4 minute read
THE LEGENDARY ORIGINS
THE LEGENDARY ORIGINS
The cultivation and production of vines are known in Mesopotamia
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The origin of wine is so old to the point of fading into legends.
Some of them trace the origin of the vine tree back to Adam and Eve, claiming that the forbidden fruit of the earthly Paradise was grape, not apple. Other stories tell of how Noah saved the Vine from the Great Flood, reserving it a safe spot on his Ark for the sake of humanity. From the creation of the world we move towards human history. Rumors say that the Vine tree originated in India and then spread to Asia first and then the Mediterranean basin. The cultivation of the vine and the practice of winemaking were known in Mesopotamia, in the so called, “fertile crescent”. This was a geographical area which became known as the mother of cereals and laboratory for the discovery of the fermentative processes from which bread, cheese and drinks as wine descend.
The role of Wine and its diverse types were known since ancient times, and this euphoric drink was consumed with great pleasure by the people at the top of their societies. In ancient Egypt, for example, the practice of winemaking was so consolidated that in the funeral equipment of Pharaoh Tutankhamun (1339 BC) amphorae containing wine were included with the area of origin, the vintage and the producer some contained wine aged for several years. Isn’t this an example of the Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) that dates back to the dawn of time?
Bacchus, God of conviviality
Moving to the Mediterranean Sea, where Italy enjoys its central position, the role of wines was so central that a deity was dedicated to wine: Bacchus, God of conviviality. It can be said that the divine drink of the God contributed to the birth of the Roman Empire: the ancestors of modern Italians were in fact aware of the bactericidal properties of wine and as usual they brought it to their countryside as a drink of the legionaries.
Plutarch reports how Julius Caesar distributed wine to his soldiers to eradicate a disease that was decimating the army. Bacco adolescente - Caravaggio
Still Life with Hare, Duck, Loaf of Bread, Cheese and Flasks of Wine
Jean-Baptiste Oudry
Moving back to wine, it is in Renaissance to find a literature that gives wine back its role as a protagonist of western culture and returns to praise its qualities. In the seventeenth century the art of coopers was refined, the bottles became cheaper and the cork stoppers spread. All this contributed to the conservation and transport of the wine favoring its trade.
The nineteenth century saw the consolidation of the distinctive and extraordinary position that wine occupied in western civilization.
The contribution of illustrious scholars who work for the creation of wines of ever better quality and goodness begins to join the peasant tradition. Wine becomes the subject of scientific research. In 1866 L. Pasteur in his writing Etudes sur le vin, studies upon Wine, states that:
The twentieth century sees wine through the novelty of chemistry, introduced the previous century, and all the modifications it has entailed.
In this era there was a constant reorganization of companies with the attempt to generate new markets and expand the possibilities of earning, but also to reduce costs. Only during the sevenStill Life with Hare, Duck, Loaf of Bread, Cheese and Flasks of Wine - ties the situation improved considerably, thanks above all Jean-Baptiste Oudry to a changed relationship between man, nature and the rural world. In the following decades research and continuous experimentations led to today Wine’s philosophy, that is a very strong and ever more winning link: quality, territory, innovation. Nowadays this philosophy is transmitted through quality, which is perceived all over the world, and Vietnam is no different! In fact there is a considerable amount of wine exported from Italy. In the last two decades there has been an annual growth rate of 25% in Vietnamese imports of wine from Italy.
To this day, there were more than 150 Italian wine brands in Vietnam!
Poster of "Sideways" (Jonathan Nossiter's "Mondovino")
Such history became a source of pride and a perfect example of the Made in Italy excellence. In fact, it became such a symbol that good Italian wine gained a starring role even in the shining world of cinema! Winemakers and film lovers toast together watching Lawrence Kasdan’s French Kiss, with Meg Ryan and Kevin Kline, Jonathan Nossiter’s Mondovino, Sideways, a fantastic comedy that won an Oscar for the screenplay, with Paul Giamatti, or A good year by Ridley Scott, with Russell Crowe and Marion Cotillard. And what about the unforgettable James Bond with his predilection for Bollinger champagne, or the quintessential villain Hannibal Lecter who cannot resist a good Tuscan Chianti?
