Can we *please* STOP saying that #ancient #wine was far more alcoholic than modern wine, and that’s why it was watered down

A #thread why... 1/

While variable, most modern dry wines typically have an alcohol concentration of 10-14%.

Ancient wines were made with wild yeast - blowing around the vineyard & found on the skins of grapes. 2/

Many wild yeast strains are unable to continue converting to alcohol above 6%. Other yeasts then kick in.

The most favourable type of yeast to produce reliable & consistently good alcohol/wine is Saccharomyces cerevisiae - what most modern wines are inoculated with. 3/

But even with a favourable yeast (far from guaranteed in antiquity), good external & internal conditions, & some luck, it is difficult to achieve much more than 15% alcohol.
At best, you might be able to push it up to 18%, with specialist knowledge, care & pre-treated grapes. 4/

To achieve such high alcohol % (requiring high sugar concentration), natural acidity would be low and pH very high. This wine would taste horrible and spoil easily - particularly without modern stabilisers. 5/

There is reference to Falernian wine lighting with a flame - but this would require 40% alcohol. Unachievable through fermentation and requiring distillation.
Even if Falernian was comparatively alcoholic, it was exclusive to the elite & certainly not a typical ancient wine. 6/

The majority of wine in antiquity likely varied in alcoholic concentration, from what we would consider a strong dry wine to something much weaker for the lower classes. But it should NOT be considered *far more* alcoholic than what we drink today. 7/

Yes, there were ambitions to avoid drunkenness, as told by historical figures and literature - but we must remember this is a picture painted mostly by the elite, not the majority of society.
Equally, there’s evidence for excess & little care for sobriety across social strata.8/

This makes the question of watering down wine more interesting - tied closely to a combination of cultural tradition/influence, sanitisation, nutrition (calories), & fashionable taste/preference. 9/

I don’t doubt that notions of “barbarianism” and civility played a role, particularly in certain circles - but I think we over-emphasise this & should place more importance on other factors applicable to the majority of society. 10/10