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More facts and figures
The most planted grape variety is Airen with 476,000 ha. It is only grown in Spain, mainly La Mancha and is used for Jerez brandy as well as wine.
Garnacha Tinto (Grenache) comes second, with Spain again growing the vast majority.
Rkatsitela from the former USSR and Bulgaria comes third.
Liqueurs & Eau de Vie
What is the difference? A liqueur is a blend of sugar syrup, fruit or herb flavourings and alcohol. Eau de vie is distilled from fruits (or, in some cases, an infusion during distillation).
Framboise, for example, is an eau de vie of Raspberries; Creme de Framboise is a raspberry flavoured liqueur. Brandy is an Eau de vie from grapes.
A quick word on cigars
Cigars come in all sizes and shapes. 
Generally the length is measured in inches and the girth in ring gauges. The ring gauge is the diameter of the cigar in 64th of an inch. So a ring guage of 32 is 1/2" across.
The fattest of all is probably the recently introduced "Nub" range with a 64 gauge.
Every brand has its own name for various sizes. The biggest standard Cuban cigar is 9 1/4" long and 47 gauge. Romeo y Julieta call it the "Fabuloso" whereas Montecristo refer to it as simply "A".
Spirits
People often (wrongly) refer to “Percent proof”. The old degrees of proof system has long been replaced by percentage of alcohol by volume (% ABV)
100 degrees proof (about 57% ABV) is the strength at which gunpowder can still be ignited when mixed with rum or gin giving proof that the ration of spirit had not been watered down.
Grape names and wines
Since the marketing of New World wines using the varietal name we have all become familiar with the names of many grapes. For example, many people experience Chardonnay in falsely over-oaked New World brands but are unaware that all white Burgundy is made from Chardonnay. You once had to learn who made what from what. Many European wines now use the varietal grape name to market their wines but the better ones just assume you know! The following is a quick guide to who uses what, so you know where to look for your favourite grape.
What’s in a name?
The word “Claret” is almost exclusively English. Its origins come from the fact that Red Bordeaux was lighter in colour, “Plus Clair”, than other wines shipped out of the port of Bordeaux in medieval times. The term “Clairette” became Claret to us. The EU tried to enforce the term “Red Bordeaux” but backed down when it was pointed out that the English crown owned the region for almost 300 years (1154 – 1453) and continues to be one of its best customers.
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