Wine has been produced in Turkey for six thousand years. In fact, the ancient Pre-Hittite word for wine was ‘vino.’ Archaeological records suggest that cultivation of the domesticated grape occurred between 6,000 – 8,000 years ago in Turkey’s Black Sea Region. With the rise of the Roman Empire, wine spread across the globe through trade, conquest and cultural exchange. Istanbul, once the capital of the Roman Empire, fell to the Ottoman Turks 1453 AD. Under the Ottoman reign, wine drinking was banned for most of the subsequent five hundred years. What little wine was produced during this time was made by the small Christian and Jewish populations. By the end of World War I and the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, Turkish wine culture had evaporated. Today, the wine industry has made a resurgence but is not as developed as other European countries in the region.
