Why wine is good for you

Best known for his research on what was dubbed the “French Paradox,” Dr. R. Curtis Ellison will share the latest research on the health risks and benefits of moderate wine consumption during the annual meeting of the Washington State Grape Society to be held November 18-19 in Grandview, Washington. It’s been 20 years since Ellison was part of the first 60 Minutes television program that examined what was dubbed the “French Paradox.” The French have a high-fat diet, yet they have very low rates of coronary disease.

Ellison and other researchers found that the low heart-disease rates are at least partly due to the French people’s regular consumption of wine. Ellison, who has published more than 200 scientific papers, helped to develop the Mediterranean Diet Pyramid, a set of dietary guidelines for Americans. He graced the cover of Wine Spectator in the mid 1990s, explaining in a story “Why Wine is Good for You.” Ellison has been director of the Institute on Lifestyle and Health at Boston University’s School of Medicine since 1994.

Earlier this year, he helped establish and serves as codirector of an international scientific forum on alcohol research, a group of 40 international scientists who review and critique emerging research reports related to wine and alcohol consumption and health.

Ellison will speak on the second day of the two-day Grape Society meeting and trade show. Other program topics include sessions on retiring at a younger age, replanting vines, grape ripening, vine nutrition, weed and insect control, and managing vineyards under Salmon Safe and ­Oregon’s Low Input for Viticulture and Enology (LIVE) certification programs.

For grape growers who have had difficulty getting paid recently from wineries or processors, a risk management session will focus on legal rights and responsibilities, contract basics, how to complete and file a processor lien, and regulations and protections of the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act. For more information, visit the Grape Society’s Web site, www.grapesociety.org or call (509) 786-7888.