We dive into the fascinating world of Georgia, the country nestled in the Caucasus mountains, often hailed as the cradle of wine. With evidence of wine-making dating back 8,000 years, we unravel the story behind clay jars known as kvevri, where ancient civilizations crafted wine long before the Roman Empire and Greek philosophers. The significance of this discovery not only highlights Georgia's rich history but also challenges how we understand the evolution of wine culture.
We also discuss the cultural perceptions of wine in ancient times, particularly among the Greeks and Romans, contrasting their practices with those of the Scythians, whom they deemed barbaric. This episode will leave you with a newfound appreciation for the complexities of wine history and the roles different cultures have played in its evolution. Tune in to learn more about the origins of wine and the stories that often go untold.
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Every bottle has a front label.
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That's the story they want you to know.
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The back label is the story they didn't.
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This is the back label.
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A story that gives you the full pour.
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There is a wine sitting in a museum in Georgia.
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Not Georgia the state, Georgia the country.
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Tucked into the Caucasus mountains.
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Sandwiched between Russia and Turkey in the Black Sea.
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A place so old that some historians believe
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it may be the actual cradle of wine itself.
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And what they found there will stop you cold.
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Clay jars called kvevri.
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Buried in the earth the way ancient people
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buried things they wanted to protect.
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The way you'd bury treasure or a secret.
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And when archaeologists pulled them out
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and analyzed the residue still clinging to the inside walls,
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The unmistakable chemical fingerprints
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of fermented grapes.
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Let that land for a second.
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8,000 years ago, before the pyramids,
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before the Roman Empire,
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before anyone had written a single word,
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somebody in the Caucasus mountains
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crushed some grapes,
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sealed them in a clay jar,
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waited and thought,
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yes, this is the thing.
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This is what we do now.
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And we never stopped.
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But here's the twist.
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The Greeks, the Romans,
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the great civilizations we still study,
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still quote, still name our children after,
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Built entire cultures around it.
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Had gods dedicated to it.
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Wrote poetry about it.
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They thought drinking it straight was barbaric.
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Every time, by law, by custom,
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by the kind of social pressure that could end a reputation,
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those famous philosophical drinking parties
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where Socrates and his crowd supposedly
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untangled the great mysteries of human existence,
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they ran on wine that was two parts water,
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sometimes three parts water.
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The wine itself was thick,
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heavily concentrated.
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Drinking it straight?
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That was something the Scythians did.
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The barbarians at the edge of the known world.
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People you absolutely did not want to be compared to
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at a dinner party in Athens.
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So the next time someone hands you a glass of Cabernet
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maybe I should have a glass of water alongside this,
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know that you are, in fact, the civilized one.
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You have simply separated what the ancients kept together.
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Every bottle has a front label.
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That's the story they want you to know.
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The back label is the story they didn't.
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You've just heard the full pour.
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