Jozef Stalin (left) and Winston Churchill both understood the importance of the occasional drink on the battlefield.
From the moment man discovered the art of fermentation, and later distillation, alcohol has been an important part of human history. The ancient Greeks and Romans left plenty of written sources about their favorite drinks, as well as the brews of the ‘barbarians’ that surrounded them. And archeologists discovered evidence of way older civilizations who made their own booze. In peace but definitely also in war liquor helped to shape the world as we know it. These are some of the alcohol infused stories in history…
Historical Tales and Background Stories:
How alcohol played a key role in warfare around the world
The wine tradition of Georgia, which goes back at least 8000 years
How Napoleon saved the drunks in Amsterdam from drowning
The history of Lewis Redmond, the Robin Hood of moonshiners
The oldest Arab cookbook has recipes for wine and hangover food
Xenophon’s beer experience in Armenia
Mahatma Gandhi killed thousands of Indians by calling for prohibition
How New Zealand was saved from prohibition after World War I
The “All Beer Diet” German Monks invented for the Lent Fast
The bizarre Cold Booze War between Canada and Denmark over Hans Island
Alcohol in the ancient Mayan civilization
Alcohol in the Inca Empire; communicating with gods and spirits through corn beer
How the love for drinking drove the Kievan Rus to Christianity
Beer, wine and drinking gods: the foundation of Ancient Egypt
The witch hunt for ‘ale wives’ made beer brewing a man’s game
Meet the Scythians, excessive drinkers that drank from enemy skulls
The deadly beer tsunami that hit London in 1814
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The history behind Drinks:
Kumis and arkhi, the drinks of Genghis Kahn and Attila the Hun)
Lithuanian farmhouse ale, a national craft beer tradition that outlived Communism
Belgian Trappist beers and the French Revolution
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Folklore and Mythology:
The Aztec myth of the 400 Drunken Rabbit Gods
The history of San Simon, a drunk saint from Guatemala
The legend of the Irish Cluricauns
Silenus, the happy drunk that taught Dionysus how to party
Mbaba Mwana Waresa, the Godess that gave the Zulus beer
The legend of Gambrinus, the King of Beer
Stingy Jack, the mythical drunk who held the first Halloween lantern
The salvation of the town Rothenburg ob der Tauber
Brewers recreate oldest beer after poem for Sumerian Goddess Ninkasi
Aegir, the brewer for the Norse Gods
The Devil gets the Serbian Saint Sava drunk on rakija
Ukranian folktale of Sirka the Dog and the drunken wolf
The Japanese folk tale of the sacred white saké
The Highlander and the Devil
A pulque vendor tricks the Devil in Mexico
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Drunk History (historical events explained in a language drinkers understand):
Europe under Nazi Germany (part 1)
Europe under Nazi Germany (part 2)
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You may also want to see our page on Famous Drunks in History and the U1600 Tour past the oldest bars in Europe.
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