Vin Mariani: From Health Tonic to Moral Panic - TalkingDrugs

Vin Mariani: From Health Tonic to Moral Panic - TalkingDrugs

Instead of a wine that makes you sleepy, imagine one that could keep you up and talking all night. Imagine again that this wine, far from being bad for you, was in fact a health tonic with innumerable and immediate benefits. These were claims of the producers of Vin Mariani, a French drink that, in the late 19th century, sat on the desks of popes, writers, and even royalty. What was its secret and why, since it was so popular, have we not all he…