Where and when was wine first made?
Wine is enjoyed in many areas of the world, and most cultures have their own legends about how it was first made
Archaeology could show that wine storage and making equipment was in use in many areas of the Middle East well before 4000 BC.
A recent genetic study of modern grape varieties showed that they all descended from a wild grape variety native to the Caucasus Mountains. The study gave a tentative date for the divergence of wild and domestic grapes of about 9000 BC.
The oldest direct evidence for wine drinking comes from Georgia where a wine-stained shard of pottery dating to about 6000 BC has been found. The oldest winery was found in the Areni Cave in Armenia and consisted of a press, fermentation tanks and storage jars that dated to 4100 BC.
It is said that wine improves with age. How do you think a 6,000-year-old vintage tastes?
This article was taken from BBC History Revealed magazine
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