Take a little wine for your stomach's sake

[The Liturgist]

We changed our wine a few months back.

Lutherans are inherently cheap, and look for a good deal. Some years ago, they got a great deal on wine from a Church Supply Company; but had to buy about 12 cases to get the best price. Being stored in the Sacristy in a not so cool environment, with screw top bottles, upright, we found the wine had started to degrade, and that there were crud and sediment in the bottles. We discarded the last case and a half.

Our Altar guild (very limited due to covid fears) was also struggling with laundering linens that had deep purple wine stains.

We decided to switch to something that was less prone to staining and for PR reasons in light of Covid concerns, stronger in alcohol. Our local Provincial liquor store had two locally made sherries, one Pale and one Tawny. We ended up going with the Tawny one as it is sweeter, and a little darker in colour. At 20% Alcohol, and not staining, it fit the bill. It is also cheap. A case of 12 bottles runs us < $120.00. Everybody is happy.

That baffles me by the way is normally used to refer to a type of port, which is akin to sherry of the cream or amontillado variety, only more sour. I prefer the sherry.

 

[The Liturgist]

Clearly not too many participating in this thread are Teetotallers ;-)

I’m pretty close to one these days. I take very little alcohol. I tried getting back into Belgian beer in March but it just didn’t work for me.

 

[Xeno.of.athens]

We changed our wine a few months back.

Lutherans are inherently cheap, and look for a good deal. Some years ago, they got a great deal on wine from a Church Supply Company; but had to buy about 12 cases to get the best price. Being stored in the Sacristy in a not so cool environment, with screw top bottles, upright, we found the wine had started to degrade, and that there were crud and sediment in the bottles. We discarded the last case and a half.

Our Altar guild (very limited due to covid fears) was also struggling with laundering linens that had deep purple wine stains.

We decided to switch to something that was less prone to staining and for PR reasons in light of Covid concerns, stronger in alcohol. Our local Provincial liquor store had two locally made sherries, one Pale and one Tawny. We ended up going with the Tawny one as it is sweeter, and a little darker in colour. At 20% Alcohol, and not staining, it fit the bill. It is also cheap. A case of 12 bottles runs us < $120.00. Everybody is happy.

Catholic communion wine must be naturally fermented and free of preservatives so we usually buy from a Jesuit vineyard and their wine is red at about 16% alcohol by volume. We also buy some white wine from them and mix the two to reduce staining. It works well and both the red and the white are fairly sweet wines.

 

[The Liturgist]

Catholic communion wine must be naturally fermented and free of preservatives so we usually buy from a Jesuit vineyard and their wine is red at about 16% alcohol by volume. We also buy some white wine from them and mix the two to reduce staining. It works well and both the red and the white are fairly sweet wines.

I use reds exclusively, diluted with hot water as per the Orthodox practice. Staining has not been an issue; because I believe that the wine actually becomes the blood of our Lord, if any of it spills or drips onto the corporal I have to burn the corporal completely or bury it. The same is true for the sponge used to collect any remaining blood in the Chalice in between services, in that when this sponge needs to be replaced, the protocol, wherein I follow Orthodox custom, is to burn it (I use the thurible for this purpose). This sponge serves a function similar to the Western purificator.

Unfortunately not every place where I work is equipped with a piscina and sacrarium or thalassidion, which requires even more awkward handling of water used sacramentally.

 

[MarkRohfrietsch]

I use reds exclusively, diluted with hot water as per the Orthodox practice. Staining has not been an issue; because I believe that the wine actually becomes the blood of our Lord, if any of it spills or drips onto the corporal I have to burn the corporal completely or bury it. The same is true for the sponge used to collect any remaining blood in the Chalice in between services, in that when this sponge needs to be replaced, the protocol, wherein I follow Orthodox custom, is to burn it (I use the thurible for this purpose). This sponge serves a function similar to the Western purificator.

Unfortunately not every place where I work is equipped with a piscina and sacrarium or thalassidion, which requires even more awkward handling of water used sacramentally.

As sacristan, I will rinse the Ciborium with water, then take that same water and rinse the Chalice with it, then I consume that rinse water. The purificators and all of the other linens are allowed to dry, and then laundered; then pressed, folded and pressed again.

Individual cups are rinsed and dumped into a glass before washing, this collected water is taken outside and poured in the flower-bed, as the Church is built on hallowed ground. If a Church has an adjoining cemetery as did the parish where I grew up, that is where it would be poured.