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The Rest Is History
The Rest Is History

666. Wine and the Birth of Civilisation

May 03, 2026 • 1h 15m

Summary

⏱️ 9 min read

Overview

Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook trace 8,000 years of wine history, from its origins in ancient Georgia through Roman expansion, Islamic prohibition, French cultural dominance, and the New World's dramatic 1976 victory at the Judgment of Paris. They explore seven pivotal moments that transformed wine from a regional beverage into a global industry worth $500 billion.

Ancient Origins: The Birth of Wine in the Caucasus

Wine's story begins around 6000 BC in Georgia, near Mount Ararat, where humans first domesticated the hermaphroditic grape vine. Archaeological evidence from pottery shards proves this is where the oldest known wine was produced, with Armenia's village of Arani hosting the earliest discovered winery from 4000 BC. This revolutionary development in viticulture would spread throughout the ancient world, carried by traders and conquerors alike.

  • Wild grape vines are either male or female; cross-breeding created hermaphroditic vines that could produce fruit independently
  • Georgia has firm archaeological evidence of wine production dating to 6000 BC, the oldest known in the world
  • Armenia's Arani village contains the oldest known winery with a large wine press found in a cave, dating to 4000 BC
  • The scale of early wine presses suggests wine was already being traded and distributed beyond individual consumption
" Noah was the first tiller of the soil he planted a vineyard and he drank of the wine and became drunk and lay uncovered in his tent "

Phoenician Innovation: The Amphora and Mass Wine Trade

The Phoenicians revolutionized wine commerce by inventing the amphora around the 6th millennium BC, enabling mass export across the Mediterranean and beyond. This ingenious clay vessel with its narrow neck and pointed base could be sealed and transported safely, launching the first truly international wine trade. Phoenician ships carried thousands of bottles' worth of wine, with one discovered shipwreck containing the equivalent of 20,000 modern wine bottles.

  • The Phoenicians invented the amphora, a two-handled vessel with a pointed base and narrow neck that could be sealed for transport
  • The amphora design proved so effective it remained in use for thousands of years until the 7th century AD
  • A Phoenician shipwreck found off Gaza in 1997 contained 781 amphorae, equivalent to 20,000 wine bottles
  • Phoenician wine trade reached as far as Cadiz (ancient Gardez) in Spain by 800 BC
" Canaan is described as a land where wine is more plentiful than water "

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