Wine:Its History and Heath Benefits

An apple a day keeps the doctor away. But nowadays, a glass of wine does, too.

In recent years, the medical world has done extensive studies to determine the health effects of wine, The interest in wine by researchers, and the number of tests done, demonstrates the recent surge in popularity. And with its popularity over the past twenty years, the beverage has spread around the world. For example. wineries have popped up in such unlikely places as the north of Japan and Sweden. They have also spread throughout New Zealand, Australia, Argentina, and Chile. And because wine has become more and more popular, local cuisine and dining habits have changed. In Ireland, a place where Guinness and whiskey go hand in hand with history and tradition, wine now makes up 20% of all alcohol drunk there. People go to restaurants for wine and dinner instead of pubs for a few pints of beer.

You may be surprised to discover just when wine was first drunk, though. It's a very ancient beverage. Although no one knows exactly when people first began to drink it, wine has at least 8,000 years of history. Archaeologists have found evidence at many Old World sites as proof. No one knows how it was first discovered. Historians believe that early farmers collected wild fruit, which they then turned into alcohol. Wild grapes were probably included in the mix. Domesticated grapes, or grapes that were selected and raised by people, appeared about 5,000 years ago. And from then, wine moved through the ancient civilizations. It became an important part of the history and culture of Mesopotamia, Egypt, Greece, and Rome.