Dad & Dionysus ... Pops & Pan? A mere first-letter coincidence, of course. Still, if your dad enjoys a draught of red wine with his joint of charred beef, feel virtuous in indulging him this Father's Day, June 21.

 

Resveratrol, a substance in red wine, may be one reason for his youthful joie de vivre, according to this Mayo Clinic article. A team of researchers in the department of medicine at the University of Wisconsin, Vanderbilt and other universities found that high doses of resveratrol led to longer lifespans in middle-age mice that ate fatty diets. Sound like someone you know?

 

Red wine, the researchers said, is heart-healthy. If Dad has a heart for the environment, as well, make his day with a selection of organic and biodynamic vintages, produced without the synthetic pesticides and fertilizers that pollute air and waterways. Many eco-artisanal wines are made in Oregon, which has an eco-label based on controlling pests with beneficial insects rather than pesticides. 

 

Among biodynamic wines, we like Oregon's Resonance Vineyard. For many more ideas, check out these sites, and ask at your local wine shop.

 

Appellation Wines   

 

If Dad's a teetotaler, no problem: red grapes also contain resveratrol, and are also available in organic at your nearest natural foods supermarket or farmer's market (in temperate zones, grapes are a summer-through-autumn crop). Viva Pan!

 

This article originally appeared in Plenty in June 2008. This story was added to MNN.com in June 2009.

 

Copyright Environ Press 2008