Wine from Neolithic Times to the 21St Century
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WINE From Neolithic Times Wine / Viticulture / History WINE The story of wine, one of the foundations of Western Civilization, is the story of religion, medicine, science, war, discovery and dream. The essential historical background and the key developments in the From history of wine through the ages are outlined in this compact, engag- ing, easy-to-read and well-illustrated text, with lists of top vintages. For thousands of years wine mixed with water was the safe drink. It was a key ingredient of medications. The antiseptic properties of the N e o l i t h i c T i m e s alcohol it contains saved lives. Wine was associated with many reli- gious rituals, some of which survive today. The story of wine involves scientists like Hippocrates of Kos, to Zaccharia Razi, Isaac Newton (albeit indirectly), Louis Pasteur, and many others. It also involves colorful people such as Gregory of Tours and Eleanor of Aquitaine. to t h e 2 1 s t C e n t u r y Vines made their way to the Americas with the Conquistadores. the 21st Century Then wines almost disappeared in the late 1800s as Phylloxera spread throughout the world. This scourge was followed by World War I, the Great Depression, Prohibition, and World War II. Today, winemaking has enjoyed a renaissance and many excellent and affordable wines are produced throughout the world. * Stefan K. Estreicher is Paul Whitfield Horn Professor of Physics at Texas Tech University. His fascination with wine, and the history of wine, dates back to a memorable encounter with a bottle of Richebourg 1949 while working toward his doctorate from the University of Zurich, Switzerland. He has been invited to lecture on the topic at scientific meetings in San Francisco and Santa Clara as well as at Texas Tech and Oxford University (UK). Estreicher has pub- Stefan K. Estreicher lished over 150 scientific papers as well as several articles on various aspects of the history of wine. Algora Publishing Stefan K. Estreicher Algora Algora 6.00 x 9.00 .458 6.00 x 9.00 WINE: From Neolithic Times to the 21st Century WINE: From Neolithic Times to the 21st Century Stefan K. Estreicher Algora Publishing New York © 2006 by Algora Publishing. All Rights Reserved www.algora.com No portion of this book (beyond what is permitted by Sections 107 or 108 of the United States Copyright Act of 1976) may be reproduced by any process, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form, or by any means, without the express written permission of the publisher. ISBN-13: 978-0-87586-476-1 (trade paper) ISBN-13: 978-0-87586-477-8 (hard cover) ISBN-13: 978-0-87586-478-5 (ebook) Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data — Estreicher, Stefan K., 1952- Wine: from Neolithic times to the 21st century / Stefan K. Estreicher. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN-13: 978-0-87586-476-1 (trade paper: alk. paper) ISBN-13: 978-0-87586-477-8 (hard cover: alk. paper) ISBN-13: 978-0-87586-478-5 (ebook) 1. Wine and wine making—History. I. Title. TP549.E88 2006 641.2'209—dc22 2006022780 Printed in the United States This book is dedicated to those who are continuously curious about life, and occasionally thirsty. The author (photo: Polly Goode) Like Miguel de Cervantes, Stefan K. Estreicher “drinks wine when there is an occasion, and sometimes when there is no occasion.” Unlike Miguel de Cervantes, he is a professor of Physics at Texas Tech University. TABLE OF CONTENTS FOREWORD 1 CHAPTER 1. IN THE BEGINNING… 3 THE IMPORTANCE OF WINE TO THE ANCIENTS 4 Wine is safe to drink 4 Wine and medicine 6 The gods of wine 7 Wine and trade 9 ARCHEOLOGICAL EVIDENCE OF WINE 10 FIRST LARGE-SCALE EXPANSIONS 14 CHAPTER 2. WINE IN EGYPT, GREECE AND ROME 17 EGYPT 17 GREECE 21 ROME 26 CHAPTER 3. DARK AGES, LIGHT WINES 37 EARLY MIDDLE AGES IN WESTERN EUROPE 37 ARAB CONTRIBUTIONS 46 EMERGENCE OF BURGUNDY AND BORDEAUX 51 Overview 51 Cistercian wines 51 Revival of Bordeaux 53 ONSET OF THE LITTLE ICE AGE 55 OTHER WINE REGIONS 57 THE FIRST GOLDEN AGE OF BURGUNDY 59 CHAPTER 4. FROM THE RENAISSANCE TO WORLD WAR II: EUROPE 63 OVERVIEW 63 THE 1500S: SEEDS OF CHANGE 64 THE 1600S: AN AGE OF “FIRSTS” 67 The first brand-name wine 67 ix Wine: from Neolithic Times to the 21st Century The Dutch 69 Champagne, without the bubble 71 Glass bottles 73 The birth of Ports 74 The first noble-rot wines 76 THE 1700S: REVOLUTIONS 78 Background 78 Romanée-Conti 78 Intentionally sparkling Champagne 80 Grands Crus in Bordeaux 81 Ports 82 THE 1800S TO WORLD WAR II: INNOVATIONS AND DISASTERS 83 Overview 83 Science and technology 85 Nature-made disasters 86 Champagne 91 Classifications in Bordeaux 93 Italy, Spain, and Portugal 98 CHAPTER 5. FROM THE RENAISSANCE TO WORLD WAR II: THE NEW WORLDS 101 CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICA 102 UNITED STATES 107 The East 107 The Southwest 111 TEMPERANCE AND PROHIBITION 113 SOUTH AFRICA 116 AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND 119 CHAPTER 6. MODERN WINES 123 FRANCE 124 Bordeaux 124 Burgundy and Chablis 125 Champagne 127 Alsace 127 Côtes du Rhône 128 Jura 128 ITALY 129 SPAIN 131 PORTUGAL 134 GERMANY 137 OTHER WESTERN EUROPEAN COUNTRIES 139 Greece 139 Austria 139 Switzerland 139 EASTERN EUROPE 140 Hungary 140 x Table of Contents Romania 141 The Czech Republic 141 NORTH AMERICA 142 United States 142 Canada 145 CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICA 146 Argentina 146 Chile 147 Brazil and Uruguay 148 Mexico 148 SOUTH AFRICA 149 AUSTRALIA 150 NEW ZEALAND 151 CHAPTER 7. FINAL THOUGHTS 153 APPENDIX A: CUVÉES DES HOSPICES DE BEAUNE 161 APPENDIX B: FRENCH CLASSIFICATIONS OF BORDEAUX WINES 165 THE CLASSIFICATION OF 1855 165 RED WINES 165 Premiers Crus 165 Deuxiemes Crus 165 Troisiemes Crus 166 Quatriemes Crus 166 Cinquiemes Crus 166 WHITE WINES 166 Grand Premier Cru 166 Premiers Crus 166 Deuxiemes Crus 167 THE CLASSIFICATION OF 1953 167 RED GRAVES 167 THE CLASSIFICATION OF 1959 167 WHITE GRAVES 167 THE CLASSIFICATION OF 1955: SAINT EMILION (REVISED MAY 23, 1986) 167 Premiers Grand Crus Classes A 167 Premiers Grand Crus Classes B 167 Grands Crus Classes 167 APPENDIX C: MODERN CLASSIFICATIONS 169 THE CLASSIFICATION OF 1997: RED BORDEAUX 169 THE CLASSIFICATION OF 1996: CALIFORNIA CABERNET SAUVIGNON 171 APPENDIX D: GRAND CRUS OF ALSACE, BURGUNDY, CHABLIS 173 GRAND CRUS OF ALSACE 173 Bas-Rhin 173 xi Wine: from Neolithic Times to the 21st Century Haut-Rhin 173 GRAND CRUS OF BURGUNDY 174 Cotes de Beaune 174 Cotes de Nuits 174 GRAND CRUS OF CHABLIS 174 BIBLIOGRAPHY 175 INDEX 179 xii FOREWORD Wine is one of the foundations of Western civilization. The story of wine is that of religion, medicine, science, war, discovery, and dream. It is foolish to believe that this story can be told in a few pages, or even in several thousands. After all, entire books have been written on short periods of history, specific wine regions, or even single vineyards. Yet I was tempted to try and, once again, found the strength to yield to temptation. My goal is to give an overview of the history of wine through the ages: from its humble beginnings in Neolithic times through Antiquity and the Middle Ages; then its expansion from Europe to the rest of the world, the major scien- tific and technical discoveries, the man- and nature-made catastrophes around the turn of the 19th century, and the slow emergence of modern wines after World War II. Of course, many things happened in the past 7,000 years, and this book must remain short, informative, and easy to read. One big challenge is to pick what to include and what to leave out. Forgive me for skipping a few cen- turies here and there. Another challenge is to select the level of detail. There are longer and more complete books on the subject, in particular Hugh Johnson’s Vintage1 and Rod Phillips’ A Short History of Wine2. Relatively recent archeological finds have shed considerable light on the origin and early history of wine. Patrick McGovern’s Ancient Wine3 is fascinating for those curious about early wines and winemaking. He also co-edited a book4 discussing numerous technical issues. I have incorporated information from these and many other sources in my book. 1. H. Johnson, Vintage (Simon and Schuster, New York, 1989). 2. R. Phillips, A Short History of Wine (Harper Collins, New York, 2000). 3. P.E. McGovern, Ancient Wine (Princeton University Press, Princeton 2003). 4. The Origins and Ancient History of Wine, ed. P.E. McGovern, S.J. Fleming, S.H. Katz, (Gordon & Breach, Amsterdam, 2000). 1 Wine: from Neolithic Times to the 21st Century I also benefited from more direct help. Jim Brink, professor of history at Texas Tech, had the pleasure of correcting the historical aspects of the book. Edward George, professor in the Classical Languages Department, searched the writings of Latin authors such as Julius Caesar, looking for “wine” and “wooden barrels.” Kristin Reid downloaded satellite data and drew the maps. Thanks are also due to many generous friends. Michel Baly, in Alsace, opened his impressive wine cellar, shared some of his wines with me, and then guided me to some spec- tacular vineyards and wineries in the region. Luca Bellinelli never missed an opportunity to take me to small wineries in northern Italy. Amanda Chavira patiently proofread the manuscript. Many other friends encouraged and helped me over the years, and I owe thanks to all.