| Wine has a long and venerable history,
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| | as Egypt, and although we can't be sure,
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| with references to its use cropping up in
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| | it seems that it was from the ancient
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| ancient texts from thousands of years ago
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| | Egyptians that the Greeks learned to make
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| - not least, of course, in the Bible. We
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| | wine.
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| know for a fact that it was firmly
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| | Physical evidence of wine production in
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| established in the Middle Eastern culture
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| | ancient Egypt includes remains of wine
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| of around two thousand years ago, and for
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| | jars and stoppers dating back to the
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| it to be so commonplace at that time it
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| | earliest years of the civilization, and
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| must have been around for quite some time
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| | wine was used both as a food and a
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| before that.
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| | medicine. Wine in pharonic times was not
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| Viticulture was certainly a large part of
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| | only made from grapes, but also from
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| the economy of the Roman Empire, and the
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| | figs, pomegranates, and other fruits, a
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| spread of Roman civilization included the
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| | practice which continues across the world
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| spread of wine growing and wine drinking
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| | to this day in the rural production of
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| as the colonizing soldiers moved across
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| | 'country wines' such as damson and
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| the Old World. In ancient Rome, a common
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| | elderberry.
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| form of wine was known as mulsum, heavily
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| | The first great civilization of historic
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| sweetened with honey, and produced on
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| | times was in Mesopotamia, close to Egypt,
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| large agrarian estates largely by the
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| | in what is modern day Iraq and
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| slave population. What remained in the
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| | surrounding areas. Although records from
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| wine press after crushing the grapes -
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| | this era are sketchy, considering that
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| seeds and skins mainly - was often fed to
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| | writing was not invented until the latter
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| livestock, or alternatively brewed into a
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| | part of the civilization, there is
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| very low quality 'wine' and given to the
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| | evidence that wine was produced here too.
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| slaves who'd grown the grapes.
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| | A clay jar bearing traces of what could
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| We also know that winemaking was familiar
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| | have been wine has been discovered in
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| to the ancient Greeks, from whom the
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| | what is now northern Iran, and carbon
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| Romans learned so much, and there's
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| | dating shows that it was made around
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| physical evidence of this in the form of
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| | 5000-5400 BC. This is the oldest known
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| a stone wine press found in a Minoan
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| | evidence of wine consumption, but as this
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| villa on the island of Crete, dating back
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| | period of pre-history stretches back to
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| to around 1600 BC. The wine making
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| | 8500 BC, it is likely that wine making
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| facilities discovered there appeared to
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| | had been known and practiced for maybe
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| be quite advanced and sophisticated,
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| | thousands of years before that.
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| suggesting that the Minoans had been
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| | So, next time you relax with a glass in
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| practicing the art of wine making for a
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| | your hand, ponder for a moment that what
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| considerable period before that date.
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| | you are drinking could be the results of
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| Prior to this, the trail is a little less
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| | over ten thousand years of cumulative
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| clear as we go further back into history.
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| | learning and experimentation with the
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| The ancient Greeks had strong trading
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| | magical process of fermenting grapes!
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| links with nearby eastern cultures such
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