What if drinking grape juice could make you super healthy for an entire year?

The Meditrinalia: Rome's Grape Juice Health Day!

When ancient Romans believed new wine could heal anything!

Romans drank new wine mixed with old wine believing it would keep them healthy all winter!

Imagine living in ancient Rome around 500 BCE, and your parents telling you that drinking special grape juice could keep you healthy all year long! That's exactly what happened during the Meditrinalia festival, celebrated around October 11-22 each year.

The Romans were SUPER serious about staying healthy, and they believed the goddess Meditrina had magical healing powers. Her name actually comes from the Latin word 'mederi,' which means 'to heal' — just like our word 'medicine' today!

Here's how the festival worked: Romans would taste the brand-new wine from that year's grape harvest for the very first time. But this wasn't just about drinking something yummy. They believed mixing the new wine with old wine created a special healing potion!

As they sipped, Romans would say a special prayer: 'I drink new and old wine; I am healed by new and old medicine.' Pretty cool, right? They thought this magical mixture would protect them from getting sick during the cold winter months ahead.

💡 Our English word 'medicine' comes from the same Latin root as the goddess Meditrina's name — so every time you take medicine, you're using a word that's over 2,500 years old!