A History of the World in Six Glasses begins with advent of beer about eight thousand years ago. When nomadic tribes settled and developed agriculture, they soon learned how to ferment wheat grains in water. The subsequent product was initally enjoyed only by elite families, but soon became available to common families because it was so easy to product. Beer was considered a "coming-of-age" drink, and was associated with life, prosperity, and happiness.
Wine became popular shortly after beer, and became a more elegant drink under the leadership of Ancient Greece. In an ancient myth, it is said that the Greeks only became civilized once they learnt how to make wine. Wine continued to enjoy popularity under the Roman Empire, where it was considered a symbol of elitism. Wine was also used because of its seeming medicinal qualities.
Skipping to the late fifteenth century, Standage speaks of how other types of spirits were important in shaping history, particularly rum. Rum was very common as a drink all the way up to the American Revolution. It was great for sailors, who had limited supplies of water, and was traded with Africans for slaves. When Britain raised prices of sugar and molasses, both things that were used to make rum, the British colonies were one step closer to an American Revolution.
The Chinese were the first civilization to develop tea, but it really hit its prime when the royalty of European countries began to call the drink their own. These countries traded for East Asia for tea and spices used in it - part of the reason that Columbus sailed to find the West Indies.
Coffee was also popular in Western Europe, and probably developed there as well. However, it became especially popular in the United States after the American Revolution. Since tea was seen as something British and associated with their previous mother country, they chose to drink coffee instead. This was also in part because of the tax of tea.
Coca-Cola is the most modern drink, and initially contained cocaine and was used for medicinal purposes. Once it was discovered to taste good as well, it quickly became a pop culture symbol. Coca-Cola is well known with developing the modern depiction of Santa Claus, and with its numerous advertisements almost everywhere. Coke soon became a worldwide beverage, showing the profound influence of the United States on the rest of the world, in the so-called modern "Coca-Colaization".
