Wine, then Dine!
Drinking wine with your meal, in addition to being good for your heart, may help ward off food poisoning before it happens. Scientists at Oregon State University recently found that wine can put the kibosh on three common food pathogens: E. coli, listeria, and salmonella. In lab studies, the wine's combination of ethanol, organic acids, and low pH appeared to scramble the bugs' genetic material. All wines have some effect, say researchers, but reds are the most potent.
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Friday, October 2, 2009
Walgreens to sell beer and wine
Walgreen Co. plans to add beer and wine to its stores, marking a return to a business it exited more than a decade ago.
The Deerfield, Ill.-based drugstore chain expects to roll out the liquor category to stores nationwide in the next 12 to 18 months as part of a broader attempt to drive traffic and boost sales, Chief Executive Gregory Wasson said. The return to the liquor business comes as the nation's largest drugstore looks for ways to return to profit growth. The company is starting to reap the benefits of making over stores, cutting costs and expanding its healthcare businesses, Wasson said.
Walgreen's fiscal fourth-quarter net income fell 1.5%, beating Wall Street expectations.
"We've adjusted our retail model to respond to what we believe will be lasting changes in consumer behavior," Wasson said. The 108-year-old company is in the midst of what Wasson described as "one of the most important strategic and operational transformations in our company's history."
Wasson, who began his career at Walgreens drugstores as a pharmacist, was named CEO in January after leading the company's healthcare business. The retailer already had begun to shake up its insular culture before Wasson took the helm, hiring outsiders for top jobs in marketing, technology, finance and merchandising. The pace of change has accelerated under his watch.
Walgreens slowed the rapid-fire pace of building new stores this year and instead poured money into remodeling existing stores. The program, called "customer-centric retailing," is aimed at creating stores that are less cluttered, more tightly edited and easier to shop.
The drugstore chain opened 35 test stores this spring that have shown positive results, Wasson said, without providing specific details. The format is on its way to 400 stores in Texas and will arrive at stores nationwide next year. The new Walgreens also will have fewer impulse items, such as Chia Pets, and more consumer staples, such as toilet paper and toothpaste.
The store makeover was needed to compete with CVS Caremark Corp. and to battle the growing pharmacy businesses at Target Corp. and Wal-Mart Stores Inc., said Brendan Langan, director of retail insight at Management Ventures Inc., a Cambridge, Mass.-based research firm.
"The Walgreens of yesterday was designed for a shopper with more time than money," Langan said. "It was too hard to find things. They had too many products and too many promotions." As for the liquor business, it signifies a break from the past, Langan said.
"There are no sacred cows in Deerfield," he said. "Everything is up for evaluation." Walgreens had been selling liquor since the end of Prohibition, with an array of beer, wine and spirits. The retailer got out of the business in the early 1990s, citing the complexity and cost of operating the department. There also was some question as to whether it fit with the company's health-and-wellness image.
The new liquor departments will be scaled back, selling only beer and wine. Walgreens disclosed in June that it was applying for the local government licenses needed to reintroduce beer and wine to its national chain of more than 7,000 stores. Rival CVS said it sells liquor in about 4,100 of its 7,000 stores and has been doing so for at least the past 20 years.
By Sandra M. Jones
The Deerfield, Ill.-based drugstore chain expects to roll out the liquor category to stores nationwide in the next 12 to 18 months as part of a broader attempt to drive traffic and boost sales, Chief Executive Gregory Wasson said. The return to the liquor business comes as the nation's largest drugstore looks for ways to return to profit growth. The company is starting to reap the benefits of making over stores, cutting costs and expanding its healthcare businesses, Wasson said.
Walgreen's fiscal fourth-quarter net income fell 1.5%, beating Wall Street expectations.
"We've adjusted our retail model to respond to what we believe will be lasting changes in consumer behavior," Wasson said. The 108-year-old company is in the midst of what Wasson described as "one of the most important strategic and operational transformations in our company's history."
Wasson, who began his career at Walgreens drugstores as a pharmacist, was named CEO in January after leading the company's healthcare business. The retailer already had begun to shake up its insular culture before Wasson took the helm, hiring outsiders for top jobs in marketing, technology, finance and merchandising. The pace of change has accelerated under his watch.
Walgreens slowed the rapid-fire pace of building new stores this year and instead poured money into remodeling existing stores. The program, called "customer-centric retailing," is aimed at creating stores that are less cluttered, more tightly edited and easier to shop.
The drugstore chain opened 35 test stores this spring that have shown positive results, Wasson said, without providing specific details. The format is on its way to 400 stores in Texas and will arrive at stores nationwide next year. The new Walgreens also will have fewer impulse items, such as Chia Pets, and more consumer staples, such as toilet paper and toothpaste.
The store makeover was needed to compete with CVS Caremark Corp. and to battle the growing pharmacy businesses at Target Corp. and Wal-Mart Stores Inc., said Brendan Langan, director of retail insight at Management Ventures Inc., a Cambridge, Mass.-based research firm.
"The Walgreens of yesterday was designed for a shopper with more time than money," Langan said. "It was too hard to find things. They had too many products and too many promotions." As for the liquor business, it signifies a break from the past, Langan said.
"There are no sacred cows in Deerfield," he said. "Everything is up for evaluation." Walgreens had been selling liquor since the end of Prohibition, with an array of beer, wine and spirits. The retailer got out of the business in the early 1990s, citing the complexity and cost of operating the department. There also was some question as to whether it fit with the company's health-and-wellness image.
The new liquor departments will be scaled back, selling only beer and wine. Walgreens disclosed in June that it was applying for the local government licenses needed to reintroduce beer and wine to its national chain of more than 7,000 stores. Rival CVS said it sells liquor in about 4,100 of its 7,000 stores and has been doing so for at least the past 20 years.
By Sandra M. Jones
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Wine Tycoon computer game launched
Ever fancied yourself as the next Bernard Magrez or Michel Rolland?
You might not have the capital to buy a Bordeaux super second but you can put your winemaking skills to the test in a new computer game where players fight it out to become wealthy wine barons.
Wine Tycoon, which goes on sale in the US next month, allows players to create vineyards in 10 of France's most prestigious wine regions including Bordeaux, Burgundy and Champagne.
Commanding operations form their 'Château', players have to build their winery, plant and tend to their vines throughout the year, hire staff to harvest the grapes and produce up to 50 wines from more than 40 grape varieties.
Players are in charge of all vineyard operations, from grape planting and pest control through to winemaking and the bottling plant.
In order to succeed in becoming a wine baron, equipment must be meticulously maintained and crops carefully tended.
The game has two levels – Career and Free Play, and comes with a Wine Encyclopedia with a glossary of wine terms, grape varieties and wine regions.
'For many, wine is much more than a drink with dinner, it's an all consuming passion', said Howard Horowitz, president of the game's publisher, Got Game Limited.
Wine Tycoon will retail at US$19.99
Lucy Shaw
Resveratrol Shows Anti-Viral Abilities
Italian study finds that the red-wine compound prevents viruses from replicating inside cells
Resveratrol, the polyphenolic compound found in red wine and the prominent focus of medical researchers, may be able to fight off viruses, according to a new Italian study. While the chemical has shown hints of anti-viral properties in previous studies, the new work shows that it appears to prevent virus replication at the cellular level. More research is needed to see how widespread the effect is.
Viruses, from the common cold to polio and the H1N1 "swine flu," are infectious agents that can only reproduce inside the cells of a host, inserting their genetic material into the cells. The new study, published in the July issue of the Journal of Experimental & Clinical Cancer Research, finds that the polyomavirus is unable to hijack a cell for this purpose if resveratrol is around.
"The continuous presence of resveratrol in the culture medium is necessary to exert its antiviral action," said Gianfranco Risuleo, a genetic and molecular biologist at Sapienza University in Rome and a co-author of the study. "[The chemical] shows effects on the synthesis of viral DNA; the action is not at cell entry level but rather at the nuclear level."
Polyomavirus, a family of viruses that can trigger tumor growth, is often chosen for research because its reproduction is totally dependent on the metabolism of the infected cell and therefore can be measured during several stages of its proliferation.
For the current study, the researchers exposed two different lines of mouse tissue, one with tumors and one without, to polyomavirus and then to either 20 or 40 micromoles of resveratrol. (The average glass of red wine has 10 times less resveratrol.) Control groups were not given any resveratrol.
The researchers found that in the tissue without tumors, after 24 hours, 20 micromoles of resveratrol reduced the number of viable infected cells to 80 percent. By 48 hours, that number dipped to 60 percent. With 40 micromoles, only 60 percent of the infected cells were viable after 24 hours, with only 42 percent still healthy after 48 hours.
While the exact process requires further study, the research indicates that resveratrol somehow blocks the ability of a virus to use the nucleus of a cell to replicate its own DNA. In cases where resveratrol was removed from the experiment after only four hours, the virus was soon reproducing freely.
Risuleo added that the results show a definite clinical, if curious, potential for the red-wine compound. "Resveratrol shows a paradoxical effect on cultured cells: i.e. it is likely innocuous at low concentrations while it becomes significantly toxic at higher concentrations, in the range of 40 to 50 micromoles." Risuleo said similar results can be expected in similar viral lines, such as chicken pox (Varicella zoster), herpes simplex and even influenza A.
The resveratrol also prevented viral reproduction in tumor cells. "Interestingly, tumor cells seem slightly more sensitive to the drug," Risuleo said. Recent studies suggest some viruses may play a role in triggering some types of cancer. For example, according to a new study published online on Sept. 23 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, polyomavirus is now believed to be associated with a rare skin cancer, known as Merkel cell carcinoma.
Jacob Gaffney
Resveratrol, the polyphenolic compound found in red wine and the prominent focus of medical researchers, may be able to fight off viruses, according to a new Italian study. While the chemical has shown hints of anti-viral properties in previous studies, the new work shows that it appears to prevent virus replication at the cellular level. More research is needed to see how widespread the effect is.
Viruses, from the common cold to polio and the H1N1 "swine flu," are infectious agents that can only reproduce inside the cells of a host, inserting their genetic material into the cells. The new study, published in the July issue of the Journal of Experimental & Clinical Cancer Research, finds that the polyomavirus is unable to hijack a cell for this purpose if resveratrol is around.
"The continuous presence of resveratrol in the culture medium is necessary to exert its antiviral action," said Gianfranco Risuleo, a genetic and molecular biologist at Sapienza University in Rome and a co-author of the study. "[The chemical] shows effects on the synthesis of viral DNA; the action is not at cell entry level but rather at the nuclear level."
Polyomavirus, a family of viruses that can trigger tumor growth, is often chosen for research because its reproduction is totally dependent on the metabolism of the infected cell and therefore can be measured during several stages of its proliferation.
For the current study, the researchers exposed two different lines of mouse tissue, one with tumors and one without, to polyomavirus and then to either 20 or 40 micromoles of resveratrol. (The average glass of red wine has 10 times less resveratrol.) Control groups were not given any resveratrol.
The researchers found that in the tissue without tumors, after 24 hours, 20 micromoles of resveratrol reduced the number of viable infected cells to 80 percent. By 48 hours, that number dipped to 60 percent. With 40 micromoles, only 60 percent of the infected cells were viable after 24 hours, with only 42 percent still healthy after 48 hours.
While the exact process requires further study, the research indicates that resveratrol somehow blocks the ability of a virus to use the nucleus of a cell to replicate its own DNA. In cases where resveratrol was removed from the experiment after only four hours, the virus was soon reproducing freely.
Risuleo added that the results show a definite clinical, if curious, potential for the red-wine compound. "Resveratrol shows a paradoxical effect on cultured cells: i.e. it is likely innocuous at low concentrations while it becomes significantly toxic at higher concentrations, in the range of 40 to 50 micromoles." Risuleo said similar results can be expected in similar viral lines, such as chicken pox (Varicella zoster), herpes simplex and even influenza A.
The resveratrol also prevented viral reproduction in tumor cells. "Interestingly, tumor cells seem slightly more sensitive to the drug," Risuleo said. Recent studies suggest some viruses may play a role in triggering some types of cancer. For example, according to a new study published online on Sept. 23 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, polyomavirus is now believed to be associated with a rare skin cancer, known as Merkel cell carcinoma.
Jacob Gaffney
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
France allows regions to do away with traditional 'ban des vendanges'
The Graves region of Bordeaux and Bourgeuil in the Loire have become some of the first appellations to do away with the traditional harvest start date, or 'ban des vendanges'.
As part of wine sector reforms initiated by the national appellations office (INAO), wine regions throughout France have been given the freedom to decide whether or not they wish to abolish the ban.
Allowing areas to abolish the harvest date can, in some cases, put an end to early harvesting and increase quality.
'Winegrowers went harvesting as soon as the ban was proclaimed without even looking at the maturity of their grapes,' one Loire winemaker told French wine site Viti-net.com.
The head of the Bourgeuil winemakers' union, Philippe Pitault said that his organisation would continue testing maturity and issue a 'correct' harvest date.
'That will reassure some winemakers who are not too sure of themselves,' he said.
In Bordeaux, and other wine regions in France, the ban des vendanges is a big part of winemaking folklore. Regions such as St-Emilion have maintained the tradition, as have Alsace and Beaujolais. The Graves appellation south of Bordeaux, however, confirmed it had put an end to the ban.
Some regions, including Saone et Loire in Burgundy, have deliberately issued very early harvest dates, maintaining the tradition and putting an end to early harvesting. The ban for the Saone et Loire was issued on 3 September.
Oliver Styles
As part of wine sector reforms initiated by the national appellations office (INAO), wine regions throughout France have been given the freedom to decide whether or not they wish to abolish the ban.
Allowing areas to abolish the harvest date can, in some cases, put an end to early harvesting and increase quality.
'Winegrowers went harvesting as soon as the ban was proclaimed without even looking at the maturity of their grapes,' one Loire winemaker told French wine site Viti-net.com.
The head of the Bourgeuil winemakers' union, Philippe Pitault said that his organisation would continue testing maturity and issue a 'correct' harvest date.
'That will reassure some winemakers who are not too sure of themselves,' he said.
In Bordeaux, and other wine regions in France, the ban des vendanges is a big part of winemaking folklore. Regions such as St-Emilion have maintained the tradition, as have Alsace and Beaujolais. The Graves appellation south of Bordeaux, however, confirmed it had put an end to the ban.
Some regions, including Saone et Loire in Burgundy, have deliberately issued very early harvest dates, maintaining the tradition and putting an end to early harvesting. The ban for the Saone et Loire was issued on 3 September.
Oliver Styles
Thursday, September 18, 2008
New Wine For Seniors
I kid you not... New Wine for Seniors
California vinters in the Napa Valley area, which primarily produce Pinot Blanc, Pinot Noir and Pinot Grigio wines, have developed a new hybrid grape that acts as an anti-diuretic.
It is expected to reduce the number of trips older people have to make to the bathroom during the night.
The new wine will be marketed as:
PINO MORE
Polo
Para, USA
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
A winery in name only
Couple sets up shop in Houston to import, sell French wines
Tim and Phyllis Smith own a "winery"near Rice Village where they import and sell French wines. In order to operate their business, they had to obtain a winery license.
In 1973, Tim Smith bought a grand-cru Beaujolais in Paris for 80 centimes. That bottle of Morgon, for an outlay of about 20 cents, proved a life-changing experience.
"I thought I'd died and gone to heaven," he recalls wistfully.
Now 35 years later, Smith owns a winery in what was once a photographer's studio near Rice Village. Make that a "winery," since what Smith and his wife Phyllis really do with their French Country Wines is import and sell. In order to do both legally in Texas, they had to obtain a winery license.
If he's not yet a superstar in the cellar, he's got a refined taste for wines made by other people, especially those who are making it in small, reasonably priced quantities far off the beaten path, mostly in the South of France. One of Smith's Châteauneuf-du-Papes, the Domaine du Banneret, comes from a well-situated producer who isn't known even to the local tourist office, probably because he produces at most 400 cases each year.
It sells for $34, right at the top of Smith's price ladder. Fresh and harmonious in the glass, with a nice long finish, the 2004 Banneret drinks like it should cost at least twice that much.
"This wine is a perfect example of what we're trying to do," Smith said. "We wanted to expose people to the kinds of wines we like, wines you just couldn't find here. (The big importers) are looking to buy five pallets at a time. Some of our producers don't make five pallets in a year."
A retired litigator, Smith ultimately found his way into the wine trade to "keep me off the streets." His passion is finally close to profitable — despite the weak dollar, the numbing bureaucratic minefield one must traverse to become an importer-retailer and the fact that his portfolio consists of boutique producers that almost nobody in Houston had heard of.
"The label-approval process took six months," Smith said. "I never realized they'd be so nitpicky about it."
Smith acknowledges his naiveté as a fledgling wine merchant, admitting he might never have moved forward with his venture without the support of a certain Frenchman.
Francophiles Tim and Phyllis knew of Jean-Marc Espinasse only through his Web site, which featured a wine every day, and that of his wife Kristen, who's behind french-word-a-day.com. But when Smith e-mailed him, Espinasse replied within 24 hours. It seemed he had a small wine brokerage and was looking to expand in the U.S. market. They agreed to meet in Phoenix, where Kristen is from, and forged a partnership. About 60 percent of the wines Smith sells are acquired through Espinasse, including Espinasse's own Rouge-Bleu.
"As it turned out, we have very similar palates," Smith said. "But he has encouraged me to explore and find other wines. I want to keep our portfolio vibrant."
Smith's Web site is excellent, informative and easy to navigate. Through the Internet and word of mouth, augmented with well-attended biweekly tastings — there's one tonight at 6 p.m., featuring cheese from the Houston Dairy Maids — his customer base is expanding, and he's gaining restaurant placements, including Café Rabelais, Brasserie Max and Julie and, most recently, Aura.
If you're inclined to visit the shop, it's best to call first: 713-993-9500. As Smith says, "It's just me, and sometimes I've got to run errands." (Phyllis has a "day job" as director of projects for the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center.)
A more pleasant, less pretentious couple you will never find in the wine world. They know they're just the messengers; in the end, it's all about the wine they sell.
DALE ROBERTSON
Houston Chronicle
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