Pliny the Elder Was Basically the First Wine Blogger

Long before somm reels and “what I drank this week” carousels,
Pliny the Elder was out here —
writing about grapes by hand, in scrolls, wearing a toga, sipping and scribing like it was divine duty.

And yeah… he cataloged 91 grape types.
No hashtags. No grid. Just ink, intuition, and a whole lot of curiosity.

📖 Who even was this guy?

Pliny was a Roman author, naturalist, and philosopher — think of him as a mashup of scientist, writer, and forever-curious wine nerd.
He lived from 23 to 79 CE and wrote Naturalis Historia — a 37-volume encyclopedia covering everything from astronomy to agriculture.

Volume 14?
All about wine and vines.

He documented which grapes grew where, how they were harvested, how wine was stored, and even gave tasting-style opinions (though, spoiler: not a fan of overly sweet wines).

📚 Comic Recap:
“Writing about grapes… in a scroll?”
“Yes. 91 types. Before your hashtags.”
Pliny: still more detailed than your favorite wine influencer.

Pliny was serious about wine — but not snobby.
He believed wine was both a pleasure and a prescription.
Used for rituals, medicine, and everyday life.

And his words lasted longer than any bottle.
He died during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius — trying to rescue friends while still asking questions about the smoke in the sky.

So the next time you post a bottle to Instagram,
raise your glass to the man who did it first —
on parchment.

🍷 Closing Line:
He didn’t just drink history.
He wrote it — one grape at a time.