Write on: Great writers with great wine wisdom

Over the millennia, stellar writers have applied their gifts, at least upon occasion, to our/their favorite beverage. Some exemplars, beginning with a seasonal quote:

• “Wine is the divine juice of September” — Voltaire (left)

• “The soft extractive note of an aged cork being withdrawn has the true sound of a man opening his heart.” — William Samuel Benwell

• “A glass of good wine is a gracious creature, and reconciles poor mortality to itself, and that is what few things can do.” — Sir Walter Scott

• “Let us drink. Why wait for the lighting of the lamps? Night is a hair’s breadth away. Take down the great goblets from the shelf, dear friend, for [Dionysus] gave us wine. … And let us empty the dripping cup —urgently.” — Alcaeus of Mytilene (left)

• “Is not wine the very essence of laughter?” — Maurice des Ombiaux