The flavor is strongly influenced in this step. Red wines are known to mature for three or four years. However, whites can be quickly bottled and do not take as long to mature due to their low tannin content. The last step in wine making is bottling. Determining the best time to bottle wine requires skill and is key to the finalization of the whole process of creating a delicious bottle of wine. The longer a wine matures the more character it has but when allowed to mature too long, the fruity taste is ruined. It is evident that making wine involves more than extracting the juices from grapes. The techniques of each vineyard differ and the best ones have researched the best grape selection, temperature, and systems of harvesting, preparing, fermenting, and bottling wine (Century Wine).
In many countries, wine is consumed on the same basis as water. In countries such as Italy, Greece, and Spain it is served at every meal even to children. It is consumed on a regular basis contrary to the United States where it is unacceptable for anyone under the age of 21 to consume all alcohol including wine. In the U.S., wine and alcohol are considered to be the source of many health problems whereas in Europe wine is considered to be the source of many health benefits. In France, specifically Southwestern France, people tend to eat exuberant amounts of saturated fats and foods that are inevitably asking for a heart attack yet they have one of the lowest heart attack rates in the world. Their daily and moderate consumption of red wine has been reported to be the explanation of this phenomenon. The wine is altering the blood lipid levels. It lowers the total cholesterol count, and raises the high-density lipoprotein (HDL) levels. In essence, it keeps the blood vessels clean. In fact, research in Dec 2001 showed how polyphenols in red wine - especially Cabernet Sauvignon - keeps the arteries clear. Newsweek reported in May 99 that a study showed how wine helps prevent ulcers.
