Excavations in the Areni-1 cave

According to the source, ancient Armenia was one of the first civilizations to make fermented drinks and produced and drank beer. In the Areni cave in Vayots Dzor, the oldest known winery in the world was found; it is 5500 years old.

One of the earliest written mentions of beer comes from Xenophon (5th century BC). In the Anabasis (Book 4, Chapter 5) he tells how, in a village of ancient Armenia, barley wine was kept in large vessels with barley floating in it, and people drank it through reeds. Beer was usually made from barley, hence its Armenian name, garejur (“barley water”).

The photograph shows an excavation site with the remains of clay vessels buried in the ground. A sign reads “Areni-1”.