In 1991 I had only been in the wine business about a year. I was working at PR firm in Santa Rosa, California. So, not having that much experience, I was caught off guard when "60 Minutes" broadcast a segment on the "French Paradox".
It altered the wine business severely
The French Paradox refers to the fact that while the French eat all that butter and fattening foods, they also tend to have much less heart disease than Americans. Researchers discovered that if one at a "Mediterranean Diet" consisting of olive oils, fruits and vegetable, fish and RED WINE, the heart found protection from disease. It was the Red Wine part that shat sales of reds past whites. It seemed everyone believed that all they had to do was drink a couple of glasses of red wine a day and they miraculously change the course of their health destiny.
It was good for business.
At first Doctors shied away from recommending wine once a day. The American culture, with Prohibition and all, was not that engaged with the idea of daily wine drinking. Eventually, however, as more studies emerged, more and more doctors told their patients it was ok.
A new study has now emerged that confirms this effect of a Mediterranean Diet and quantifies the affects. Recently published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, the study shows that even those individuals at only a moderate risk of heart disease can lower their odds of contracting this ailment by 15% just by adhering to a strict Mediterranean Diet for 3 months.
The impact of this kind of information has run its course through the American consciousness. So, this new study probably will have no impact on wine sales. However, a reminder that moderate wine consumption is good for most people never hurt anyone
