Spanish wine for troops

A Spanish vineyard boasting that its produce fosters heroism and muscular strength has shipped 4'000 bottles of vintage red to U.S. troops engaged in Afghanistan. Each bottle in the special order for the Whitbey Island Task Force carries a special label commemorating Operation Enduring Freedom, the multinational campaign which overthrew Afghanistan's Taliban government. The wine itself is 1997 vintage, made from Cabernet Sauvignon and Tempranillo grapes and aged for two years in oak casks, and especially recommended for accompanying a meal of kid or game. At the entrance to the Vina Extremadura vineyard in Almendralejo, southwestern Spain, is a poem glazed on traditional tiles extolling the restorative properties of wine. “Wine increases muscular strength....enhances association, forgiveness and heroism,” the poem reads. “It lends a sense of euphoria wherever life may lead.” Wine and all other alcoholic beverages are spurned by followers of Islam the dominant religion in Afghanistan.