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On February 18 2026, wine lovers across the United States uncork a favorite bottle in honor of National Drink Wine Day. It's an unofficial holiday built around a simple idea: slow down, pour a glass (if you're of legal drinking age), and enjoy wine for what it is, a drink with a long cultural history and a well-earned place at the table.
How to Celebrate National Drink Wine Day
Here are a few easy, genuinely wine-friendly ways to mark the day:
- Pour your favorite wine
Keep it simple: one good glass, no rushing. Pair it with something that makes sense (Cabernet with a steak, Sauvignon Blanc with goat cheese, sparkling wine with salty snacks). Sip slowly and actually taste what's in the glass. - Try something new
If you usually buy one region or grape, switch it up. Pick a bottle from a country you don't drink often, or try a style you've never explored (like a fortified wine). - Host a mini tasting at home
Keep it low-key: 3-4 bottles, small pours, water on the table, and something neutral to nibble (bread, crackers, mild cheese). You'll learn more than you think in one evening. - Visit a winery or wine bar
Some places run flights or themed tastings around wine-centric “national days.” If you're near a wine region, February can be a quieter time to visit. - Learn one wine thing
Read up on a grape you love, watch a short tasting guide, or finally learn what “tannins” feel like. A little knowledge makes the next glass more fun.
Why February 18 Is for Wine
Because this is an unofficial observance, its origin story isn't formally documented the way a federal holiday would be. That said, many “national day” calendars and roundups commonly credit wine enthusiast Todd McCalla with starting National Drink Wine Day in 2007.
You may also see another wine-themed date: National Wine Day on May 25. Its origins are often described as unclear, with sources pointing to early online mentions around 2009. In practice, May 25 is usually framed as a broad “celebrate wine” day, while Feb 18 leans into the simple act of pouring a glass and enjoying it responsibly.
National Drink Wine Day Countdown
Wondering how many days until National Drink Wine Day? Here's the live countdown to the next celebration on February 18th:
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The Long Story of Wine
Part of the charm of a day like this is remembering how far back wine goes.
- Early evidence of grape wine has been found in Neolithic sites in the modern nation of Georgia, dating to roughly 6000-5800 BCE (often summarized as “about 8,000 years ago”).
- The Areni-1 cave complex in Armenia is widely reported as the site of the oldest known winery installation, dating to roughly 4100-4000 BCE, with archaeological evidence consistent with winemaking activity.
That's a staggering timeline for something we still use to celebrate birthdays, weddings, promotions, reunions, and random Tuesday dinners.
Wine Fun Facts and Tips
Two “wine days.”
National Drink Wine Day is Feb 18. National Wine Day is May 25. If you celebrate both, nobody in the wine world will complain.
Toasting trivia (and a myth).
You'll often hear that clinking glasses was meant to prove nobody poisoned the drink. It's a great story, but fact-checkers generally treat it as folklore rather than a proven origin.
Big bottle energy.
A Melchizedek/Midas holds 30 liters, which is about 40 standard bottles.
If you mean the largest bottle of wine on record, Guinness lists one holding 3,094 liters, measured in Switzerland in 2014 (a truly absurd size).
Ancient wine is still around (sort of).
The famous Speyer wine bottle is dated to roughly 325-350 CE and is often described as the oldest unopened bottle of wine. It's on display at the Historical Museum of the Palatinate in Speyer, Germany.
And in 2024, researchers reported an even older find: a Roman funerary urn in Carmona, Spain, dating to the 1st century CE, that still contained wine in liquid form (identified through chemical analysis).
National Drink Wine Day Dates
Wine fans, here's when February 18 falls in the next few years:
| Year | Date | Day of the Week |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | February 18, 2026 | Wednesday |
| 2027 | February 18, 2027 | Thursday |
| 2028 | February 18, 2028 | Friday |
| 2029 | February 18, 2029 | Sunday |
| 2030 | February 18, 2030 | Monday |
Cheers to Health (In Moderation)
Wine gets talked about as “healthy” all the time, especially red wine. It's true that wine contains compounds like resveratrol (from grape skins), and research has explored potential links between moderate alcohol intake and heart health. But major health organizations are careful about how this is framed.
- The American Heart Association says it does not recommend drinking alcohol to gain potential health benefits, and notes there's no proven cause-and-effect link that alcohol improves heart health.
- The World Heart Federation has argued that no amount of alcohol is “good” for the heart, emphasizing that even low levels can carry cardiovascular risk.
- If you do choose to drink, the AHA commonly summarizes “moderation” as no more than one drink per day for women and two for men.
Bottom line: enjoy wine for flavor, tradition, and the experience, not as medicine.
In Vino Veritas (and Simple Enjoyment)
Wine has inspired endless one-liners, but the best message for Feb 18 is the least dramatic: enjoy it well. Pour something you actually like. Eat something good. Text a friend. Make a normal night feel a little more special.
Or, to borrow Hemingway's sentiment in Death in the Afternoon: “Wine is one of the most civilized things in the world.”
Raise your glass on February 18, and cheers to good bottles, good food, and good company. Drink responsibly, and enjoy National Drink Wine Day.
