Food

In May 2007, I wrote in "Uncorked" of ongoing research with a natural compound, resveratrol, found in the skins of red grapes that may be beneficial in curing or warding off an array of health woes. In the past few weeks all major news outlets have been reporting the results of several studies that indicate resveratrol given to laboratory mice in high doses has been shown to extend their lifespan, prevent early mortality, and in some cases reverse naturally occurring decline associated with aging.

Wine Spectator Magazine (www.winespectator.com) offers a free email newsletter, Wine and Healthy Living, that maintains a running summary of ongoing research related to the benefits of moderate consumption of red wine. Sign up for this newsletter and read articles from over the past months claiming scientists believe female wine drinkers are less likely to suffer from dementia, red wine consuming postmenopausal women are less likely to suffer from hypertension, resveratrol is believed to help arthritis, prevent heart disease, and shows potential for treating various skin diseases such as sunburn and melanoma.

On the downside of this exciting news is the fact most of these experiments are done on laboratory mice given massive doses of resveratrol. To replicate these mouse studies on humans would require humans to consume inordinate numbers of bottles of red wine. According to Jacob Gaffney writing in Wine Spectator Online, to compress amounts of resveratrol into a pill that would be effective in humans would require the human subject to consume annually almost six pounds of extracted resveratrol at a cost of about $6,800.

But help may be on the way. Scientists in Taiwan are experimenting with a red wine patch that allows resveratrol to be administered through the skin. Metabolism of the compound is slower when administered transdermally. Therefore, it takes less of the compound to be beneficial.

Once again testing of these patches is being carried out on laboratory mice, in this case mutant Ninja nude mice, a hairless breed, thus sparing the subjects the pain of bikini waxing prior to application of their daily patch. Even UAB is involved in some of this research. British pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline finds resveratrol research so promising they just paid $720 million to buy Sirtris, a company that makes a lab produced form of resveratrol.

If administering the substance through transdermal patches is so promising, I wonder if anyone has thought of red wine dipping vats or red wine hot tubs. If people pay for colonics, would they not pay to bask in red wine while soaking up all those antioxidants?

Unfortunately resveratrol is found only in the skins and seeds of red grapes. So for white wine drinkers, until the resveratrol pill or patch is developed, it seems wise to follow the advice of my friend, Dr. Michael Dragutsky, a Memphis gastrointerologist and owner of Cornerstone Cellars, who tells his patients to drink two four-ounce pours of red wine, preferably his, each day and to have a regular colonoscopy.

Try these red wines for pleasure and health benefits:

Francis Ford Coppola Presents 2006 Rosso. $11.99 at the Wine Cellar on Quintard. From famed movie producer Francis Ford Coppola's vineyards, Rosso is a rich blend of 48 percent Zinfandel, 27 Syrah and 25 Cabernet Sauvignon. Pleasant. Full of dark fruit. Lush and balanced.

Cornerstone Cellars 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain. $86 from the winery. Permission must be secured form the State ABC Board to have this wine shipped. See www.abc.alabama.gov. Click on Liquor Imports and follow the instructions.

From 100 percent cabernet this wine is near perfect. Bold and intense without being over the top. Nicely integrated tannins. Intense fruit aromas with some herbal notes. Incredibly smooth but expensive for the bath.

Dynamite Merlot 2005 North Coast. $20.50 at Tyson Art and Frame in Golden Springs. Reminiscent of how merlot used to be before falling victim to its own popularity. Rich and dense with a nice balance of dark fruit to tannins and a velvety smooth finish.

Estancia Meritage 2005 Paso Robles. $25.50 at The Wine Cellar. My go to restaurant red wine. Generally moderately priced in restaurants. The quality is superb. From a blend of cabernet, merlot, petite verdot and malbec, this Meritage (pronounce to rhyme with heritage) is delicious with steak and an array of roasted meats.