Armenia, not Bordeaux, is the home of wine

By: Chris Mercer - 12 January 2011 18:24

Let's hear it for Armenia, home of the oldest known winery.

Bordeaux and Dom Perignon may be more familiar names in the world of wine these days, but they have Armenians to thank for all that, it seems. As I'm sure you've heard, researchers have found evidence of a 6,000-year-old winemaking suite in a cave in Armenia. It is thought to be the oldest known evidence of winemaking.

On learning this, I will admit, my first port of call was Google Maps. Be honest, did you know where this country was before the start of the week? And I'm talking exact location here. Knowing that it used to form the USSR doesn't count.

So, the Old World was once the New World, with a bit of Greek wine production sandwiched inbetween. Have we always been having the same conversations? Did Armenian merchants return from Europe with tales about upstarts having a crack at wine production? Of course, they wouldn't have been Armenian because Armenia didn't technically exist, but you get the gist.

Maybe some years after we manage to properly screw up the world's climate, some future explorer will confirm the existence of once-upon-a-time winemaking tools in the Medoc.