Distillation in Antiquity

So, lets say that some aspring Greek scientist stumbles upon some distillation techniques and builds a still and the Greco-Roman world begins developing liquor. What might the impacts include? There's two many avenues of progress I see inherent in this scenario:

- An earlier understanding of various chemicals, pursuant to the ability to distill various compounds.

- More importantly, in the short term (in my opinion), is the economic benefit of liquor. Now, all edible crops can be refined into high value alcoholic beverages. Consider that most grain could not be exported very far by road, due to the low value and high volume of the goods (prices of any given quantity of grain doubled every 50 miles by road). Now, all the farmers have the opportunity to produce a much greater profit, as the crop itself is now more valuable and, more importantly, it is in a much more condensed package; something that can be exported much further economically.
 

amphibulous

Banned
Distillation is a very expensive process - lots of copper tubing, and big inputs of cereal crops/grapes relative to the output. These societies weren't good at making copper tubing, and they had very limited food reserves even in good years, so I think you're looking at a small luxury market. Which could have been served by freeze distillation anyway (freeze wine, throwaway ice.) So I don't think that this quite works, although it is a very thoughtful idea.
 
Maybe it was the case already if by Antiquity you accept Late Antiquity, the '"alternative' history era/new paradigm era of dark age ;) the arabs discovered it.... not sure when. May fit the upper parameter of Late Antiquity, who are 4th century to X something, if I am right.

;)
 
Anne Wilson makes a good case for distillation being known in antiquity. HOwever, just as with steam pressure, there is a large distance separating a basic understanding of the process from an industrially useful application, which may have come about in late antiquity or the early middfle ages. Distilled alcohol is not scientifically described until the second millennium AD, but "burning water" is around earlier. Seems nobody thought of drinking it, though.
 

amphibulous

Banned
Anne Wilson makes a good case for distillation being known in antiquity. HOwever, just as with steam pressure, there is a large distance separating a basic understanding of the process from an industrially useful application, which may have come about in late antiquity or the early middfle ages. Distilled alcohol is not scientifically described until the second millennium AD, but "burning water" is around earlier. Seems nobody thought of drinking it, though.

More likely, people tried and got seriously ill or died. People die drinking home distilled booze today - even with cheap copper tubing it's easy to make a mistake and get methanol in there. Freeze distillation is much safer.
 
More likely, people tried and got seriously ill or died. People die drinking home distilled booze today - even with cheap copper tubing it's easy to make a mistake and get methanol in there. Freeze distillation is much safer.

Freeze distillation has lots of problems, which is why its not commonly done today; it also concentrates ethanol and methanol.

Of course, in all fairness, the Greeks and Romans would probably attempt to build stills with lead tubing... not a good idea.
 
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