Wine and War

Wine and war. War has always had an impact on wine in the short-term as well as long-term changes in the industry. Read through out series of articles on wine and war and learn more how wine has been shaped by war over the years!

Paris Burned Its Wine-Tax Gates Days Before the Bastille Fell

The Storming of the Bastille, watercolour by Jean-Pierre Houel, 1789 | Public domain (Wikimedia Commons) By the This Day in Wine History Editorial Team · Researched, fact-checked & verified by the TDIWH Editorial Team. […]

Ken Wytsma2026-07-30T11:02:16+00:00Categories: Wine and War|Tags: FRENCH REVOLUTION, octroi, Paris, wine history, Wine Tax|

For 1,051 Days, Reims Lived Underground in the Champagne Cellars

Reims Cathedral after the German bombardment. Above ground the city was rubble; below it, in the champagne cellars, a whole life carried on. Photograph: U.S. National Archives (NARA), public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. For […]

Ken Wytsma2026-08-19T02:49:03+00:00Categories: Wine and War|

The Body That Defines “Champagne” Was Born Under Nazi Occupation

The Champagne cellars (crayeres) of Ruinart, print by Louis Tauzin | Public domain (Wikimedia Commons) By Ken Wytsma · Researched, fact-checked & verified by the TDIWH Editorial Team. The word “Champagne” is defended in […]

Ken Wytsma2026-07-30T11:09:56+00:00Categories: Wine and War|Tags: champagne, CIVC, French Resistance, wine history, World War II|

Aléria, 1975: The Wine Scandal That Sparked the Corsican Conflict

In August 1975, Corsican nationalists seized a wine cellar over a fraud scandal. The deadly Aléria standoff launched roughly forty years of the Corsican conflict.

Ken Wytsma2026-08-01T03:49:04+00:00Categories: Fraud & Labels, Wine and War|Tags: chaptalization, Corsica, Corsican nationalism, France, Wine Fraud|

The Role of Wine in the American Revolution

John Trumbull, The Declaration of Independence (1818). The signers toasted the occasion with Madeira — the wine Americans drank as an act of defiance against British taxes. Yale University Art Gallery.By the This Day […]

Ken Wytsma2026-08-14T04:08:21+00:00Categories: 1701 CE to 1800 CE, This Day in Wine History | Articles, Wine and War|Tags: American Revolution, Bordeaux, George Washington, Madeira, Thomas Jefferson|

How Wine Almost Compromised the Russian Revolution

The Winter Palace in Petrograd, whose vast imperial wine cellars — among the greatest on Earth — were looted in 1917. Via Wikimedia Commons.By the This Day in Wine History Editorial Team✓ Researched, fact-checked […]

Andre Ferreira2026-08-04T04:32:49+00:00Categories: This Day in Wine History | Articles, Wine and War|Tags: Russia, Russian Revolution, wine|

Blitzed: Wine, the Nazis, and Hermann Goering’s Prized Cellar

The Eagle’s Nest above Berchtesgaden. In 1945, Allied troops found here part of the Nazi hoard of wine looted from France. Via Wikimedia Commons.By the This Day in Wine History Editorial Team✓ Researched, fact-checked […]

Staff Writers2026-08-07T17:03:14+00:00Categories: This Day in Wine History | Articles, Wine and War|Tags: France, Germany, Great Depression History in-depth, United States, World War II|

Rationing of Wine in World War I

French poilus in 1916. To the French soldier, the daily ration of rough red wine — “le pinard” — was almost as vital as his rifle. Via Wikimedia Commons.By the This Day in Wine […]

Staff Writers2026-08-03T21:57:43+00:00Categories: This Day in Wine History | Articles, Wine and War|Tags: Rationing of wine in World War I, wine, World War I|

Wine, Cognac and Football: The Christmas Truce of 1914

German and British soldiers meet in No Man’s Land during the Christmas Truce of 1914 — sharing food, drink, songs and a game of football. Via Wikimedia Commons.By the This Day in Wine History […]

Ken Wytsma2026-08-07T17:06:42+00:00Categories: This Day in Wine History | Articles, Wine and War|Tags: Christmas truce, Warfare, World War I|

1945: The Historic Post-war Harvest

1945: The Historic Post-war Harvest The 1939 grape harvest seemed to be terrible for French wines, yet there was a risk of an invasion of France by Nazi Germany. After the annexation of Austria […]

Andre Ferreira2026-08-15T04:52:20+00:00Categories: This Day in Wine History | Articles, Wine and War|Tags: Bordeaux, French Wine, Harvest, World War 2|

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