Some experts would like to see health warnings on fizzy drinks if this article is to be believed. Scientists have found that drinking just one can of soft drink a day can increase the risk of type 2 diabetes by a fifth. The study carried out by the Imperial College London found the risk rose by 22% for every serving of fizzy drink, each can, consumed per day. I do wonder how many people consume fizzy drinks everyday.

Drinking during pregnancy is a subject that always receives a lot of comments. Many people are adamant that you should drink no alcohol at all, others like this article believe a moderate amount has no effects and can perhaps be beneficial. I would imagine this latest research which says pregnancy women can have two alcoholic drinks a week will spark much debate. Carried out by British researchers, the study found that light drinking could even improve a child’s development in maths, reading and spatial skills. It can be hard to know what advice to take when you read conflicting articles. Personally I had a couple of glasses of wine a week throughout both my pregnancies, although did not drink for the first 3 months when it is thought the brain is developing. I think as with everything a moderate amount does not hurt.

According to this article this is the world’s strongest coffee. Called Death Wish coffee it contains more than 200% more caffeine than a normal cup of coffee. How it rates on flavour is unclear but those that have tried it report receiving a intense high followed by a caffeine comedown.

Personally I’m not a cider lover but it seems I may be in the minority as more people are drinking it. Cider sales now account for £2.7 billion worth of sales a year with three in five adults now drinking it. It now has a greater share of the market than spirits and if sales continue to rise could soon be as popular as beer. Sales of cider have seen steady growth over the past few years despite the economic downturn with more drinkers such as women and 18-34 year olds being attracted to it. I don’t think it will ever be my drink of choice, I guess I still associate it with a rather bad hangover many years ago.

I have read a lot about the benefits of drinking wine, most people are prepared to admit it offers some health benefits when drunk in moderation. This is the first time, however, that I have come across anything claiming it can prevent hearing loss. The research claims that the chemical resveratrol found in grapes and red wine has a protective effect and can help to reduce the damage caused by loud noise. It is based upon a study where healthy rats were given the chemical before being exposed to loud noise for a period of time. As always I remain sceptical but will be sure to have a good dose of red wine just in case.

This article suggests that health authorities are working with the drinks industry to add calorie content information to alcohol labelling. The health minister Anna Soubry has confirmed that discussions are underway on including the extra information on drinks labels. She has said that the government is committed to improving labelling so that drinkers in particular pregnant women could be better informed about the health risks associated with alcohol and that drinkers can be more aware of how much alcohol they are drinking.

This article makes for an interesting read. It follows Charlotte Morgan when she tried a 6 day juice detox diet. She ordered products from a company called Nosh which produces the juices and also sends you daily emails to help you through the process. The detox involves consuming just the juices that are delivered in the pack and nothing else except herbal teas and plenty of water.

The whole process seems a little extreme to me and perhaps for Charlotte as she finishes the detox a day early. At £283.62 this particular program seems a little on the pricy side but the concept of a juice fast does seems to get results with most people who have tried it feeling less bloated and losing at least a few pounds of weight.

I can’t help thinking that any weight lost will quickly go back on once you resume a normal diet but I guess the program could be good if you want to lose a bit of weight for a particular event or just want to detox your system. It would, however, be cheaper to make the juices yourself, if a juice fast is for you.

Say scientists who have investigated the effects of mug colour on flavour. They found that hot chocolate tastes better from an orange or cream coloured mug. Researchers have found that the colour of crockery can contribute to or at least influence the taste of food and drink. Researchers asked volunteers to taste hot chocolate from four different coloured cups and evaluate the flavour. They rated the drinks on a scale of one to ten based on chocolate flavour, chocolate aroma and sweetness. The research found that the drink tasted better when served in am orange or cream coloured cup rather than a red or white one. Other examples of containers or crockery influencing flavour include yellow tins to improve the flavour of lemon and blue to make soft drinks more thirst quenching. Strawberry mousse should be served on a white plate more intense flavour and coffee is best served in a brown packaging for a stronger flavour and aroma.

If this article is correct beer has recently been classified as an alcoholic drink in Russia. Until now it had been seen by many as a light refreshment rather than an alcoholic drink with hardened drinkers preferring vodka. It was considered a foodstuff along with other drinks under 10% in strength and could be brought like fruit juice or mineral water. Now it can no longer be sold in street outlets such as kiosks, railway stations, bus stops and petrol stations and there will be a ban on television advertising for beer. The new restrictions are part of an attempt to counter alcohol abuse.

At a time of year when you are more likely to suffer from the effects of excess alcohol there seems to be a lot of articles around offering hangover cures. This one claims that asparagus can ward off the effects of a hangover. Scientists have found that chemicals in the vegetable help to protect liver cells against toxins. The minerals and amino acids also replace those that are lost through drink. For the best effect it is recommended that you serve the leaves as well as the tender shoots.

Research carried out by Rutgers University has found that even moderate drinking such as two glasses of wine can halve the amount of brain cells we produce. The research found that moderate drinking can decrease the production of adult brain cells by as much as 40% with long term effects including impaired memory. I guess this outweighs all the so called positive effects that a daily glass of red wine is supposed to give you.

A Scottish Whiskey distillery has partnered with Celtic Renewables to turn it’s leftover whiskey into fuel for cars. The leftover whiskey from Tullibardine Distillery in Perthshire will be fed on by bacteria to produce butanol, a fuel that can be used in vehicles. The distillery produces thousands of tonnes of leftover products which cannot be sold as whiskey. It seems like a good idea to make use of a waste product.

Cup cakes are everywhere at the moment but this is the first time I have come across alcoholic cup cakes. It seems a few companies are trying the idea, adding drinks such as gin, champagne and rum to their cup cakes.

A company in Wimbledon is offering a Chocolate Guinness cup cake,  Whiskey Sour and a Baileys Shot. Other flavours include strawberry daiquiri and cherry cola. I can feel some cake making experiments coming on.

Not that I need another excuse to drink wine but if this article is to be believed red wine could reduce your chance of getting fat. Research has shown that a compound found in red wine can help control obesity. The substance, called piceatannol delays the generation of fat cells and prevents them from growing into mature fat cells. Well I’m convinced, time for a glass of wine.

It’s not quite April the 1st so I’m assuming this article is genuine. It’s about a new tea which is set to go one sale. The tea is supposed to be the most expensive in the world and is unusual because the plants are fertilised with panda dung. Quite how this improves the flavour of the tea is unclear but those wanting to try a cup should expect to pay around £130. It is made by a former teacher and journalist who believes using the panda manure to fertilise the organic green tea produces the perfect cup. The panda dung is obtained from nearby panda breading centres in Sichuan province, China. With 50 grams of the tea selling for 22,000 yuan (£2,200) and a cup of tea requiring about three grams each cup of tea would cost about £130.

Bottles of ale which were brewed to celebrate the coronation of Edward VIII have recently been found in a bricked up cellar. The ales were brewed to celebrate Edwards coronation but were never released for sale because he abdicated to marry Mrs Simpson. They were recently found in a bricked up cellar after workmen were called in to replace a floor at the Greene King brewery in Bury St Edmunds.

Scientists have discovered what many people may already suspect, drinking alcohol does make us feel good. Apparently it releases endorphins into the the brain producing feelings of pleasure and reward. Researchers used something called PET imaging to observe the effects of alcohol in the brains of 13 heavy drinkers and compared these to 12 control subjects who were not heavy drinkers. It found that drinking alcohol led to a release of endorphins in all of those taking part with the heavy drinkers having greater feelings of pleasure. it is thought the greater feeling of reward felt by the heavy drinkers ultimately encourage them to drink more and may cause them to drink too much.

I have often wondered why busy pubs don’t come up with a system of dispensing drinks that allows customers to serve themselves in order to cut down on queues. One landlord it seems, has done just that. He has redesigned swipe card machines in his pub to dispense beer and is hoping to introduce the system before Christmas. Dave Barron, of the Queen's Head, at Hoyland near Barnsley has included a brewery metering system to dispense the correct half pint measure to customers and now has a patent pending on the design. He will be installing two machines to dispense both lager and bitter. Customers will still need to purchase a pre-paid card from the bar but can then serve themselves until the balance runs out.

US scientists claim they have created the ultimate hangover cure. The pill which contains a combination of aspirin and caffeine claims to eradicate all symptoms within just 15 minutes. Called Blowfish it targets all hangover symptoms including nausea, vomiting and fatigue. It contains 500 milligrams of aspirin, 60 milligrams of caffeine and an antacid and is already available to order online. It has already launched across the US. If successful there it will also be available within the UK next year for £1.90 for a pack.

A rare bottle of 55 year old Glenfiddich whisky is to be auctioned in Edinburgh next month. The bottle is one of only 11 that were produced to commemorate the 110th birthday of Janet Sheed Roberts the granddaughter of the distillery’s founder William Grant. It is thought it will fetch in excess of £30,000 when it goes to auction and is expected to break the current UK auction house record of £29,400. The Glenfiddich Janet Sheed Roberts Reserve was casked on Hogmanay 1955. It is described as pale gold in colour with aromas of orange blossom, delicate violets and toasted almonds.

If this article is correct then you might want to consider the music you are listening to when drinking a glass of wine. A study published in the British Journal of Psychology found that people who drink wine whilst listening to music perceive the wine to have the same characteristics of the particular artist. Those drinking Merlot for example should try listening to Tom Jones for the best earthy and full bodied taste experience. Pinot Grigio on the other hand would be best enjoyed when listening to Lady Gaga.

The study looked at 250 students, half of whom were male and half female. They were given either a Cabernet Sauvignon or Chilean Chardonnay and played one of four songs on a loop for 15 minutes. The songs included Carmina Burana by Orff  which was chosen because it is powerful and heavy. The Waltz of the Flowers from Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker chosen because it is subtle and refined. Just Can't Get Enough by Nouvelle Vague chosen for being zingy and refreshing and Slow Breakdown by Michael Brook which is mellow and soft. A fifth group drank the wine with no music. The wines were given the highest ratings for being powerful and heavy by those who drank them to the tune of Carmina Burana. Those that listened to Michael Brook rated the wine as mellow and soft more than other tastes. The results of the study showed consistently that emotional connotations of the music influenced the perception of taste.

It looks like the recent hot weather could be good news for English wine. It seems the so called Indian summer has led to a last minute surge in the ripening of grapes providing perfect conditions for UK winemakers. According to this article the recent high temperatures have created the perfect balance of acid and sugar in the grapes. Although this years grape crop is likely to be smaller than usual, what grapes there are should produce a sensational wine. It could be a vintage to stock up on, when it starts to go sale.

Cider appears to be becoming more popular with Waitrose saying sales of the drink have overtaken those of Chilean or Spanish wine. The growth comes at a time when lager sales are in decline and suggests that more people are choosing cider as an alternative. The increase has proved to be good news for England's orchards which have boosted production and are this year expecting to set a new record apple harvest. Although cider sales have risen 13% over the past year it does still only account for 3% of sales at the supermarket but is the fastest growing category in the past three months. I have noticed that even in the supermarkets there is now a greater range of better tasting ciders. Gone are the days of cheap strong white cider that could strip paint off a wall. It seems cider is now focussed more on taste and quality. I do quite like cider but personally prefer a medium sweet choice. I do wonder, however, how I go about making some, it might be a good way to use up this years bumper apple crop from the garden.

According to this article dirty ice is being served at one in every three pubs, restaurants and coffee shops and could be putting customer health at risk. A study carried out by the Health Protection Agency on 88 establishments found that 30% showed levels of poor hygiene. The main problems are caused by the failure to clean machines and scoops used to fill cups and glasses. 30% of ice samples were found to have unsatisfactory levels of coliform bacteria whilst three samples had unsatisfactory levels of Enterococci and one sample had an unsatisfactory level of E.coli. Based on this, next time you are offered ice you might be wise to say no.

For me, sadly, it’s very little at the moment being halfway through my pregnancy but it seems the average Briton drinks 5,800 pints in their lifetime and suffers from 726 hangovers. They will also drink 8,700 glasses of wine. The results are based upon a survey of 2,000 people. It found that most people drink at least three nights a week and have nine drinks in total which works out to 468 a year. Over half of people regularly drink in their home but it seems only 17% of people now regularly visit the pub. The survey which was carried out by Benenden Healthcare Society also revealed that the average Briton starts experimenting with alcohol at the age of 14. Four out of ten people admitted they can’t go longer than a week without having a drink, whilst 10% would make it through just 2 days before opening a bottle. The results certainty make interesting reading.

Scientists have recently opened a bottle of 170 year old beer. The beer was found in a Baltic sea shipwreck along with several bottles of champagne. It has been sitting 50 metres below sea level for so long that it had become contaminated with seawater. Despite this the scientists opened the beer and analysed the contents. They found malt sugars, hops and aromatic compounds that are still used in beer today as well as lactic acid which would have given the beer a sour taste. There were, however, no active yeast cells meaning they will unable to replicate the beer using a reverse process. A further five bottles have also been recovered from the wreck and another will be opened and analysed at a further date. I wonder whether any are still in a drinkable condition.

That’s according to this article. A study has found that the insects are more likely to fly towards a person after they have consumed a pint or more. Researchers believe that they are attracted by the odour and breath changes caused when you consume alcohol. It might also be that they have to come to associate beer odour with a lack of defensiveness from drinkers. The research was part of a study into the insects to try and halt disease spread by mosquitoes. Tests were conducted on a group of people aged between 20 and 43. They were given a litre of beer and insects were given the option of flying towards traps containing either open air or the human odour of the participant. It was found that 65% of mosquitoes flew towards the human odour after the person had consumed beer compared with 35% before any beer was consumed. I wonder if the same applies to wine.

According to this article a bottle of the world’s oldest champagne has recently been sold for a record price of 30,000 euros, that’s about £26,700. The champagne was one of a number of bottles that were found in a shipwreck in the Baltic Sea. The bottle of Veuve Clicquot is nearly 200 years old and was recovered from a shipwreck which dates from between 1825 and 1830. A bottle of champagne from the house of Juglar was also salvaged from the same wreck was also sold for 24,000 euros. Despite the price it fetched, the champagne is not the most expensive ever sold, only the most expensive ever auctioned.

If you fancy visiting some UK based vineyards this summer, this article highlights ten which might be worth a look. On  the list are Biddenden Vineyards in Kent and Tenterden Vineyard, both of which I remember visiting some years ago. A few others are within easy reach such as Bookers Vineyard in Sussex and Denbies Wine Estate near Dorking, so they will be on my list for future day trips.

That’s according to this article which suggests visiting the pub five times a week is good for you as long as you drink in moderation. Research has shown that drinking two pints or the similar units of wine on a regular basis can actually be good for your liver. In fact drinking in moderation can actually be better for you than drinking only occasionally or not at all with only excessive alcohol intake causing damage. Frequent but moderate alcohol consumption can reduce the chances of a fatty liver, the main cause of liver disease by up to 60%. Based on this, I’m off to open a bottle of wine.

This article is interesting, it suggests that many people do not know the calorie content of the alcoholic drinks they consume. It also suggests that many people who are dieting will carefully count the calories of the food they eat but not take into account the glass of wine or beer they have with dinner. The findings come from a survey of 2,000 UK adults, one in three of whom were found to monitor they daily calorie intake. Only one in ten, however, was monitoring the amount of calories consumed in the alcohol they drank. On average a small glass of wine contains 134 calories and a pint of beer 193 calories so for those trying to diet the calories in what they drink can soon add up. I am well aware of the calorie content of my medium sized glass of wine but personally would rather enjoy that than a slice of cake or a chocolate bar. However, if you are on a diet it might be worth thinking how many calories are in what you drink and adding these to your daily food diary.

A pair of entrepreneurs have invented a beer that is designed specifically to be drunk in space. Looking to capitalise on space tourism and believing they are ahead of the game on this one their beer has been tested for space travel. Made by microbrewery the 4 Pines Brewing Company it is designed to be drunk in zero gravity and a prototype has already been tested under these conditions. The Vostok 4 Pines Stout is a full bodies flavoursome beer which they believe would work best in space.

This is interesting it’s a device called a Coffee Joulies which claims to keep your drink at the perfect temperature for up to five hours. The device which resembles a glass bean is placed inside the thermos with the hot drink. It absorbs the extra thermal energy in the drink when it is hot and then releases this energy to keep the drink at an optimum drinking temperature as it starts to cool down. The beans are made of a non toxic material sealed within the stainless steel shell. They only work, however, when the drink is insulated with a lid. It’s an interesting idea, but I do wonder whether they are any more effective than an ordinary thermos.

According to this article champagne sales in Britain jumped last year after a two year slump. Figures show that around five million more bottles of champagne were drunk in Britain last year than in 2009. With shipments of champagne increasing 16.3 % to 35.5 million bottles, Britain is now the second biggest drinker of champagne after France. Much of the growth is though to have been driven by the supermarkets offering champagne discounts as a way to drive customers to their stores. Whatever the reason it appears that we have developed quite a taste for the sparkling stuff.

According to this article a website is claiming to have discovered the recipe for Coca Cola. The recipe is something which has been a closely guarded secret and is only know by two Coca Cola employees at a time. It is keep in a guarded bank vault and has been kept secret since 1886. A website, now claims to have found a list showing the ingredients and quantities used to make the drink. Thisamericanlife.org claim it was published in a 1979 article in a local paper in Atlanta, Georgia but that nobody recognised its significance at the time.

This is interesting its a new milk bottle which has been created by a Suffolk company. It looks just like a regular milk bottle but when you have finished with it is can be broken down and completely recycled. It has a cardboard outside and a plastic inside. When the bottle is finished the plastic inner can be taken out and the cardboard put into the normal recycling. Although there is still some plastic contained in the packaging it is much less than a conventional bottle. It has recently been trialled in a number of small shops but it is hoped it will be rolled out across bigger supermarkets.

If this article is to be believed Australians are increasingly choosing wine over beer. If the trend continues it is thought wine sales will overtake beer sales within 10 years. In fact the consumption of beer has dropped by almost half to its lowest level in 50 years. Wine sales, however, have increased three fold over the same period.

This is interesting its a wine that contains a venomous snake. Produced in a village in Vietnam the wine contains snakes and scorpions. It is made with either a cobra or scorpion encased in the wine. The poison of the creature, however, is cancelled out by the alcoholic content of the drink and the fermenting process. The wine is thought to have many health benefits and is used to treat various problems such as back pain, rheumatism and lumbago. It is also thought to increase male virility.

If this article is to be believed Starbucks are now selling cups of coffee that contain nearly a litre of liquid. The new Trenta cup size has recently been rolled out in stores across 14 American states starting in California. The cup holds 918ml or 31 ounces and will at first be used to sell iced coffee, tea and lemonade. I wonder whether the new size will be popular. I can certainly never imagine myself thinking, man that was a really late night, I need a litre of coffee.

This is interesting its a proposal which could mean heavy drinkers are given a special zone in which they are allowed to drink. The scheme which has been proposed by a councillor from Colchester believes that the areas alcoholics should be given a special “wet zone” in which they can drink out of the way of the rest of the public. Currently anti-social drinkers in the area are constantly moved on by police because they and the dogs they often have with them are intimidating to the general public.

It is clear that some areas do have a problems with this issue. I remember when I used to work in Richmond, Surrey, there was a large group of men and their dogs who spent all day in the church yard drinking. It is clear they do need somewhere to go during the day where they do not cause problems. I’m not sure, however, that giving them a special zone in which to drink solves the issue. It seems to me it’s just sweeping the problem under the carpet rather than trying to deal with the root cause.

This is interesting its a wine bottle that has been designed to catch the sediment at the bottom of the bottle. Chef Martín Berasategui designed it as a way of decanting the wine whilst it is in the bottle. The bottle has a chamber at the base which captures the sediment rather than it being poured out with the wine. It also acts as a decanter because of its special shape.

If you like a cup of hot chocolate then you could soon find you are paying a little bit more for it. That’s according to this article which claims the wholesale cost of cocoa powder has jumped by 32% over the past year. The price rise is largely down to failing crops earlier in the year and disruption from suppliers in the Ivory Coast. As a result cocoa powder has risen to as much as £3,000 a ton.

If you like whisky and have a bit of spare cash then you might be interested in this idea. Based on the book 101 Whiskies to Try Before you Die it is the ultimate package of just that, 101 whiskies, in fact one of each mentioned in the book. The special offer is available from Royal Mile Whiskies until the end of December and even includes a free copy of the book, bargain.

This is interesting its a soft drink that claims to burn calories. Called Aspire the cranberry flavoured drink claims to burn 209 calories within three hours of drinking it. It does this because caffeine and green tea when combined with amino acid and ginger create a thermogenic effect where the body generates more heat in order to digest food. The drink has only been tested on 20 people so it is not clear whether it could be used as part of a weigh loss plan. Personally I think you are better of eating less and exercising but if you want to try this its available from Holland and Barrett at a cost of £1.59 for a 250ml can.

If you are prepared a little bit more for your milk in the knowledge it is produced by happy cows then your might be interested in Ahimsa Milk. It is produced by animals that are reared on a farm run by Hare Krishna. The animals are milked by hand to the sound of sacred mantras and because of Hindu rules no harm can come to them. Even when their milk dries up the animals will live out their days tilling the land and transporting food around the farm. The milk is a little more expensive than the average pint, you should expect to pay in the region of £1.70 instead of 45p roughly what a normal pint would cost.

I have been cutting back on tea recently as I was becoming a little too reliant on the daily caffeine fix to get me through the day. If this article is to be believed, however, perhaps I should be reinstating my daily tea fix. According to the article research has shown that drinking three cups of tea a day can help protect you against heart attacks and strokes. In fact drinking green or black tea can reduce the risk of heart problems by 11%. It seems it works by cutting the build up of plaque in the arteries. Well, I’m convinced, time for a cup of tea.

If this article is to be believed a lady from Leicestershire got a little more than she bargained for when she opened a bottle of wine to find it included a frog. Isolde Beesley opened the bottle of Moscatel de Valcencia at a family celebration and had drunk a glass of wine before finding the small frog floating in the bottle. It is not yet known at what point the frog was introduced to the bottling process but the wine has been taken off the shelves whilst it is investigated.

This is interesting, it’s an alcoholic drink made from stinging nettles. Called Cornish Stingers it is made with hand picked wild stinging nettles. They are left to brew for seven days and the resulting drink apparently tastes like a dry wine with aromas of citrus and elderflower. If you want to try some it is priced at £25 for a case of 12 and is currently available at retail outlets across Cornwall and from the Eden Project.

According to this article the number of UK breweries has increased in the past 30 years. Figures from Camra (The Campaign for Real Ale) show that 78 new breweries opened last year. It seems the rise is mainly down to the increasing number of mirco breweries starting up. Many of these smaller breweries are run out of a shed or a pub back garden. Camra puts the rise of breweries down to the fact that brewers are simply responding to genuine customer demand. I wonder what I need to start my own micro brewery.

If this article is to be believed a man has created a whisky made from urine. The whisky is made using the high sugar urine produced by diabetes patients. The urine is filtered using the same processes which are used to purify water. This removes the sugars which are used in the fermentation process. The whisky is not available commercially but if do you want to try some tasting opportunities are available at the Materials design event in London in September.