Red wine contains resveratrol, a powerful antioxidant compound. Resveratrol protects your heart and arteries against the effects of saturated fat in your diet! SO, drinking 1-2 (yes, only 1-2) glasses of red wine a day may help prevent cardiovascular disease. Now, that’s a major plus!!

-Red wine has been shown to reduce the amount of “bad” LDL cholesterol and increase the “good” HDL cholesterol. Now, that doesn’t mean go eat a donut and then wash in down with a glass of wine and think your diet is now a balanced one……I know all you dieting “sweet-toothers” out there….

- A 2010 study in the American Journal of Epidemiology found that those who drank more than 14 weekly glasses of wine for a year were 40% less likely to come down with a common cold. Why? You may ask?... According to the National Institutes of Health, antioxidants are believed to fight infection and protect cells against the effects of free radicals, which may play role in cancer and other diseases.

- Slim your waistline with vino? Research from the Journal of Biological Chemistry suggests piceatannol, the chemical compound our bodies convert from resveratrol compound was shown to prevent the growth of fat cells in a series of lab tests. Piceatannol binds to the insulin receptors of fat cells, essentially blocking the pathways necessary for immature fat cells to mature and grow.

• In case you were wondering, Cabernet sauvignon was found to have higher levels of antioxidants in comparison to other red wines. A good rule of thumb is the sweeter the wine, the less amount of flavonoids.

Don’t forget, moderation in all things is key, even if it’s "beneficial booze"….