The background of wine is a unique one, dating back over eight thousand years ago to the Eurasian heartland in the regions structured around modern-day Georgia. From there the winemaking method is believed to have spread east and west into Asia and Europe, respectively, with archeological proof in the Balkans dated to about six and a half thousand years ago. Wine was highly important in many cultures, with the peoples of the Mediterranean basin worshipping patron deities of the beverage and the drink playing an essential role in society. In many parts of East Asia, however, wine was not as highly important, except by the infrequent poet, for the unbridled passions linked with its intake went against social decorum. Other parts of Asia, with Muslim sensibilities, forbid it outright.
Wine is generally made from fruits, even though other materials can be fermented and produced into drinks, too. Part of the intriguing history of wine involves its diverse manifestations across the world. In the West, wines are typically made with fruits, especially grapes – indeed, the word itself comes from the Proto-Indoeuropean for “grape.” In Asia, however, wines have more frequently been made from grains like rice and sorghum. Vegetables like potatoes and ginger in addition have been used, and Mongolian nomads are used to fermented horse and goat milk from a very young age!
Purists, nevertheless, generally regard as wine only that which is made from grapes. Barley and vegetable wines, they indicate, are more like beer and spirits. Such wine connoisseurs distinguish between production operations and mere alcohol content. Thus, for them, the word “wine” may be both adjective and noun, used to describe alcoholic content as much as refer to a specific method of production. Incidentally, the legal label of “wine” is governed by actual regulations in the laws of many countries.
