February 21, 1554: On this day, the pioneering botanist, physician, and minister Hieronymus Bock died. By grouping plants according to their relationship to one another or similarity, he started the shift from medieval botany to the current scientific viewpoint. In Bock’s Latin herbal, which was published in 1552, the contemporary spelling of Riesling was first recorded. Riesling vineyards are thought to have their roots in the Rhine region.

February 21, 1947: On this day, Lidia Giuliana Matticchio Bastianich was born in Italy. She has appeared regularly on television food programs for decades, has been owner of several Italian restaurants, and is the mother of restaurateur and wine expert Joe Bastianich. They co-run Bastianich Wines and La Mozza Vineyard.

February 21, 1972: On this day, after landing in Shanghai with his wife, President Nixon officially started his state visit to China. He was the first U.S. president to go to a nation that was not recognized by the country diplomatically, and he brought Schramsberg sparkling wine from California to commemorate the occasion.

February 21, 1995: On this day, Falcon Vintners was founded. Falcon Vintners is a wine company that specializes in providing its customers with some of the world’s finest quality and rare wines. It has a large collection of wines from all across Europe and the United States, with an emphasis on Italian wines. Eric Sabourin, the company’s managing director, has nearly three decades of expertise in the wine industry. He was also the principal of Connoisseur Wine School until a management buy-out in 2004, at which point he decided to focus on Falcon Vintners. Falcon Vintners’ staff travels to various wine areas and international trade shows regularly to meet with producers and winemakers to provide their clients with the greatest variety of wine from some of the most sought-after producers.

February 21, 2018: From this day through July 20 of the same year, an appeals court examined and then found aspects of Tennessee law unconstitutional in Russell F. Thomas, Executive Director of the Tennessee Alcoholic Beverage Commission, et al. v. Tennessee Wine and Spirits Retailers Association, Petitioner. The case was then appealed up to the supreme court.

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