"The Influence of Wine on Society" explores the rich and multifaceted history of wine and its profound impact on diverse spheres of human life. From its role in ancient rituals and modern celebrations to its influence on economics and culture, this book details how wine has been a symbol of luxury, sophistication, and community throughout the centuries. With an in-depth look at its role in health, politics, and technology, this work invites the reader on an exciting journey through the history and culture of wine, revealing how a simple beverage can have such a broad and lasting impact on society.

Wine is becoming increasingly popular in the Anglophone world and there are many books available which describe how and where it is made. However, none address the fundamental questions of different structures of production and how the consumer relates to the product – this book is the first to do just that. Wine and Society: the cultural and social context of wine production and consumption looks at the relationship between wine production and marketing, focussing in consumer behaviour and cultural attitudes. Divided into four parts, it examines the context of wine production, the wine consumer and the social context of wine, discussing the following themes: * That the core of wine production and consumption is shaped by historical, geographical and cultural factors. * Wine production – European and new world looking at the different kinds of producer and how the varying background of each shapes their perspective on what they produce * Terroir and appellations: why demarcation and sense of place became important, how they are used to achieve marketing differentiation, and the 'benefits’ (or otherwise) to the customer. * The contemporary wine consumer and lifestyle factors – looking at wine clubs, tourism, education, culture and literature * The politics and economics of wine – from supporting rural industries in France to protecting customers from deception and health risks. Suitable for third year and post-graduate students of hospitality, wine (both in production and marketing), wine tourism, gastronomy and related courses, it encourages students to think critically about the issues raised by using real life case studies and examples from around the world, also including press releases and marketing campaigns.

The link between culture and wine reaches back into the earliest history of humanity. The Routledge Handbook of Wine and Culture brings together a newly comprehensive, interdisciplinary overview of contemporary research and thinking on how wine fits into the cultural frameworks of production, intermediation and consumption. Bringing together many leading researchers engaged in studying these phenomena, it explores the different ways in which wine is constructed as a social artefact and how its representation and use acquire symbolic meaning. Wine can be analysed in different ways by varying disciplines involved in exploring wine and culture (anthropology, economics and business, geography, history and sociology, and as text). The Handbook uses these as lenses to consider how producers, intermediaries and consumers use and create cultural significance. Specifically, the work addresses the following: how wine relates to place, belief systems and accompanying rituals; how it may be used as a marker of the identity and mechanisms of civilising processes (often in conjunction with food and the arts); how its framing intersects with science and nature; the ideologies and power relations which arise around all these activities; and the relation of this to wine markets and public institutions. This is essential reading for researchers and students in education for the wine industry and in the humanities and social sciences engaged in understanding patterns of human ingenuity and interaction, such as sociology, anthropology, economics, health, geography, business, tourism, cultural studies, food studies and history.

David L. Thurmond’s From Vines to Wines in Classical Rome is the first general handbook on winemaking in Rome in over 100 years. In this work, Thurmond surveys the biology of the vine, the protohistory, history, viticulture, winemaking, distribution and modes of consumption of wine in classical Rome. He uses a close reading of the relevant Latin texts along with a careful survey of relevant archaeology and comparative practices from modern viticulture and oenology to elucidate this essential element of Roman culture.

This collection of essays comprises a number of case studies from key wine-growing regions and countries around the world. Contributors focus on the development of the wine business and its overall importance and impact in terms of the regional and domestic economy and the international economy

This collection of essays by leading scholars explores the cultural, social and historical issues which inform the production and consumption of wine. It covers the latest ethnography, theoretical and ethnohistorical research on wine throughout the globe.--

The purchase and consumption of wine, whether in hospitality environments or domestic settings, has huge anthropological significance underpinned by a discourse of wine appreciation. It can be seen as a multi-sensory and symbolically status-rich activity framed by historical, social, cultural and ethical discourses. This innovative book offers a critical study of wine from social and cultural perspectives. The field of wine studies spans the spectrum of cultural and technical issues concerning the place of wine in society from viticulture, vinification, labelling, regulation, marketing, purchasing, storage and its final consumption. It combines social history and contemporary questions including the notion of terroir, the nature of protected wine designations, the pricing of wine and the different motivations for buying and consuming wine. It considers wine as a beverage, as an aesthetic exercise and as a marker of status, as well as health implications and legal controls. The title offers a timely contribution into the significance of wine and the role of knowledge, both of which have conceptual and managerial implications in terms of marketing, promotion, consumption and distribution. By offering a holistic and innovative understanding of wine and its consumption, it is a must-read for students and scholars in the fields of wine and social science.

Presents a guide to wine that is overflowing with practical advice on thinking about wine, becoming a shrewd wine buyer, and enjoying the wine you drink.

This book provides a new interpretation of the relationship between consumption, drinking culture, memory and cultural identity in an age of rapid political and economic change. Using France as a case-study it explores the construction of a national drinking culture -the myths, symbols and practices surrounding it- and then through a multisited ethnography of wine consumption demonstrates how that culture is in the process of being transformed. Wine drinking culture in France has traditionally been a source of pride for the French and in an age of concerns about the dangers of 'binge-drinking', a major cause of jealousy for the British. Wine drinking and the culture associated with it are, for many, an essential part of what it means to be French, but they are also part of a national construction. Described by some as a national product, or as a 'totem drink', wine and its attendant cultures supposedly characterise Frenchness in much the same way as being born in France, fighting for liberty or speaking French. Yet this traditional picture is now being challenged by economic, social and political forces that have transformed consumption patterns and led to the fragmentation of wine drinking culture. The aim of this book is to provide an original account of the various causes of the long-term decline in alcohol consumption and of the emergence of a new wine drinking culture since the 1970s and to analyse its relationship to national and regional identity.