Dionysos was the Greek god of wine and revelry and wine was frequently referred to in the works of Homer and Aesop.
Viticulture and wine production spread from Egypt to Europe, first to Greece and then to Italy.
The earliest evidence of Greek wine has been dated to 6,500 years ago.
Greek wine can be found in locations as diverse as France, Egypt the area around the Black Sea and in the Danube region.
Like the wine of most primitive peoples, Greek wine did not contain alcohol as its sole intoxicant but was ordinarily a mixture of various inebriants.
Since the art of distillation was not known in Europe until the middle ages, the alcoholic content of Greek wine could not exceed about fourteen percent.
Greek wines, so lovingly tended by their growers and makers, were much appreciated by the Romans. Later on the rich Italians of the renaissance had Greek wines in their cellars.
By the time of Greek Independence in 1821, however, there wasn’t much of a wine industry, with most wine made for personal consumption. It was introduced to the world in the 1960s, when Greeks began producing wine commercially.
Greek wine was widely known and exported throughout the Mediterranean basin, and amphorae with Greek styling and art have been found throughout the area.
History of Greek Wines
