Wine Consumption
Posted: Tue Apr 10, 2007 6:23 pm
Wine and the absence of moderation has become a topic almost synonymous with Alexander and Macedonia, and partly Greeks for that matter. We have read countless authors, both ancient and modern, which tell of excessive drinking in Alexander's court and Macedonia's steady consumption of wine.
But have any studies actually found (roughly) how much wine, or the quality and alcohol percentage, was drank? The Greeks and surrounding cultures would quite often water down their wine depending on the occasion. What do we know about this practice regarding Alexander and his drinking? Is it possible that the wine that Alexander consumed was usually diluted and it may have only appeared that he drank excessively?
Outbursts have been attributed to his excessive drinking, and some are questionable, but do we know how "good" or potent the wine was? The typical wine today runs anywhere from 8 to 15 percent, usually; and that depends on fermentation, when the grapes were harvested, etc. How much cultivation knowledge did the Macedonians (or Greeks) truely know? In other words, how experienced of oenologists were they?
I'm partly asking this just for fun, sort of to play devil's advocate. But I'm curious where everyone stands on this. What are your thoughts?
But have any studies actually found (roughly) how much wine, or the quality and alcohol percentage, was drank? The Greeks and surrounding cultures would quite often water down their wine depending on the occasion. What do we know about this practice regarding Alexander and his drinking? Is it possible that the wine that Alexander consumed was usually diluted and it may have only appeared that he drank excessively?
Outbursts have been attributed to his excessive drinking, and some are questionable, but do we know how "good" or potent the wine was? The typical wine today runs anywhere from 8 to 15 percent, usually; and that depends on fermentation, when the grapes were harvested, etc. How much cultivation knowledge did the Macedonians (or Greeks) truely know? In other words, how experienced of oenologists were they?
I'm partly asking this just for fun, sort of to play devil's advocate. But I'm curious where everyone stands on this. What are your thoughts?