Both Jewish and Christian rituals today utilize wine. And the Bible is full of stories that mention wine's prominence. Perhaps the first one is about Noah planting a vineyard after the flood (Gen 9:20). Anthropologists will tell you that nomads do not plant vineyards. This was a sign of a settled civilization. Who can forget the biblical imagery of Israelite spies returning from their scouting mission to Canaan? Out of all the things they could have brought back to show the land's fertility, they carried a huge cluster of grapes back to the camp (Num 13:23-24).

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