www.byzcath.org Forums General Discussions Town Hall When the going gets tough, the (altar) wine gets flowing

I guess this is tithing of the 'grapes'. I like the end, they receive awards for their other wines, but will never give up the sacramental wine. Cool!

When the going gets tough, the (altar) wine gets flowing
By Janis Nelson
text only version

If you have driven north on highway 101 anytime during the past five years, you have certainly noticed the proliferation of vineyards - and winemakers - that line the highway in Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties. Wine has become a lucrative industry and a pastime for many.

If you have been to church, you may also have noticed that sacramental (Communion) wine is more available (the recent H1N1 virus scare notwithstanding). That shouldn't be a surprise, says Steve Riboli, vice president of San Antonio Winery in Los Angeles, one of the largest producers of sacramental wines in the country.

"When things are really tough, the majority of us as Catholics go back to our faith and our roots for strength and comfort," says the parishioner of Holy Angels Church in Arcadia. "Going to Mass and receiving Communion increases our comfort level."

San Antonio's sacramental wine sales grew eight percent in the 2007-2008 fiscal year. The winery produces about 80,000 cases of sacramental wine per year, about 15 percent of its business. "It represents an important component for us," Riboli says.

Riboli attributes the uptick in sales of sacramental wine to the need for Catholics to receive Communion, especially when their lives are in crisis or transition. He has noticed over the past 35 to 40 years that in difficult economic or social periods --- such as following the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks --- business increases for both sacramental wines and varietals.

A fixture in Los Angeles since 1917, San Antonio has long produced sacramental wines, which Riboli says kept the winery from shutting down during prohibition, sustaining the Lincoln Heights-area business and the family.

"Ours is a faith-based business," says Riboli. "We continue our commitment to sacramental wines while most other manufacturers have given up making them."

Canon law governs the production of sacramental wines, which must be made with the purest grapes and contain no additives, added sugar, colorings or preservatives. The grapes for these wines are grown in San Antonio's own family vineyards in California. Riboli explains that the most popular sacramental wines are rose (a blend of Grenache and White Zinfandel), and white (Muscat), and that more recently priests have requested that sacramental wines not be too sweet.

"We have changed our formulas as consumers have more sophisticated palates, and in the last ten years we are producing drier wines," he explains. However, he adds, their "Angelica" sacramental wine is still popular, with its sweeter taste and golden color.

Sales of the winery's varietals under several family labels have remained steady, even as money is tight and many families struggle to keep their bills paid and food on the table. But Riboli doesn't see this as a dichotomy, but rather a logical result of people adjusting their lives to deal with their situation.

"Our families - and I suspect many others - are socializing more at home," he explains. "They are entertaining differently rather than not at all. People are cooking traditional dishes like chicken, meatloaf, fish, pasta and barbecue, and look for good wine to share with good friends."

San Antonio, says Riboli, is also aware that the current California drought will certainly affect farming throughout the state, but the company now uses newer methods for irrigation of their vineyards. The new technology reduces the amount of water needed in the vineyards to about one tenth of what was needed in the past.

The family's venture into producing high quality varietal wines over the years has earned San Antonio scores of awards and recognition, yet Riboli says they have no intention of dropping the production of sacramental wine.
http://www.the-tidings.com/2009/060509/wine.htm

Does anyone know if they sell the same kind of wine to the general public? I have tasted some wonderful wines during communion. I hope that's not sacrilegious, but it's true. Several times I have gone back to my seat wondering where I could find a bottle of the wine I just tasted!

Tim

I went to a Jesuit high school and college about seven miles from the Novitiate winery before they closed it . . . *sigh* [The reason was that the California wine industry had changed, and that to stay in it, they would have to run it as a business and not a religious order. So they sold it for a stock portfolio]

Anyway, I had thought that "Angelica" was a specifically Jesuit desert/altar wine, but apparently not.

Also, one week at Communion, the cup I was distributing smelled awefully grapey.

Afterwards, the Priest explained that some of us would have found that cup. Alcoholic priests may use non-fermented wine, as long as it *is* fermentable.

He also described conditioning in which the priests were giving alternating rounds of their preferred drink and salt water, until they were conditioned to get sick just smelling their favorite. When that was wine, however, that could cause problems at the altar . . .

hawk

Wine? I thought it was the precious blood of Christ!
Blessed Feast of Corpus Chrisiti by the way.
Stephanos I

Personally, I suggest Mavrodaphne of Patras - it's a Greek wine, often used for the Eucharist (and recommended to me by our Greek-Catholic Exarchate in Athens), red, sweet, and widely available. It's also available to the general public.

Fr. Serge

Just in accidence


Of course. (Although I am relieved that it only takes on His substance . . .)

hwk

I wish we could get some great tasting wine. I have to steel myself to receive communion every week because of the funky tasting wine our priest uses. One of my children has to be talked into receiving communion every week, and I'm not always successful. I can't say I blame him. It is really strong for a 4 year old.

Yes, dear Father Serge, this is excellent. Please note everyone that it is available in any wine store throughout the United States.

Alice

Are there general requirements for communion wine? (Besides it being wine.)

The OP answers that question for you:

I remember wincing a bit at a Mass held at my daughter's (Roman Catholic) high school. The gifts were presented and the wine was white!
My husband asked the priest about that later on (the priest was good friends with the local Greek Orthodox priest), and he mumbled and had no real answer. He must have known that we Greek Orthodox don't stray on such matters!

Alice

I was told by a Latin priest friend of mine that they do not sell "Altar Wine" in France or Germany because all wine there is made without additives and is therefore suitable for use.

Aice

I think that most Priests [ Latin ] who do use white wine rather than red , do so because it is easier to keep the small Altar Linens clean .

The School I worked in , always used white wine - for that reason and also they felt that the pupils did not have the same 'vision' of white wine as they did of red wine.

I would be inclined to think that a priest who uses white wine for the Eucharist is probably subject to migraine headaches - red wine can bring them on.

Fr. Serge

Mavrodaphne is excellent regardless of which major vintier one relies on - Achaia Claus, Cambas or Kourtaki. Nama and Commandaria are both good is good as is Kagor.