Humans are the only species on Earth known to voluntarily consume ethanol. The vast majority of other species have evolved an avoidance for what is essentially a biological poison. Drunk animals are more likely to die and therefore less likely to reproduce, so a trend towards sobriety echoes down the ages in most species. Except us. We will not only go to great lengths to obtain alcohol—even when it is illegal—but we will also consume so much of it we can become ill or die. Why?

It’s Chemical

For most people, drinking small to moderate amounts of alcohol is a pleasurable experience. The pleasure we humans derive from drinking is thought to be due to the effect of alcohol on the brain. A 2009 study conducted in rats found small to medium amounts of alcohol stimulate the release of endorphins—brain “feel good” chemicals. The mechanism is thought to be the same in humans and could be responsible for the slight euphoria many people experience after drinking. Interestingly, the high doses of alcohol were not associated with a greater release of these feel good chemicals.

As many studies can attest, humans will do all sorts of crazy crap to feel good, especially if we can get away with it without being eaten by a predator. Seeing as we are on the top of the food chain essentially and can rely on fellow humans to help us when we are impaired, the potential evolutionary costs of drinking are mitigated for our species. Hence frat parties.

It’s Social Bonding

Alcohol is not referred to as a “social lubricant” for nothing. The consumption of alcohol is known to decrease anxiety and to lower inhibitions in humans, leading sometimes to easier and more enjoyable social interactions. Anecdotally, this is most certainly the case at holiday dinners with otherwise barely tolerable family members. Many important human celebratory events frequently involve alcohol: weddings, birthday parties, holiday parties. Culturally, social drinking is highly acceptable and encouraged—solitary drinking however, is not. Alcohol consumption by humans is closely tied to the fact we are social species.

The use of alcohol in social bonding situations is heavily influenced by culture, even how people behave when drunk is culturally determined and varies from place to place. There is social significance even, to the type of alcohol consumed, it communicates social status information. For example: wine = higher class, educated consumer. Pabst Blue Ribbon = lower class, less educated or ironical hipster (depending on context).

The socializing aspect of drinking alcohol is perhaps the reason for its enduring persistence across most human cultures and most human times—even in the face of its potentially negative biological effects (but perhaps positive theological effects e.g. holding onto the toilet praying you will never drink again if you will stop puking).

It’s a Hobby

Generally speaking, the consumption of alcohol is not considered a hobby unless you happen to be a wine or beer connoisseur. Wine drinking and collecting has become a very popular pastime in the U.S., and a similar situation is occurring with craft beer. There is entire culture and product market surrounding these drinking related hobbies (especially with wine). In addition to the hobby of drinking alcohol, there is a huge hobby related industry for making it at home, both beer and wine. A significant aspect of both types of alcohol related hobbies (the collecting/consuming and the making) is also social as evidenced by the many beer and wine festivals held around the country each year.

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Pissed Pacyderms

Stories of drunk wild elephants have a long history in Africa. Supposedly elephants get sloshed by eating the fermented fruits of the marula tree. Hilarious footage of an elephant purportedly doing just that is included in the 1974 animal documentary “Animals are Beautiful People” but in 2006, researchers showed plowed pachyderms are just a myth. In the paper “Myth, marula, and elephant: an assessment of voluntary ethanol intoxication of the African elephant” published in Physiological and Biochemical Zoology, researchers calculated an adult African elephant would have to consume an unrealistic number of overripe marula fruits to get the job done and concluded “there is no clear evidence of inebriation in the field”. What explains the persistence of drunk elephant stories then? The lead author, when discussing the paper with National Geographic, explained: “People just want to believe in drunken elephants”—undoubtedly one of the funniest quotes ever in scientific journalism.

Drunk elephants are funny, but are there drunk elephants? (image from Olivier Delaere)

Elephants may not become intoxicated under natural conditions, but there is evidence elephants can develop a taste for human alcoholic beverages and turn into mean-ass drunks. There are many reported incidents of elephants in India seeking out and drinking human made rice beer. They subsequently tear shit up or even join the not so exalted ranks of drunken Darwin award winners by getting themselves killed. In 2004, a group of elephants reportedly drank rice beer in a remote Indian village, started getting rowdy, and knocked down an electrical pole on themselves, killing 4 of them (God who had to clean that up?).

Blitzed Birds and Skunked Shrews

The only thing more dangerous than driving while drunk is flying when drunk. There are many, many reports of birds —cedar waxwings in particular—getting smashed figuratively and literally on berries that have fermented. Getting drunk for birds often ends the same way it can for humans, that is to say, badly. The most common reports are of drunk birds flying right into buildings/windows or passing out, falling from trees and dying from the impact. I could find little evidence that birds ever get drunk for fun; it happens by accident when berries ferment under certain conditions and the birds are unable to distinguish a fermented berry from a normal one. Symptoms of drunkenness in birds can mimic symptoms of sickness from illness such as the bird flu, which as you can imagine, really freaks people out.

There is very little evidence that the vast majority of animals seek out and consume ethanol when it occurs naturally. This makes sense as animals do not have the infrastructure to protect them from their own bad decisions—such as police officers, ambulances, hospitals, and stomach pumps. If Jonny roadrunner eats fermented cactus fruit, gets smashed and passes out in the middle of Southern Ave in Tempe, Arizona, there won’t be any cadre of his fellow birds picking him up, he’ll be killed. Contrast that to the college student that once shared an emergency room with me with a near fatal blood alcohol content of 0.4 found under the same circumstances—he lived—thanks to the diligent work of his fellow humans. Animals don’t have that luxury. There are studies in fact, that show when fruit bats get accidentally intoxicated, they seek out a type of sugar that helps them sober up faster. We know that’s not the case with frat boys.

Despite this, there are a few animals that have been found to naturally consume ethanol, in particular a Malaysian treeshrew that likes to drink the fermented nectar of the bertam palm tree. However, the tippling treeshrew does not show any observable signs of drunkenness (where’s the fun in that?). Researchers theorize that the ethanol still has some type of pleasurable neurological effect the shrew gets in exchange for acting as a pollinator for the tree.

Sober Primates (excluding us)

So what about our closest relatives, other primates? Turns out they are part of the temperance movement. Katharine Milton, a researcher looking into the evolutionary history of human fondness for ethanol, conducted a survey of primatologists covering 22 different primate species. Specifically she asked at what stage of ripeness monkeys preferred to eat fruit. Not one out of 22 species preferred overripe fruit (fruit with the most ethanol), and it appeared all species in fact, studiously avoided the ethanol containing fruit. Asked if any primatologists had ever observed what appeared to be intoxicated behaviors, only two incidents out of combined thousands of hours of observations were reported, leading the researcher to hypothesize that drunkenness in primates happens very infrequently. This makes sense as a drunk monkey is more likely to end up a dead monkey.

So what does sobriety in our closest relatives have to say about the human predilection for drinking ethanol till we puke? Alcoholic consumption is most likely cultural instead of biological. “As cultural animals, humans have little innate nutritional wisdom,” says Milton, “and for this reason may have unusual difficulty in determining when it is prudent to quit ingesting ethanol”. No shit, right? See prime example above of drunken- passed-out-on-Southern Avenue Arizona frat boy. Our fondness for the stuff, according to Milton, is also apparently fueled by existential angst. “Humans also appear to be the only animals with a highly developed sense of self-awareness and thus they may be the only animals that might wish to escape from their own consciousness”. Having on more than one occasion used alcohol for this exact reason, couldn’t have said it better myself.

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Really, pretty much everyone needs or wants a drink at Thanksgiving. It’s the unfortunate truth that a little tipple helps you tolerate old Uncle Bob who will insist on regaling the table with his crazy conspiracy theories for hours on end. Thanksgiving is a holiday notorious for forcing people to be around others they would not normally tolerate but are regretfully related to, so a little alcohol can lubricate normally painful interactions. The key however here, is the word LITTLE—otherwise mixing alcohol and people you can’t stand is bound to end poorly with horribly hurt feelings and/or the cops. The following is a list of good alcohol choices or uses for Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving isn't just for eating turkey!

Lambics

Lambic beers are a specific style of beer with several types but the fruit added lambics are some of the most commonly seen and excellent choices for Thanksgiving drink companions. In particular, the raspberry and cherry lambics go great with turkey. Samuel Adams offers a cranberry lambic every year that might be fun to offer guests. Lambics are known for their somewhat tart and sour taste. Combined with the fruit additions the beer is very sweet and sour, although some brands such as Lindemans are much more sweet than others (I’ve heard Lindemans framboise (raspberry) described as “liquid sweet tarts”). Lindemans’ lambics also have very nice looking labels and can add to a Thanksgiving tablescape or buffet.

Lindemans Framboise goes great with turkey

Basting Turkey with Bourbon

Bourbon is an excellent addition to a Thanksgiving meal and can come in handy in many holiday situations. Basting a cooking turkey with bourbon gives it a very nice flavor. Just have a cup of bourbon next to the oven and when you baste the turkey with pan juices, throw a few tablespoons of bourbon in too. Of course, the baster may need some for themselves as well. A little for Tom, a little for you. Makes cooking turkey a hell of a lot more interesting. Bourbon is also a common ingredient for turkey glazes and gravies.

Pumpkin Beers and Cider

There are quite a few different pumpkin beers on the market. Most use spices reminiscent of pumpkin pies such as allspice, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger. Some brewers add pieces of pumpkin to the mash, others add a puree of pumpkin, no matter how it’s made, pumpkin beer is a fun and unusual fall themed drink for this fall holiday. There are few drinks more associated with fall than cider. Shockingly many people have never had alcoholic cider and think of it only as a non-alcoholic fall kiddie drink. Hard cider is actually very easy to make if you wish to deeply impress your guests—although if you haven’t made it before, do a test batch a few months ahead of the holiday. There are excellent brands of bottled cider at any liquor store as well such as Woodchuck and Woodpecker.

Thanksgiving cooking with beer and wine

Beer and wine can add a great flavor to many elements of the Thanksgiving meal. The first use is before the turkey is even cooked as an addition to a brining solution. Brining a turkey means creating a solution of salt and spices which is used to soak the entire turkey (a thawed or fresh one) for up to 36 hours—24 hours is the usual recommended time—before cooking. Brining is kind of pain in the butt, especially if you don’t have extra refrigerator space because the turkey needs to be kept cool the entire soaking time, BUT it produces unbelievable results. To use beer, substitute a dark beer for water in the brining recipe. Brining produces a super moist turkey utterly unlike those dry stringy birds you remember from nearly every Thanksgiving. It may be a pain, but brining produces a transcendent turkey. Wine makes an excellent addition to gravy. Many chefs use a few tablespoons to cups (depending on how much gravy you are making) to “deglaze” a pan while making gravy. Deglazing basically means pouring a liquid—in this case wine—into a pan that has been used to cook something and still has all the little brown tasty bits (called “fond”) in it. The wine dissolves the fond or gets it unstuck from the pan and adds a tasty note to the resulting gravy. You can use either white or red wine for making gravy and port also works well.

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The word green—formally a noun, now typically an adjective—is applied to just about anything possible (green dog food!).  Opinion polls and the American tradition of the focus group both have found the populace expressing more concern for the environment, hence a deluge of green labeled products in the last few years, including alcoholic drinks—most notably beer and wine.   If one wishes to indulge but doesn’t wish to have the guilt of wrecking the environment added to the inevitable stupid-crap-people-do-when-drinking, what should you look for?

Organic drunkenness versus conventional

A drink that uses organic ingredients is a good for the planet right? Suprisingly there really isn’t a lot of hard research (read published, peer reviewed studies in scientific journals) on this subject.  It’s probably most accurate to say under certain circumstances, it may be less bad on a short time scale or better on a longer time scale.   Which is better for the planet, conventional versus organic agriculture is—all advertising by the organic industry aside—extremely complicated.  “Better for the planet” for the purposes of this article means less polluting, less non-renewable energy consumption, less damaging to the soil, less production of greenhouse gases, and less negative impact on biodiversity.

Growing hops without pesticides is very difficult to do on a commercial scale

Pollution

Organic agriculture is easier on the environment than traditional production methods in a some ways.  Organic methods eschew the use of chemical fertilizers, using animal or plant based products for this purpose instead.  This has several benefits but also some drawbacks.  Manure based fertilizers maintain or even improve soil fertility with much less pollution—chemical fertilizers, because of their chemical composition, easily leach into groundwater, lakes, or rivers which can cause oxygen sucking algal blooms that kill everything.   Organic agriculture certainly comes out on top in the pollution department.

Energy Use

The creation of chemical fertilizers involves the use of a non-renewable ingredient—natural gas.  However, animal and plant based fertilizers can also use quite a bit of energy—for transportation—and can produce the greenhouse gas methane during their composting and cow fart stage.  Manure fertilizers also contain less nutrients by weight than chemical fertilizers. Also added to the what-is-greener equation: organic fields can produce less crop per area than traditional methods, meaning more land is needed to get the same yield.  Depending on the location, methods, and crop in production, organic versus traditional agriculture may come close to similar levels of energy use but this is obviously, highly variable.  In a 22 year study assessing the differences in energy use between conventional agriculture, organic animal manure agriculture and organic plant manure (legume) agriculture, researchers found the organic systems used 28 and 32% less energy than the conventional system (Pimentel et al.  Bioscience 2005 55:7).

Greenhouse Gases

Greenhouse gas production in both types of agriculture comes from the combustion of fossil fuels required to run all the equipment needed (including transportation), fertilizer production (including the production of animal and plant based organic fertilizer), and soil processes that occur during production.  Greenhouse gases include carbon dioxide (CO2), nitrous oxide (N2O) and methane (CH4).  Organic production generally involves increased tillage or tractor usage which is damaging to the soil and releases CO2 into the atmosphere.  However, using manure as fertilizer replenishes soil carbon and can remove CO2 from the atmosphere.  Like I said, complicated.  Which presumably explains why I had such a hard time finding scientific studies that compare the net greenhouse gas emissions of organic versus traditional agriculture.  Since I could not find such a study after quite some time looking, I’m going to hazard a guess.  Since organic agriculture can use less energy than traditional, I’m going to say overall it probably also produces less greenhouse gases—but that’s not a given.  A qualified maybe here.

Biodiversity

Biodiversity is the number of different species (plant, animal, bacteria, fungi, you name it) in a specific area or habitat.  Higher numbers are assumed to be good,  but there is significant debate in the science of ecology—as opposed to “environmentalism” which is something else—whether this is the case.  In general parlance and most certainly in marketing materials for organic products however, the more creepy crawlies = good, less = bad is the dominant thinking.  Organic agriculture wins hands down in this category.  A metastudy (a study of many different, related studies) published in 2005 (Biological Conservation 113), found land under organic agriculture had significantly higher biodiversity than conventional agriculture in most cases.  The difference was attributed to more animal friendly cultivation methods such as the non use of pesticides and herbicides in organic agriculture.

Although there isn’t really enough scientific evidence to satisfy me (meaning multiple studies done with a variety of crops in a variety of places in both organic and conventional paired plots for several years), it does seem safe to say choosing beer or wine with organic ingredients is probably more green than the same products made with conventionally grown ingredients.  And if you like bugs, organic is definitely better.  However, because it’s a complicated calculation, consuming alcohol made from organic ingredients most likely isn’t as green as people think it is.  If you choose a beer or wine that is organic but shipped from a long distance instead of locally, the pollution and greenhouse gas production from the transportation alone may negate the environmental benefits of organic growing methods.

Local Drinking

There’s been a big upsurge in interest in local eating and by extension, drinking.  Eating and drinking local means exactly what it sounds like—going out of your way to purchase and consume locally made products.  The idea here is to reduce transportation effects on the environment.  Now living in the Front Range of Colorado makes this easy—there are many local craft breweries and quite a number of wineries in the state on the Western Slope.  However, if you live somewhere that’s not too hot for growing either grain or grapes, drinking locally will be significantly more difficult.  However, anytime you can reduce transportation required for the creation, distribution, and sale of an item, the more green it will be.  AND, walk to the liquor store/pub instead of drive, that will also increase the green quotient.

Of course, the ultimate local drinking is to grow the ingredients and make the beer or wine yourself.  Grapes are fairly easy to grow in many parts of the U.S., but growing enough of your own barley can be a bit of challenge.  Hops however, are very easy and can even be grown in containers.  Compost the leftovers and you will really be able to feel environmentally smug.

Drinking at local pubs in walking distance reduce transportation effects and drunk driving!

Sustainable Brewers and Wineries

Another option for green drinking is purchasing products from breweries or wineries using sustainable methods or technologies in production. New Belgium brewery in Fort Collins, Colorado is well known for their sustainable, green practices such as their use of wind powered electricity and using more efficient brew kettles.  As far as wineries go, many wineries are switching to organic production or biodynamic production—which is essentially the same as organic with some ridiculous new age mysticism thrown in for good measure.

Greener Drinking Tips

• Walk to the bar/liquor store
• Buy beer or wine made with organic ingredients
• Grow your own ingredients and make your own beer or wine
• Buy from local breweries or wineries
• Buy from brewers or wineries using green technologies
• Compost your vomit

Further Reading

• Environmental, Energetic, and Economic Comparisons of Organic and Conventional Farming Systems
• New Belgium Sustainability

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Humans have been altering the genome of many plants and animals for thousands of years.  The wild “natural” grape still exists in parts of Eurasia and north Africa but bears only a passing resemblance to its relatives cultivated for the wine trade.  Wild grapes are dioecious , meaning male and female flowers are found on separate plants while the grape cultivars in wine production are hermaphroditic (having both male and female parts on the same plant).  In addition, grapes on wild plants are small and much lower in sugar content than their beloved cultivated cousins.

Hop growers constant release new hop strains with high alpha acids each year, but no one protests about this modification.

These significant biological changes may be a result of random mutations, selective breeding by humans, or most likely, both.  Humans select plants with the traits they most favor—larger grain size, larger grape bunches, more sugar content in grapes, and breed those plants together to encourage these traits.  This is called artificial selection and has touched and altered (many times very significantly)  nearly every cultivated crop and animal used by humans today.  Only recently, with the advent of biotechnology, have humans been able to alter the genome of plants and animals directly with genetic engineering—which generally means the insertion of a useful gene or trait from an unrelated source into another genome.   Although genetic engineering is essentially in its infancy, it is starting to be tested on the plant and microbial species used in beer and wine production.

Resistance is not futile

Currently, the most common application of genetic engineering in beer and wine ingredients is genetic alteration to confer resistance to some negative factor such as disease or herbicides.  Researchers from around the world at a variety of institutions are inserting genes for resistance in barley, hops, and grapes.

In barley, researchers have inserted a gene from a fungus which attacks other, damaging fungi in an attempt to provide some resistance to fungal root rot. Fungal root rot significantly impacts barley production, reducing yield, and selective breeding within the barley genome attempting to breed resistant strains hasn’t been very successful.  Field trials of this fungal resistant barley are currently underway in Germany.

A similar situation is occurring with hops. Powdery mildew is an extremely annoying and damaging fungal disease that is the bane of gardeners and hop growers alike.  Researchers are testing a genetically modified hop plant which has genetic material inserted from a soil bacteria to provide resistance to this disease.

How much of an organism's DNA are you willing to change for the perfect beer or wine?

Why would you want a plant to be resistant to herbicides?  Aren’t they supposed to kill plants?  Well yes, but only the plants you want to kill.  2, 4-D is a commonly used broad leaf (as opposed to grasses which are narrow leaf) herbicide commonly used in the Midwest on corn and other crops.  Unfortunately 2, 4-D also effectively kills grapes, even grapes a significant distance away from a sprayed field.   Researchers at the University of Illinois have inserted a gene from a bacteria that breaks down 2, 4-D into grape plants in an attempt to develop a 2, 4-D resistant grape vine. This would allow people who wished to grow grapes in heavily agricultural areas to do so without worrying their investment might be inadvertently destroyed.  This genetically modified (GM) grape is currently undergoing testing.

Other researchers are investigating and testing transgenic grape vines for fungal disease resistance. These vines have a gene inserted for an enzyme called chitinase—which degrades chitin, a main building material of fungus.  Early field trials in Germany however, show these genetically modified grape vines don’t show any more resistance to fungal infection than normal vines.  Research on this type of front however, is ongoing in different places.   Grape vines with disease resistance would translate to less use of the chemicals used to treat and prevent these diseases.

• Reseachers have genetically modified barley to be fungal resistant
• New grape vines are resistant to 2, 4-D, a common herbicide, so the vines be grown near agricultural areas
• Disease resistant crops would require less chemicals used on the grapes

Improving fermentation

The creation of some wine styles—including chardonnay—involves a secondary fermentation process that occurs after the primary fermentation (where grape juice is converted to alcohol by yeast).  This secondary fermentation, called malolactic fermentation, is accomplished by the use of a bacterial starter to convert malic acid to lactic acid, which creates a more pleasant mouthfeel  and a less “sour” taste in the wine.

The bacteria that mitigate this conversion are somewhat finicky about temperature, competition with other microorganisms etc.. so there are some frequent problems during this process including stalled fermentation which can result in spoiled wine (bad for everyone!).   Prior to the advent of biotechnology, wine yeast could not accomplish the conversion of malic acid to lactic acid as it lacks the enzyme to do so.
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Researchers at the Wine Research Center at the University of British Columbia however, have managed to genetically engineer a wine yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) that has the enzyme needed for malolactic fermentation—it was taken from the bacteria that usually performs this job (Oneococcus onei).  This genetically modified yeast, called ML01, is the first genetically engineered wine yeast approved for use by the Federal Drug Administration in the United States, and Health Canada in Canada.

Other genetic engineering efforts in regards to fermentation include the splicing of heat resistant bacterial glucanase genes into barley to improve the malting process.  Brewers malt barley by soaking the barley seeds in water to start germination.  During germination, enzymes convert the starches in the seed to sugars which can then be fermented.  Brewers must stop this process however, before the germinating plant starts to use the sugars for itself—which brewers do with heat.  Heating germinating seeds however, also stops the action of the enzymes doing the work the brewers want done.  Barley with more heat stable enzymes means they will continue to do the conversion work after the grains have been exposed to heat to halt germination, making the process more efficient.

• University of British Columbia modified yeast to ferment the wine and perform a malolactic fermentation at the same time
• Researchers are working on making barley heat resistant to improve malting

All wine grapes have been genetically selected for. Still places like France and South Africa are against genetically modified grapes.

The Specter of Frankenwine

To say there is opposition to genetically modified organisms would be an understatement.  Many groups and individuals (indeed, entire countries) have expressed concerns and opposition to the development and use of genetically modified plants, animals, and microorganisms—including all of the ones discussed above in relation to the production of beer and wine. Concerns include safety for human consumption, ethical concerns about corporate dominance in the food market, and potential environmental damage.

Proposed and ongoing field testing of genetically modified grapes has caused a stir in France and South Africa, with much of the opposition coming from existing wineries concerned about “genetic pollution”—the unintentional spread of genetically modified grapes by cross pollination, or by the distribution of GM grape seeds by vectors such as birds.  Wine is a product that depends heavily on idealized romantic notions of the interaction between humans and nature, and genetically modified organisms don’t fit in with many people’s ideas of this relationship.

This particular concern about genetically modified grapes seems to boil down to “they’re not natural”—a somewhat ridiculous argument considering the extensive manipulations humans apply to nature to produce wine now—artificial selection of grapes for generations, the application of herbicides and pesticides, the extreme soil disturbance of plowing, none of which is natural.  This also assumes natural automatically equals good, perhaps forgetting for the moment that hurricanes are natural as are kidney stones.

• Not everyone feels GM grapes are a good thing – especially France and South Africa
• Grapes have been selected and modified for centuries
• Grapes are rarely grown from seed, so cross contamination from pollination is very unlikely

Rational or not, it is the perception many consumers currently have of genetically modified plants; research for this article pulled up multiple articles from different sources mentioning the idea of “frankenwine” in relation to GM grapes.  Therefore, the concerns of the winemakers are understandable, any blow to the “natural” perception of their product could be damaging to the wine industry.  There is much less mysticism surrounding the production of beer, and as a result, less opposition to the use and development of genetically modified organisms in its production.   More testing will determine if other concerns, such as the health and environmental concerns raised by GM opponents, are valid.

Further Reading

• Functional Analyses of the Malolactic Wine Yeast ML01
• Historical origins and genetic diversity of wine grapes
• Barley, Beer, and Biotechnology

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Pour someone a glass of fine looking wine, then right before they are about to take a sip, tell them you made it—invariably there will a hesitation (the length of which depends on the default courtesy of the guest)—followed by questions.  People are leery of homemade alcohol, usually for good reason—it’s frequently awful.  But making alcohol at home has come a long way since the moonshine days; it’s now easy to make elegant wines in your own basement for a fraction of their retail cost.  Home winemaking is a fun way to fill up a wine cellar, to make gifts for friends and family, and to put a personal stamp on entertaining.

“Most of my customers make their own wine as a hobby.  It is fun, easy, and the end product is very good.  It is fun for them to share with friends and family, and it also is much cheaper then buying wine.  You can make a very good wine for about $3 a bottle”, comments Kevin DeLange, owner of The Brew Hut in Aurora, Colorado whose store and website is an excellent resource for the home enologist.  Richard T. Berkey, co-owner of Stomp Them Grapes in Denver, a store which specializes in supplies and equipment for home winemaking, expands upon its appeal,
“Fermentation is fascinating, akin to preparing fine cuisine or baking.  You create  complex and flavorful concoctions from naturally-occurring, raw materials”.

There are two main ways of making wine at home, one considerably easier than the other, making wine from a kit, and making wine from fresh or frozen grapes.

Wine Kits

“The most popular kits are the most common types of wines.  Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Merlot, Cabernet, and Shiraz.  The Port and Ice Wines are also popular”, says Kevin. Wine kits consist of either pure grape juice, grape juice concentrate, or a combination of the two, as well as all the other additives needed such as: yeast, oak chips (simulates the flavor of aging in oak barrels), and clarifying materials—and the all important—instructions.  Beginning equipment needed to make kit wines can be purchased together for about $50-70.  The kits themselves range from $50 to $120.  Kits allow wine makers access to uncommon grape varietals.   Wine kits usually make about 6 gallons of wine, which fills 30 standard wine bottles. You can buy bottles new from suppliers, but a good source for free ones is a local bar.  Used bottles can be cleaned, sanitized, and reused.

Wine kits can be really good as long as you follow the instructions carefully

Most wines should be fermented between 68-75 degrees F (this depends on the yeast so check instructions), making most basements ideal locations for a home winery.  Kit wines need to age from 5-8 weeks, but many benefit from additional aging. Once finished, the wine is transferred into bottles and corked with either real or synthetic corks.  You can also make your own wine labels using Microsoft Publisher, a paint program, or a label making program.  While there are laws limiting what you can put on wine labels for commercially sold wine, they don’t apply to wine made at home—but keep this in mind if you are going to give a bottle to Grandma as a holiday gift.

Wine from Grapes

The other–significantly more involved option—for home winemaking involves using fresh or frozen grapes.  Many brew stores will order different grapes from growers across the U.S., but they get their deliveries from August to October. “Fresh grapes are only available within a limited margin of time each year, in the fall during harvest”, says Richard, “fresh grapes are a delicate lot, and must be dealt with expediently and intently when taken off the vine”.  Making wine from fresh grapes—or their must, the liquid resulting from pressing and crushing fresh grapes—takes more effort than kits. Richard explains, “The wine kit product, unlike frozen grape musts, is drastically simpler, since all the basic analysis and chemistry has been done for you prior to opening the package”.  There is a long list of equipment involved in this process, and as they are pretty expensive, most people use them at the store where they buy their grapes, or rent them.

Nothing beats making wine from grape!

The first step in the process of making wine from grapes is crushing, desteming, and testing and adjustment of sugar, acid, and pH levels.   Next is the initial fermentation, which takes about 2 to 3 days, then pressing to remove skins and seeds (for red wine, white wine is pressed to remove the skins before fermentation), then another round of fermentation, called malolactic fermentation.  The wine is moved into a clean carboy—this step is called racking.  Next, oak (oak chips which simulate the flavor of aging in oak barrels) is added.  The wine is racked again and then clarification materials are added.  Depending on how much sediment is present, the wine may need to be racked every 2 to 4 months.  The wine is then aged 6-9 months (total) and then bottled.

Which way you go to your own impressive homemade wine is really up to you. “Kit winemaking is decidedly the more affordable and less daunting way to get involved, since a basic equipment kit can be purchased for around $70.  Ingredient kits go for as little as $50, and contain everything needed to produce a quality wine”, says Richard.  However, making wine from grape, although more involved, also have its benefits Richard explains. “Others enjoy the camaraderie and widely-felt spirit of celebration innate within a community-based crushing, and return again and again in pursuit of it”.

Regardless of the method, making your own wine is a fun and unique way to add to the celebration and bonding of drinking with friends and family. Its “a personally engaging activity that requires forethought, learning, discipline, patience, and attention to detail”, says Richard, that produces “the pride of sharing, over the home hearth with good friends, a wonderfully complex product that one has created oneself.  It is the giving of a gift that comes from within”.

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The 21st amendment ended prohibition against alcohol, unless, a local law exists that restricts its sale, transportation, or use (section 2 of the amendment).  Basically, local laws around alcohol supersede federal laws (this however, is most assuredly NOT the case with the many state laws passed relaxing rules around drug use—specifically marijuana—as the DEA likes to remind everyone).   As a result, there are some bizarre differences across the U.S. in the legality of alcohol, the weirdest, arguably, is the existence of the “dry” county or town.

It might look like a nice place to live, but if it's somewhere like Texas, Kansas or Oklahoma you might want to check the local laws first.

Dry counties and towns are entire counties or specific towns that forbid the sale, and usually the production, marketing, transportation etc… of alcohol.  In half of the counties in Mississippi, even driving across these places with a beer in your car (unopened of course) is illegal.  The law stands even if you do not plan to stop.   In some Alaskan communities, possession of beer is also crime.  You read this paragraph right.  In some places in America, it is illegal to have a beer in your possession.

To make things more confusing, some counties are “moist” which has multiple meanings including: they restrict the sale of alcohol to restaurants, bars, or “private clubs”; you can buy low alcohol content beer but not hard spirits; there’s a cap on the ABV of beer sold (sorry Avery).  There are also wet towns inside dry counties; although I’ve yet to come across dry neighborhoods (towns seem to be the finest scale).

Getting wet or dry

Either a location has traditionally been dry and no one ever cared enough to change it, or it’s come up for a vote at some point and the majority of residents have voted to make it dry.  Arguments for banning or maintaining a ban on alcohol include creating a “family atmosphere”, reducing crime, and maintaining property values.  Considering most dry counties are in Bible-belt states, one has to acknowledge the religious ties as well.

Some towns and counties have voted to change from dry to wet or moist.  In 2005, Rockport, Massachusetts residents voted in a majority to allow restaurants to sell liquor, but still ban bars and liquor stores.  Sometimes the alcohol issue has come up multiple times and towns have switched back and forth along the wet to dry continuum.
Communities going from dry to wet or moist usually do so to encourage tourism (as the case in Rockport), to increase revenue, or to just make life easier for residents.

Where are the dry counties?

The greatest number of dry counties can be found in Texas, Kansas, Oklahoma, Kentucky, Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee, and Mississippi.

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You want to head out and have a beer (or two—three) with your buddies, but there’s a problem: you live in the suburbs, so here comes the rounds of “Who’s going to drive?”.  Standard suburban design, with housing separated from retail and office uses, forces people to drive for their every need, no matter how small.  One glass of wine in a nice establishment involves a minimum 10 minute car ride in most of suburbia, and any more to drink requires the presence of a designated driver. But things are changing, a neighborhood planning movement called new urbanism is creating communities all across the U.S. with design features that reduce the risk of drunk driving, so you can live in the suburbs and drink your beer too!

Heading to a park party with kegs

Promoting Community

30 to 40 adults stand talking in a small neighborhood park, their conversation knots are overlaid by the delighted shouts of almost as many kids carousing like dog packs in the warm summer’s twilight.  They are all neighbors. Every Friday night, residents of the new urbanist community  Bradburn Village in Westminster, Colorado gather for their weekly park party.  Adults socialize over beer and wine while the kids play together.   Bradburn is designed to encourage social interaction among neighbors, and judging by the packed park parties and the incredible number of social events here, it works.

Every home in Bradburn includes a large front porch—not just a token 2 foot concrete stoop.  Garages are all in the back, and homes here also have very small setbacks (the distance between the house and the sidewalk, or front yard), meaning the porches sit right above the sidewalks.  This means people sitting on their front porches easily see neighbors walking by, and they stop to talk, creating a community bond that is so elusive in most traditional suburban neighborhoods.

Porch party in Bradburn

Other community features that encourage social interaction among neighbors include  public spaces such as the many pocket parks—every home in the development is a 5 minute walk from one of these green spaces—wide sidewalks, and an interconnected street grid (no cul-de-sacs) that makes the community very pedestrian friendly.   As a result of these design features, Bradburn’s residents all know each other, and many have become close, meaning if you want to socialize with your friends over a few drinks,  you just wander on down to the park or walk 5 minutes to your buddy’s home.

Walking Distance to Bars and Restaurants

Because of zoning laws in the suburbs of America, it’s actually illegal to build residences too close to bars and restaurants.  Zoning laws in most suburban areas dictate single use for different portions of land: residences here, offices here, and retail here, with buffers (usually huge, ugly walls) between.  The most beloved places in America however, don’t follow this pattern, they mix uses close together, so that it’s possible to walk to many different things directly from home.  Most of these places were developed before the car dominated the lives of Americans—San Francisco, New York, Georgetown, Charlotte.  New urbanism (which is actually just old urbanism applied to single use zoned areas) revives the idea of mixed uses in the same neighborhood, something that is currently pretty rare outside urban areas.

Shops in Bradburn

Residents of Bradburn Village for example, are a 5-10 minute walk from 3 different bars and over 15 restaurants, with more to come as their downtown area is developed.  New urbanist communities mix retail, office, and residences all in the same development, so if you want to get a beer or glass of wine out, you don’t have to drive.

Access to Public Transit

The voters in the city of Denver, Colorado approved a sales tax increase in 2004 to support the construction of more than 100 miles of commuter train to connect the metro area and the nearby communities of Boulder, Louisville, and Longmont.  Communities are springing up all along future proposed stops for this rail line, providing residents of these areas an opportunity to live in close walking distance to exceptional mass transit.  These developments, often referred to as Transit Oriented Developments (TOD) are also popping up in different places across the nation such as Salt Lake City, Utah.  The new urbanist community of Daybreak will have two light rail stops as part of a recently approved extension of a light rail system.

These different neighborhood design features have one goal in common: to reduce the need for driving.  Residents of these communities no longer need to spend significant amounts of time bargaining with their buddies on whose turn it is to be designated driver for the evening—everyone can join in the libations without fear, and if that isn’t progress, what is?

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