Wine is a fruit based alcoholic beverage that is consumed throughout the world. People across most continents in the world are fans of this drink. Almost every other region has developed its own taste of this beverage. One may wonder that what is history of wine and where did it surface for the first time. Here are some interesting facts regarding its long history.
Various archaeological findings have indicated that its use was prevalent in ancient Iran, Georgia and Armenia. It has been discovered that wine was produced in these countries around 8000 BC. Evidences of grapevines dating back to Bronze Age or mid-4th millennium BC have been found in Egypt. Macedonia in Greece is credited for being the starting point of its production in Europe.
Quite amusingly, this beverage was put to an interesting use in each of these cultures. It became an important part of Catholic Mass celebration and in ancient Egyptian culture wine was mainly used for ceremonial purposes. Later, it was used for extraction of medicines owing to its useful medicinal properties.
Vayots Dzor Province in Armenia is known for housing the earliest known winery in the Areni-1 cave complex. It is situated at a secluded location in village Areni, on the banks of River Arpa. This winery is over six thousand years old and was discovered only in the year 2007. One may find pottery shreds, storage jars, fermentation vats and a wine press here.
There is quite a lot of evidence of wine production in Near East (region between Iran and Mediterranean Sea) which dates back to third millennium BC. Wineries were present in ancient China around the 11th century BC as well. Initially, wild grapes found in the countryside were used for this purpose. Later on the Chinese started importing grapes from Central Asia for their wineries.
Modern form of this immensely popular beverage is credited to the Greek culture. Wineries were introduced in Europe for the first time in Greece over 6500 years ago. A number of accounts of Greek wineries were made by travelers and writers from Rome and Greece. References of the same can be found in works of Alkma, around 7th Century BC.
Quite interesting fables relating to history of this beverage are prevalent in Greece. Greeks introduced it to other parts of Europe namely Italy, Spain and France. It is believed that the Greeks might have had some sort of involvement with wineries in ancient Egypt as well. At that time, Greeks were renowned in the region for the quality of beverage produced in their wineries.
It was then taken to other parts of the world including the Americas, Australia and New Zealand from Europe. Wine has survived numerous threats to its existence including the devastating phylloxera louse that targeted wineries worldwide in 1870s. Local accounts kept getting added to the long history of wine whenever it was taken to a new place. Wine has certainly survived test of the times and has blended well with local customs and traditions.
Author Resource:
Here is a directory of alcoholic drink recipes that can help you in preparing for your next party. Or check out these delicious beer recipes that you can enjoy on any hot day.
![[Valid RSS feed]](http://www.look4articles.com/images/icon_Rss.png "XML Feed For RSS"){kind=icon}
Category Rss Feed
Print This Article
Add To Favorites
![[Valid RSS feed]](http://www.look4articles.com/images/rss.jpg "XML Feed For RSS")