History of wine

Subject in History

History of wine has come up in 1 episode across 1 podcast in TMT, including The Rest Is History. 2 people have made recorded remarks about it.

What people said

Sandbrook disagreed with Holland's framing of wine history as partnership, arguing it is about competition.
“That's a nice note on which to end. I think it's about competition, frankly,”
The Rest Is History: 666. Wine and the Birth of Civilisation (May 3, 2026) · Listen from 1:11:58
Sandbrook noted that wine drinking in England remained elite, with most English people not drinking wine as late as the 1950s.
“as late as the 1950s most english people never ever drank wine in any given year”
The Rest Is History: 666. Wine and the Birth of Civilisation (May 3, 2026) · Listen from 57:13
Sandbrook argued that wine retained prestige after Rome because it was a marker of sophistication tied to Roman culture.
“Isn't the point that wine then, as now, is a marker of sophistication?”
The Rest Is History: 666. Wine and the Birth of Civilisation (May 3, 2026) · Listen from 24:45
Sandbrook suggested post-Roman barbarians preferred beer partly because it is easier to produce.
“Well, beer is easier to produce. You don't need such a sophisticated system to produce beer”
The Rest Is History: 666. Wine and the Birth of Civilisation (May 3, 2026) · Listen from 23:53

Holland suggested that superpower status can be tracked by a country's investment in Bordeaux, from Britain to America to China.
“Maybe you can kind of track the course of superpower status by the degree to which a country can invest in Bordeaux”
The Rest Is History: 666. Wine and the Birth of Civilisation (May 3, 2026) · Listen from 1:11:01
Holland argued that the Roman Empire was the first properly international wine culture.
“because the Roman Empire constitutes the first properly international wine culture”
The Rest Is History: 666. Wine and the Birth of Civilisation (May 3, 2026) · Listen from 15:58
Holland said there is firm archaeological evidence of wine near Tbilisi dating to around 6000 BC.
“Because there is firm archaeological evidence. And this was found very near Tbilisi”
The Rest Is History: 666. Wine and the Birth of Civilisation (May 3, 2026) · Listen from 10:54

666. Wine and the Birth of Civilisation
The Rest Is History · May 3, 2026 · 1 h 16 min
Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook trace the history of wine through seven key moments, from Neolithic Georgia and Rome to Islam, English bottles, French terroir and the 1976 Judgement of Paris.