Once Upon a Wine Grape in Afghanistan | S8E3

Glass in Session® Winecast

Wine is mentioned in many historical accounts in Afghanistan, as are the lush vineyards, orchards, and gardens. This is not the first thing many of us think of when we think of this country.

This episode started as a curious "poking around" effort into unearthing whatever wine and spirits history Afghanistan had to offer. It resulted in a story with many loose ends that somehow always led back to the humble vine ... with some drunken Mughals along the way.

Resources from this episode:

Books:

Islam and Tibet: Interactions along the Musk Routes, Akasoy, A., Burnett, C., & Yoeli-Tlalim, R. (2016)

Koh-I-Noor: The history of the world’s most infamous diamond, Anand, A., Dalrymple, W., (2017) [Audible Version, 2017]

Return of a King: The battle for Afghanistan, Dalyrmple, W. (2013) [Audible Version, 2021]

The Silk Roads, Frankopan, P., (2015) [Audible Version, 2021]

The Snow Leopard Project: And other adventures in warzone conservation, Dehgan, A. (2019) [Audible Version, 2019]

Papers:

Colloquium Journal/Agricultural Sciences: Gardening of Afghanistan, Maykhan, H., Troshkin, L.P., Kravchenko, R.V., Hilmand, M., Wafa, S. (2020) http://www.colloquium-journal.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/colloquium-journal-1769-chast-2.pdf#page=26

Grapes Production in Afghanistan, Khasrow, A. (January 2016) https://www.researchgate.net/publication/289999498_Grapes_production_in_Afghanistan/link/569429ba08ae820ff072b7fe/download

Transregional Intoxications: Wine in Buddhist Gandhara and Kafiristan, Klimburg, M. (2016), from Borders: Itineraries on the edges of Iran, Pellò, S., pp. 271 - 302, Edizioni Ca’ Foscari (2016) https://www.academia.edu/27604861/Borders_Itineraries_on_the_Edges_of_Iran

Websites:

Scroll.in: From the Vedic age to the Mughal and the Raj - The colorful history of alcohol consumption in India, Pande, M. (22 May 2017) https://scroll.in/article/834765/from-the-vedic-age-to-the-mughals-and-the-raj-the-colourful-history-of-alcohol-consumption-in-india

Atlas Obscura: The Ancient Method That Keeps Afghanistan's Grapes Fresh All Winter, Glinski, S. (25 March 2021) https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/how-did-people-store-fruit-before-fridges

Atlas Obuscura: The Conqueror Who Longed for Melons, Hay, M. (15 November 2017) https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/babur-mughlai-food-india

Der Wein: Weinbau in Afghanistan - Der Weinkennerin, Hamm, W. (5 September 2009) https://web.archive.org/web/20151208012526/http://www.weinkennerin.de/weinlaender/afghanistan/weinbau-in-afghanistan.html

The Economist: Wine and Tulips in Kabul, (18 December 2010) https://www.economist.com/christmas-specials/2010/12/16/wine-and-tulips-in-kabul

Express: Taliban takes over Norwegian Embassy destroying wine bottles and children’s books, Hawker, L. (8 September 2021) https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/1488409/Taliban-news-Norwegian-Embassy-wine-bottles-books-destroyed-Afghanistan

Farm Progress: US Troops get Lessons on Afghanistan's Grape Industry, Letizia, N. (7 June 2012) https://www.farmprogress.com/grapes/us-troops-get-lessons-afghanistan-s-grape-industry

Military Wikia: Alcohol in Afghanistan https://military.wikia.org/wiki/Alcohol_in_Afghanistan

Moscow-Pullman Daily News: Giving the Army the Lowdown on Grapes, Geranios, N. (11 June 2012) https://dnews.com/local/giving-the-army-the-lowdown-on-grapes/article_fa01a00e-5163-55e8-b8fd-67462b3a938a.html

Population Of [last accessed 5 October 2021] https://www.populationof.net/ University of Washington: Memoirs of Babur, Waugh, D. (1999) https://depts.washington.edu/silkroad/texts/babur/babur1.html

UW Madison: Catching up with ... Michelle Moyer, Hagenow, B., (12 Ocober 2012) https://grow.calsdev.cals.wisc.edu/deprecated/agriculture/catch-up-with-michelle-moyer

Wein.Plus: Afghanistan (23 June 2021) https://glossary.wein.plus/afghanistan

World Health Organization: Substance Abuse - Afghanistan profile (2018) https://www.who.int/substance_abuse/publications/global_alcohol_report/profiles/afg.pdf

Wikipedia: Alcohol in Afghanistan https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcohol_in_Afghanistan

Wine Economist: Wines, Vines, War, Peace and Troops in Afghanistan, Veseth, M. (4 July 2012) https://wineeconomist.com/2012/07/04/wines-vines-war-peace-and-troops-in-afghanistan/

Podcasts:

Glass in Session® Winecast: S3E4: Wine from Dried Grapes (2020) https://glassinsession.libsyn.com/s3e4-wine-from-dried-grapes

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