Why Wine Matters

Wine Blast with Susie and Peter

Wine and other booze are under attack like seldom before, from many sides: moralists, the media, health authorities citing dubious studies... So it's high time we reminded ourselves why wine is important, the many values and benefits it has, and what we can all do to challenge these pernicious narratives.

Don't worry. This isn't some dry treatise or frothy-mouthed rant. We are privileged to have acclaimed authority Karen MacNeil (author of The Wine Bible, no less) making the case for wine eloquently and persuasively.

But Karen doesn't stop there. She's letting her actions speak louder than words by launching two global wine advocacy campaigns - Come Over October and Share & Pair Sundays - aimed at encouraging people to come together over a glass of wine and promoting conviviality, sociability and fun.

For wine lovers, it's time to stand up and be counted. In this show we explore why, and also touch on things as diverse as jugs of vodka, joyful companions, The Simpsons, and just how useless Masters of Wine can be. French nun Sister André crops up - and we have some great pairing suggestions involving cheese on toast and fried chicken.

Thanks for tuning in. We love to hear from you so please do get in touch! Send us a voice message via Speakpipe. Or you can find contact info, together with all details from this episode, on our website: Show notes for Wine Blast S6 E12 - Why Wine Matters
Instagram: @susieandpeter

Chapters

1. Why Wine Matters (00:00:00)

2. Hello and welcome (00:00:05)

3. Headline quote (00:00:42)

4. Karen MacNeil, author of The Wine Bible, is joining us (00:00:58)

5. Karen's instigating a positive movement around wine (00:01:04)

6. So why are we talking about this now? (00:01:51)

7. The NASEM study: 'moderate alcohol consumption is associated with lower all-cause mortality' (00:02:49)

8. The Barcelona study: wine's reduction of cardiovascular disease risk 'is much higher that that achieved with some drugs, including statins' (00:04:13)

9. The ICCPUD report (00:05:55)

10. The US Surgeon General on alcohol and cancer (00:07:10)

11. French nun Sister André's secret to a long life..? (00:08:52)

12. Karen MacNeil on wine, warmth, joy and connection - and why wine matters (00:10:16)

13. We discuss wine as a 'joyful companion' and 'the silent music of nature' (00:16:34)

14. MID-EPISODE RECAP (00:19:54)

15. Karen MacNeil on Come Over October and Share & Pair Sundays (00:20:19)

16. We wine lovers need to take a stand... (00:37:12)

17. Where we desperately try to prove Masters of Wine can be useful (00:37:58)

18. Cheese toastie and Chardonnay: our Share & Pair recommendation #1 (00:38:40)

19. Fried chicken and fizz: our Share & Pair recommendation #2 (00:39:09)

20. Karen MacNeil on wine advocacy and the future (00:40:00)

21. FINAL SUMMARY (00:44:54)

22. Outro (00:45:29)