Remember your mother’s voice, “Eat your fruits and vegetables. They are good for you.” Well, once again, she has been proven right and it may even go for wine as well.

A number of years ago, the Jean Mayer Human Nutrition Center at Tufts University, Boston, tested over forty fruits and vegetables and discovered that blueberries were the highest in anti-oxidant capacity, referred to as ORAC, or Oxygen Radical Adsorption Capacity. Anti-oxidants metabolize the overabundance of free radicals in the bloodstream that may lead to such diseases as cancer, heart disease, Alzheimer’s disease and vision problems.

Since the discovery of the “French Paradox” in the early 1990’s, that is, why the French eat foods high in fat but have a low rate of heart disease, wineries have had their wines tested for beneficial healthful constituents. The American Heart Association has gone as far as to say that moderate consumption of alcohol, one to two five ounce glasses of wine per day for men, somewhat less for women, may be associated with a reduced risk for coronary heart disease. Blueberries have been documented as having a significant impact on human health. Research has shown that eating 100 grams of fresh blueberries per day, about ½ cup, is a reasonable effective quantity needed to provide added health benefits. But, how do you get fresh blueberries in the winter?

In the June 2003 edition of the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry researchers connected with the Human Nutrition Center tested white and red grape wines and blueberry wine for their ORAC potential. It was found that wine made from highbush blueberries had higher levels than both red and white wines from grapes. In fact, one 5 oz glass of blueberry wine per day fulfills the daily requirement. In light of this, the Chester Hill Winery of Chester, Massachusetts, had its 2003 new blue tested at Brunswick Labs of Wareham, Massachusetts, a participant in the above mentioned study. It was determined that this wine even had a somewhat higher level of ORAC potential than the blueberry wine tested in the original study.

Blueberry wine is essentially made in the same manner as red grape wine; the berries are picked, crushed, fermented and pressed. Moderate consumption of red wine may have health benefits. Blueberries have demonstrated definite benefits in human nutrition. The owners of the Chester Hill Winery like to say in their tours of the winery, “ If red wine is good for you, and so are blueberries, what must blueberry wine be like.” Now the data is available. The wine is not only good but it is good for you as well, that is, in moderation.