil which retains moisture
- 18.00 IFT in Burgundy
- 16.40 IFT in Beaujolais
- 15.50 IFT in the Gers (Armagnac)
- 14.70 IFT in Charente (Cognac)
- 14.30 IFT in Bordeaux
- 13.60 IFT in Alsace
- 13.10 IFT in the Val de Loire
- 12.20 IFT in Dordogne

Then come the Mediterranean regions, favoured by their warmer, dryer and windier climate, less suitable for mildew and oïdium:
- 10.60 IFT in Languedoc
- 8.90 IFT in Provence and Southern Rhône (Châteauneuf du Pape)
- 7.60 IFT in Bouches du Rhône (Bandol)
- 6.90 IFT in Roussillon

Château Mouton-Rothschild has just unveiled its label for the 2018 vintage.

This year, the contemporary artist and Chinese calligrapher Xu Bing has been chosen to illustrate the label. His work looks at first glance like traditional Chinese characters, but is actually composed of the letters of the Latin alphabet and forms the words "Mouton Rothschild".

The 2018 label is thus intended to be a bridge between cultures, halfway between French gastronomy, ancestral Chinese calligraphy and contemporary art.