The Ocelot 122 - Oxford and Newbury edition | Page 23

Food and Drink

The history of vinegar and wine
By Matt Clark
Well, this is the part of the magazine where your mind
gets blown to pieces every month. Ladies and gentlemen,
sit back, have your fish and chips at the ready, pour
yourself a glass of rosé, listen to UB40, as it’s time to
learn about the history of vinegar and wine (for about
five minutes or so).
Vinegar is a liquid consisting of acetic acid, water,
and other trace chemicals, which may include flavourings.
The acetic acid is produced by the fermentation of
ethanol by acetic acid bacteria. Vinegar is now mainly
used as a cooking ingredient, pickling, or when it’s
smothered across the legendary dish that is ‘fish and
chips’.
It has been made and used by people for thousands
of years, with traces found in Egyptian urns from around
3000 BC. The origin of the word ‘vinegar’ derives from
the early 14th century Old French word ‘vinaigre’ – a
combined word of ‘vin’, French for wine, and ‘aigre’
for sour. Historically, as the most easily available mild
acid, it had a great variety of industrial, medical, and
domestic uses, some of which are still practiced today.
Wine is an alcoholic beverage made from fermented
grapes. Grapes ferment without the addition of sugars,
acids, enzymes, water, or other nutrients, as yeast

consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to
ethanol and carbon dioxide.
Different varieties of grapes and strains of yeasts
produce different styles of wine. These variations result
from the complex interactions between the development
of the grape, the reactions involved in fermentation,
the terroir (the special characteristics imparted by
geography, geology, climate and plant genetics), and
the production process.
Wine has been produced for thousands of years.
The earliest known evidence of wine found comes
from Georgia, where 8000-year old wine jars were
found. Traces of wine have also been found in Iran
with 7000-year-old wine jars and in Armenia, and in
the 6100-year old Areni-1 winery, the earliest known
winery. Wine had reached the Balkans by 4500 BC and
was consumed and celebrated in ancient Greece, Thrace
and Rome. Throughout history, wine has been consumed
for its intoxicating effects, which are evident at normal
serving sizes.
So that’s the history of vinegar and wine people.
Remember, a wise man once said a glass a day keeps
the doctor away. Or so I was told. (I meant wine, of
course. A glass of vinegar would just be unbearable to
drink!)

www.theocelot.co.uk 23
Ocelot 122 Ox.indd 23

25/07/2016 21:36