Roman ways with wine...

[Virilis]

Howdy rangers!

Can someone please provide basic info about the use of wine by the romans. I mean how they diluted it, sweetened it, made perhaps warm drinks out of it etc. Did they drink it (diluted) after hard labour etc.? Is this book perhaps a good introduction to the subject?:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Vinum-Story-Roma...roman+wine

Thanks in advance!

[Youngster]

Book 1 of Apicius has several wine recipes. You can get it at lacus curtius: http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Ro...us/1*.html

in particular I would note:

"Fine Spiced Wine
Conditum Paradoxum

The composition of this excellent spiced wine is as follows. Into a copper bowl put 6 sextarii1 of honey and 2 sextarii of wine; heat on a slow fire, constantly stirring the mixture with a whip. At the boiling point add a dash of cold wine, retire from stove and skim. Repeat this twice or three times, let it rest till the next day, and skim again. Then add 4 ounces of crushed pepper,2 3 scruples of mastich, a drachm each of nard or laurel leaves and saffron, 5 drachms of roasted date stones crushed and previously soaked in wine to soften them. When this is properly done add 18 sextarii of light wine. To clarify it perfectly, add crushed charcoal3 twice or as often as necessary which will draw the residue together and carefully strain or filter through the charcoal."

"Roman Vermouth
Absinthium Romanum1

Roman vermouth or Absinth is made thus: according to the recipe of Camerinum2 you need wormwood from Santo3 for Roman vermouth or, as a substitute, wormwood from the Pontus4 cleaned and crushed, 1 Theban ounce5 of it, 6 scruples of mastich, 3 each of nard leaves, costmary6 and saffron and 18 quarts of any kind of mild wine. Filter cold. Charcoal is not required because of the bitterness. "

[Youngster]

here's some more recipes from the same source:

Honey Refresher for Travelers
Conditum Melizonium Viatorium

The wayfarer's honey refresher (so called because it gives endurance and strength to pedestrians)2 with which travelers are refreshed by the wayside is made in this manner: flavor honey with ground pepper and skim. In the moment of serving put honey in a cup, as much as is desired to obtain the right degree of sweetness, and mix with spiced wine not more than a needed quantity; p46also add some wine to the spiced honey to facilitate its flow and the mixing.

Rose Wine
Rosatum

Make rose wine in this manner: rose petals, the lower white part removed, sewed into a linen bag and immersed in wine for seven days. Thereupon add a sack of new petals which allow to draw for another seven days. Again remove the old petals and replace them by fresh ones for another week p47then strain the wine through the colander. Before serving, add honey sweetening to taste. Take care that only the best petals free from dew be used for soaking.


Violet Wine
Violatiumº

In a similar way as above like the rose wine violet wine is made of fresh violets, and tempered with honey, as directed.

Rose Wine without roses
Rosatum sine Rosa

Rose wine without roses is made in this fashion: a palm leaf basket full of fresh citrus leaves is immersed in the vat of new wine before fermentation has set in. After forty days retire the leaves, and, as occasion arises, sweeten the wine with honey, and pass it up for rose wine.

[Virilis]

Thank you, very interesting and informative!