5 ½ Moments when Alcohol Shaped the World

A historical podcast series about the impact of alcohol on human societies and relationships. Written and presented by Prof Phil Withington and Dr Nick Groat. Produced by Julia Letts and funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council.

Graphic depicting drinking vessels flying out of a cauldron looking object, with the text '5 ½ Moments when Alcohol Shaped the World'

Over six episodes, Phil and Nick talk with leading experts about the role of alcohol at key moments in distant and more recent history. These moments are big! Ranging from the establishment of the first human communities 80,000 years ago, to the rise of western capitalism and European globalization, to the emergence of big business and craft values, the podcast explores how alcohol has helped to shape the world.

Listen to all the episodes on your preferred platform now!

Spotify

Sheffield Player

YouTube

Episode 1 – Joining up and Settling down

When and why did humans start consuming alcohol? With the help of archaeologists and archaeobotanists, Dr Nick Groat finds out when humans first started experimenting with alcoholic substances and the consequences of doing so.

Guests Prof Martin Jones, Prof Li Liu, Dr Catherine Longford and Prof Tania Valamoti. Duration: 33 mins

Episode 2 – Wine and the Rise of Mediterranean World

Dr Nick Groat hears how wine was central in the everyday lives of Greeks and Romans and learns how it transformed from being the common currency of the Mediterranean world to one of the drivers of Roman imperialism.

Guests Dr Jane Rempel, Professor Mary Beard and Dr Emlyn Dodd. Duration: 26 mins 

Episode 3 – Hops and the Origins of Western Capitalism

Professor Phil Withington returns to medieval Europe to find out about the impact of hops on commercial brewing, the European beer trade, and the drinking habits of ordinary people.

Guests Professor Richard Unger, Dr Mark Hailwood and Dr Susan Flavin. Duration 26 mins.   

Episode 4 – Spirits and Global Encounters

Professor Phil Withington discusses how alcohol in general and spirits in particular shaped European encounters with the peoples of Africa, the Caribbean and the Americas. He also hears how elite views of indigenous drinking were not so very different to caricatures of working-class consumption closer to home.

Guests Dr Lila O’Leary , Dr Deborah Toner and Dr Angela McShane. Duration 27 mins

Episode 5 - Big Business and Bio-States

Professor Phil Withington learns how the mass-production of beer and spirits was closely connected to industrialisation and the rise of big business, popular political movements like Temperance, and the emergence of what is sometimes called the 'bio-state'.

Guests Pete Brown, Professor Virginia Berridge, Pete Evans and Dr David Beckingham. Duration 31 mins

Episode 6 – Half a Moment?

Professor Phil Withington and Dr Nick Groat reflect on the last 60 years in the history of alcohol. They discuss technical innovation, life-style choices, ‘healthy’ drinking and the Craft Alcohol Movement and wonder what kind of alcoholic moment we’re living in.

Guests Cynthia King, Pete Brown, Professor Stephen Charters and Professor Alex Mold. Duration 28 mins.


Prof Phil Withington

Dr Nick Groat

Julia Letts

Arts and Humanities Research Council