What Was Roman Wine Like?

[Chou4555]

wow! I never knew we had so many experts on Roman wine! Fascinating stuff… the next time I see Batiatus slurping fromhis goblet in Spartacus, I’ll pity him more then envy him!

[aruvqan]

@CalMeacham

They weren’t famous for it, and it’s possible they may not have done so at all. As jz’s link states, the Romans boiled down liquids, generally fruit juices, honey, and the like, to make sweet syrups. Since they often used lead or lead-based pots, they could have gotten lead acetate in them. From my reading it’s not at all clear that they were deliberately trying to produce “sugar of lead”, or that they invariably used lead pots.

Given the melting point of lead, you do not boil anything in a lead pot. Gently simmer by setting it next to coals, fine, but on heat? No. Nobody wants a bendy pot with hot liquid in it.

Most cookware in Rome was pottery or bronze, in general. Occasionally tin lined copper and later period used iron. Lead, no. Cold storage vessels found were frequently a high lead pewter, which is quite different. [pipes were made of fairly pure lead, not cooking vessels. Water could end up with a fairly high lead content due to transit time and holding time in pipes though.]

[Chronos]

Specifically, sea water is what I recall hearing, so I may have jumped to conclusions. Or having smoked too much crack and imagined the entire thing.

Is it possible that you’re getting mixed up with references to the “wine-dark sea” in Homer?