9 May 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

From Prehistoric Georgia ‘World’s oldest wine”

For many years in a row, wine has been a popular alcoholic beverage consumed worldwide. While we associate many things we know and love about wine drinking with European wines, especially French and Italian wines, winemaking began further away from Europe.

When humans started gathering grapes on purpose, winemaking got its two possible places of origin. Winemaking can be traced back thousands of years to ancient societies in China and the Middle East.

But Georgia seems to be the oldest in this regard. Because the old wine remains in Georgia are dated to 5980 BC. This result should not be surprising for a country claiming to have more than 500 grape varieties.

The country, which straddles the fertile valleys of the south Caucasus Mountains between Europe and the Middle East, may have been home to the first humans to conquer the common grape.

The base of a Neolithic jar recovered from a Neolithic site in Georgia. Researchers found wine residue on pottery shards at two Georgian sites going back to 6,000 B.C. Photo: Judyta Olszewski
The base of a Neolithic jar recovered from a Neolithic site in Georgia. Researchers found wine residue on pottery shards at two Georgian sites going back to 6,000 B.C. Photo: Judyta Olszewski

In 2017, researchers found wine residue on pottery shards from two archaeological sites south of the Georgian capital, Tbilisi, in Georgia dating back to 6,000 BC. The findings are the earliest evidence so far of wine made from the Eurasian grape, which is used in nearly all wine produced worldwide.

Patrick McGovern, a molecular archaeologist from the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, the findings push back the previous date for the oldest evidence of winemaking by about 600 to 1,000 years, which was previously identified in Iran. But it does not dethrone China as the location of the earliest known fermented beverage, which Dr. McGovern dated to 7,000 B.C.

Some of the Neolithic jars bore decorations of grapes
Some of the Neolithic jars bore decorations of grapes

That drink, however, was most likely a cocktail consisting of rice, honey, hawthorn fruit, and wild grapes, unlike this most recent finding, which was pure grape wine. That’s why Georgian wine is one step ahead of China’s cocktail fermentation.

Telltale chemical signs of wine were discovered in eight jars, the oldest one dating from about 5,980 BC, the pottery jars were discovered in two Neolithic villages, called Gadachrili Gora and Shulaveris Gora, about 50km (30 miles) south of Tbilisi.

It is very interesting that large jars similar to these big jars called Qvevri are still used in winemaking in Georgia.

Georgian qvevri wines Photo: National Wine Agency, Georgia
Georgian qvevri wines Photo: National Wine Agency, Georgia

These early Georgians discovered grape juice could be turned into wine by burying it underground for the winter. Some of the Qvevris they were buried in could remain underground for up to 50 years.

The very large-capacity jars, some of the earliest pottery made in the Near East, probably served as combination fermentation, aging, and serving vessels. They are the most numerous pottery type at many sites comprising the so-called “Shulaveri-Shomutepe Culture” of the Neolithic period, which extends into western Azerbaijan and northern Armenia. The discovery of early sixth millennium BC grape wine in this region is crucial to the later history of wine in Europe and the rest of the world.

Wine continued to be important to the Georgians, who incorporated it into art and sculpture, with grape designs and evidence of wine-drinking paraphernalia found at ruins and burial sites.

Although the Qvevri were useful, the problem of storage and transportation must have come to the fore with the spread of Wine from the Middle East to other regions. Large earthenware jars were incredibly heavy, so a more practical vessel, called amphora, was invented.

 The finds were published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.171472811

Cover photo: Eleqvino

Related Articles

Some interesting facts regarding its use the Galata Tower in Istanbul

10 July 2021

10 July 2021

The Galata Tower is one of Istanbul’s most recognizable landmarks, and its bright lights can be seen from all across...

A birthplace of complex musical instruments “Iran”

9 January 2022

9 January 2022

Music is a form of art, which derives from the Greek word meaning “art of the Muses.” While it is...

“Dholavira,” the settlement with the world’s oldest signboard

16 August 2021

16 August 2021

Dholavira, also known as Kotda (which means “big fort”), is one of the islands in Kutch’s vast desert. The city...

Khirbet Midras pyramid and  Archaeological Site in Israel

28 November 2022

28 November 2022

Khirbet Midras (Arabic) or Horvat Midras (Hebrew) is one of several antiquities sites located within the Adullam Grove National Park,...

Famous Celtic hero bust of the Czech Republic “The head of Mšecké Žehrovice”

5 May 2022

5 May 2022

Located in the Czech Republic, the Mšecké Žehrovice’s head makes an appealing piece with its delightful curling mustaches- “perhaps the...

The Earliest Evidence of a Domesticated Dog in the Arabian Peninsula

9 April 2021

9 April 2021

Dogs have been the best friend of humans since ancient times. Although it is not known exactly when dogs were...

The Kyrgyz epic ‘Manas’ manuscripts were included in the UNESCO Memory of the World

10 June 2023

10 June 2023

Manuscripts of the Kyrgyz epic “Manas” by narrator Sagymbay Orozbakov have been inscribed on the UNESCO Memory of the World...

Beehives of Saudi Arabia’s Thought to be Over 1,000 Years Old

20 July 2024

20 July 2024

Located in the majestic Sarawat Mountain range in western Saudi Arabia, the ancient beehives in the Maysan Governorate constitute a...

Istanbul’s Iron Church of Unique Beauty

1 November 2021

1 November 2021

The Bulgarian Church of St. Stephens was constructed like a cross-shaped Basilica. St. Stephen Church is also known as The...

New Dead Sea Scrolls in The Horror Cave

16 March 2021

16 March 2021

On Tuesday, Israeli archaeologists revealed dozens of recently discovered fragments of Bible text, the Dead Sea Scrolls, which were based...

World’s Oldest Murder

14 February 2021

14 February 2021

Researchers found a mass grave in a cave in Spain, now known as Sima de los Huesos, or the Pit...

1,000-year-old Chicken Egg Found in Israel

9 June 2021

9 June 2021

Archaeologists discover almost fully intact but nearly empty egg and three rare Islamic-period bone dolls in excavation of settlement dating...

The Most Important Works of Achaemenid Persian Metalwork “Oxus Treasure”

21 May 2021

21 May 2021

The Oxus Treasure is a collection of 180 precious metal objects unearthed on the north bank of the Oxus River...

The 1000-year Curse of the Croatian King Zvonimir

26 September 2023

26 September 2023

Croatia is a fascinating country that continually rises up people’s must-visit lists thanks to its sparkling Adriatic coastline, 1,244 islands,...

World’s Oldest Dress “Tarkhan Dress”

24 April 2021

24 April 2021

Life, nutrition, shelter, and dressing are the essential trio… We know that the first humans made clothing products with animal...