To read the complete article, please go to: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/11/22/archeologists_dig_up_3700_year_old_psychedelic_plonk/
Canaanites,the people of ancient Canaan were far more bibulous than anyone has previously suspected. Boffins have dug up 3,700-year-old wine jugs from an ancient cellar in a large Canaanite city called Tel Kabri, which is not far from the vineyards of modern Israel.
The wine was flavoured with honey, mint, cinnamon bark, juniper berries and even mysterious “psychotropic resins”, which might explain why people in the biblical era spent so much time spouting prophesies and wearing technicolor dreamcoats.
The wine cellar is the oldest ever found in the near east and contained 40 jars of potent, sweet wine. Some fifty litres were stored in the basement, which was found beneath an ancient palace.
“This is a hugely significant discovery. It’s a wine cellar that, to our knowledge, is largely unmatched in age and size,” said Eric Cline, chair of the Department of Classical and Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations of at The George Washington University.
The consistency of the recipe impressed the boffins. It is likely that this was a top-end wine, intended for consumption by people at the very apex of society. “This wasn’t moonshine that someone was brewing in their basement, eyeballing the measurements,” said Andrew Koh, assistant professor of classical studies at Brandeis University, who was also on the dig. “This wine’s recipe was strictly followed in each and every jar.”