Harvest (wine) of wine, winemakers would use the sugar and acid levels of the grape as a guide in determining ripeness. Early winemakers tasted the grapes to gauge ripeness. Modern winemakers use a refractometer to measure high sugar levels and °Brix or titration tests (using an indicator such as phenolphthalein) to determine the titratable acidity within the grape. In recent times there has been more of an emphasis on the "physiological" ripeness of the grape, usually in the form of tannins and other phenolics. Currently, tasting is the only way to measure tannin ripeness, which can take experience and skill to do
Wine in religious communities of the Middle East drinks such as "tilā’" and "naqir" as inebriating and thus forbade the pressing of grapes and the drinking of pressed grape juice. As the early Muslim armies conquered more territory, though, increasing populations of non-Muslims were brought under Muslim rule, necessitating the development of a body of law regulating the interaction between Muslims and non-Muslim dhimmis. A document used for guiding Muslim pacts with dhimmi communities known as the "Shuruṭ ‘Umar" forbids dhimmis from selling forbidden products – pork, wine, carrion – to Muslims. The Egyptian Jewish communities of the medieval period used wine sacramentally in feasts, prayers, and at