Introduction: The discussion of the original motivation for the application of resin to wine is mostly around the two angles of antioxidant and anti-leakage: wine is overexposed to oxygen will be oxidized to form vinegar, pungent sour taste will reduce the pleasure of the wine, resulting in a decline in the flavor quality of the wine, oxygen here, both from the outlet part into the container, may also be caused by the soil container clay particles to give the container the internal structure of the void, at the same time, the existence of this internal structure gap also caused the wine leakage in the storage process. In addition to its antioxidant and anti-leakage functions, the medicinal and aromatic properties of resins are documented in ancient wine-related literature.
Before the millennium BC, the two river basins and the pan-Mediterranean region of the trees are rich in resin, pine, fir, frankincense tree, myrrh tree, berberries, etc. are good sources of resin, in people's understanding of wine through time accumulation and greatly improved, the application of resin in wine making and storage has been well known. In this section, we interpret the use of resins in wine in the light of what the ancient Roman scholar Pliny the Elder wrote in his book Natural History:
Natural History Volume XIV Article 124: Aromatic wines are made by sprinkling rosin on pure wines at the time of initial fermentation, and after up to 9 days, this wine has a rosin flavor, and some have a strong aroma. Some experts believe that a more effective way is to use unrefined pine, which can make mellow wines come alive.
This method of adding rosin to the grape juice has long been popular in the eastern Mediterranean and has formed its own unique style. In today's Greece, the brewing process of Retsina, which embodies the unique spicy aroma of rosin, is still preserved. The picture shows the resin required to collect the resin needed to brew pine resin.
Article 134 of Book XIV of Natural History: Space must be left between two cans to avoid any possibility that wines flowing with each other will affect the quality of the wine, as wine is prone to spoilage. Moreover, the shape of the wine tank is also very important, and the wide-mouth wine tank with a large belly is not suitable. Soon after sirius emerged, the cans were coated with rosin, washed with seawater or salty water, then sprinkled with ash, covered with bushes or clay, dry cleaned, and finally fumigated with myrrh.
This passage can be considered as a preparation for improving the wine storage environment before the arrival of summer, although people at that time lacked understanding of microorganisms, but they could already feel the impact of some invisible substances on wine: there was a certain space between the wine tanks to avoid spoiled wine spilled into the good wine, and this process would introduce some miscellaneous bacteria (such as acetate bacteria) into the good wine. The use of wide-mouth wine tanks increases the chance of contact between wine and oxygen, so it is discarded.
Sirius (Sirius), in the ancient summer hot season is very bright, the sudden increase in temperature in this season is easy to cause the breeding of bacteria, so it is not conducive to the preservation of wine, spreading rosin, salt water cleaning, dry cleaning and myrrh fumigation, are carried out for the purpose of cleaning the inside of the wine tank, can effectively kill the existing bacteria, and inhibit the growth of potential bacteria.
Article 135 of Book XIV of Natural History: Wine should never be poured into the nozzle of the jar, and the space above the surface of the wine should be covered with a layer of raisins, or boiled grape residue with saffron or calamus. Sprinkle the same mixture on top of the jar plus frankincense or brutium rosin.
The nozzle and mouth of the can are important parts of the wine tank to communicate with the air environment outside the container, and it is also the place where the oxidation of stored wine begins. The wine and the nozzle maintain a difference in space and a mixture including resin is added, the main purpose of which is to form an antioxidant barrier that protects the wine's excellent flavor.
The above three points are derived from the ancient Roman scholar Pliny the Elder's book "Natural History", in which rosin, myrrh and frankincense are important resins, abundant in North Africa. Although The Natural History was written later than the Roman era of the Two Rivers Civilization, ancient documentary studies have shown that the agricultural knowledge recorded in the Natural History was inherited from the fierce enemies of the ancient Romans: the Carthaginians of North Africa, whose ancestors were the Phoenicians from the western edge of the Two Rivers Valley.
The three resins listed in this chapter are rosin, frankincense, and myrrh from left to right, and pine, frankincense, and myrrh from left to right below. These resins were used not only in wine in ancient times, but also as important spices, medicines and preservatives.
Since the Phoenicians played an important role as the seeders of civilization in the Mediterranean during the two rivers civilization, although we cannot be completely sure whether the source of resin application in wine is the two river basins, we can be sure that the two rivers basin has been used in wine for a long time than in ancient Roman times, and more stories will be told in later chapters.
Knowledge Links
With the advancement of science and technology, the antioxidant and anti-permeability functions of resins in wine storage were gradually replaced by other products: in the ancient Roman Empire, due to the vast territory of the empire, the region located in today's western Europe was not rich in gum, so the locals began to look for the ideal wood to make wine storage containers. Although the wood also has gaps in the physical structure, the good water holding properties of the wood effectively prevent the leakage of wine, in addition, some natural antioxidants rich in wood are also a protective barrier for wine, which can reduce the oxidation of external oxygen to wine. Early barrel materials were not the oak commonly used today, but the storage of wine in wooden barrels began to appear around this time, and its popularity was directly related to the lack of resin in the local area.
Pictured here are ancient Roman-era wine barrels found in Reims, France
Today, guided by modern science and technology, resin as an additive is still applied to wine, the most typical example is gum arabic: it is added to the wine can increase the viscosity of the wine, relative to the flow of water molecules, the viscosity of macromolecular polysaccharides in gum arabic can make the formation of barriers within the wine matrix, slow down the movement of active chemicals in the wine, thereby hindering the formation of macromolecular substances, and effectively prevent the formation of sediments and flocculants in the wine, and enhance the colloidal stability of the wine. In addition, for wines with high acidity, the addition of gum arabic can also delay the contact between the acid substances in the wine and the human sour taste buds, and its effect is manifested in the immediate acidity of the wine when tasting the wine, and the immediate acidity of the wine is significantly weakened.
Gum arabic (aka Senegalese tea)
I am Li Siyu, Doctor of Wine Science, Postdoctoral Fellow, China Agricultural University, Visiting Scholar of the University of Salamanca, Spain, who was trapped overseas in 2020 due to the new crown epidemic, in order to make this rare life full and beautiful, I wrote the general history of world wine civilization behind closed doors.
The general history of world wine civilization is generally updated every weekend, and in the next few years, I will enjoy the changes in wine technology, science and humanities with you, welcome to comment, welcome to pay attention to the WeChat public account [terroir history painting] ~