Imperial Wine: How the British Empire Made Wine's New World

Imperial Wine explores the colonial roots of the global wine industry, arguing that settler colonialism and imperialism were central to viticulture in the British colonies. Wineries were established after colonization, but British drinkers were apathetic towards colonial wine until after the First World War. This trend, combined with social and cultural shifts after the Second World War, laid the foundation for the New World revolution in the 1980s, making Britain a confirmed country of wine-drinkers and a massive market for New World wines.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 342 pages
Publication date: 23 April 2024
Publisher: University of California Press

Imperial Wine is a captivating and accessible exploration of the colonial roots of the global wine industry. Historian Jennifer Regan-Lefebvre skillfully blends the genres of global commodity history and imperial history, presenting compelling new research in a captivating narrative. This groundbreaking work argues that the modern global wine industry is a direct result of settler colonialism and that imperialism played a pivotal, rather than incidental, role in viticulture within the British colonies. Wineries were established in South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand soon after colonization, serving as part of a civilizing mission to cultivate orderly vines laden with fruit. Economically and culturally, nineteenth-century settler winemakers prioritized the British market, but British drinkers initially showed little interest in colonial wines. However, the tide began to turn after the First World War, as colonial wines were marketed as affordable and patriotic, resonating with middle- and working-class British drinkers. This trend, coupled with social and cultural changes following the Second World War, laid the foundation for the New World revolution in the 1980s, transforming Britain into a major wine-drinking nation and a significant market for New World wines. While New World producers may have gained critical acclaim in the late twentieth century, Imperial Wine reveals that they had been cultivating a British market for inexpensive colonial wines for centuries. This book is a must-read for anyone with a passion for the intricate narratives behind the world of wine.

Weight: 464g
Dimension: 152 x 229 x 24 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780520402164