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I am trying to find out when in history grape juice or non-alcoholic wine was first used?

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I'm sure the "Ancients" drank grape juice. It was probably a delicious treat when it was in season when the grapes were ripe in the Fall. I love drinking the juice from my wine grapes, it's very good! But, without filtration or sulfites, there was no way to store grape juice without spontaneous fermentation, even after boiling it. Eventually something would turn it into wine or vinegar. So, you always ended up with wine whether they wanted it or not. So, yes, they probably drank grape juice, but only for a short period after harvest time.

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wiki says:

The method of pasteurizing grape juice to halt the fermentation has been attributed to an American physician and dentist, Thomas Bramwell Welch in 1869. A strong supporter of the temperance movement, he produced a non-alcoholic wine to be used for church services in his hometown of Vineland, New Jersey.

Of course, simple grape juice, that you'll get by just pressing grapes, is probably used much much longer.

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  • Yes, thank you for that. I too read about Welch, however, I was interested in whether the ancients had wine with alcohol and also grape juice (non alcoholic wine).
    – Piggy Malone
    Jan 9, 2020 at 13:07
  • @EnglishProtutor Aren’t you required to have grape juice before making wine? It’s the first step.
    – Eric S
    Jan 13, 2020 at 12:00
  • Hi Eric. Yes, I presume so. However, my question really is: did the ancients drink grape juice or only wine (ie with alcohol)?
    – Piggy Malone
    Jan 15, 2020 at 9:00

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