Nov 23 2021 23 mins
From Tlmecen through to Bethlehem and the Bekaa Valley, we chart the history of wine production in the Middle East and North Africa. Farrah Berrou talks us through her journey of wine writing for a Western audience and what the future holds for Lebanese wine. We also explore the relationship between french colonialism and wine production, and ideas of nationhood, religion, and politics in Algeria and Palestine.
Farrah is founder of B for Bacchus, a media platform & podcast featuring wine stories from the Fertile Crescent. Farrah is also a contributing editor to The Wine Zine, a print publication about natural wine.
This episode also features commentary from Jamal Rayyis, a Palestinian-American wine writer, as well as Arthur Asseraf, historian of modern North Africa, France and the Mediterranean.