They never had mechanical refrigeration (but there were wine presses everywhere). There would be only a short window of a few weeks out of the year in which they could have straight up non-fermented 'grape juice'. Fermentation sets in within hours of the grapes being pressed. Fermentation was a method of food and drink preservation.
"One Christian man daringly wrote to inform me what a ridiculous fool I am for teaching that Jesus did not create or drink alcoholic wine.
He did not care what the Bible had to say. His argument was based totally on natural things. He informed me that there was no way to keep grape juice from fermenting in Jesus' day. He put me on notice that the Last Supper occurred in the winter which could only mean there was no fresh grape juice available, thus limiting Jesus and His disciples to the use of fermented grape juice only.
He very pridefully and mockingly asked me if I believed that Jesus had "a magical refrigerator" where He could have stored unfermented grape juice for use during the Last Supper.
What fools we make of ourselves when we speak without knowledge. This is why the Apostle James advised that we be quick to hear and slow to speak. (James 1:19)
In Jesus' day the Hebrew people were extremely adept at preserving fruits, vegetables and grains for long periods of time without fermentation occurring. The art of preserving produce and grains was well-known to the Hebrews of Jesus' day and well before His day.
In his book, "On Agriculture and Trees," Columella, a very popular agriculturalist in the 1st Century A.D., reveals many unique methods for preserving all types of produce and grains, including unfermented grape juice. One method was by boiling fruit juices down to half or one-third of their original volume, replacing the liquid with water and adding a small amount of vinegar and salt to keep away worms and fermentation for an extended period.
Grapes and other fruits were also submerged in watered-down honey, because honey has a natural tendency to stop and/or prevent corruption from spreading. This would keep the grapes from decaying, thereby extending what we today would call their "shelf-life."
This not only made the uncorrupted grapes available for many months after the harvest, but also made the squeezing of fresh grape juice possible over the same length of time. Today we use a similar method to prevent corruption and fermentation when we can fruits in heavy sugar syrup.
Another method of preservation was to alternately layer fresh fruits with sawdust in a barrel and seal the barrel with clay.
Fruits were also individually, or in bunches, dipped repeatedly in a mixture of watery clay, similar to candle-making, to preserve their freshness for long periods of time. The fruit was then hung in a cool, dry place and when needed, plunged in water for the clay around the fruit to dissolve.
Yet another method of preserving grapes for future use was as follows. Lengthy vines full of grapes were cut and the cut end was sealed with pitch. The branches were then placed in alternating layers of dried chaff in clay-sealed vessels. Green grapes stored in this manner would last for up to one full year. Some would use alternating layers of barley bran and grapes also sealed in clay vessels.
Different methods were used in different areas of the world, all based upon local conditions.
Many other historical writings confirm these and a multiplicity of other methods of fruit, vegetable and grain preservation without fermentation over extended periods of time.
Pliney the Elder, a greatly trusted Roman scholar and naturalist, includes many methods of fruit, vegetable and grain preservation without fermentation as does the Talmud.
Josephus, the very popular Hebrew historian, tells us that the fruits and grains found by the Romans in the Fortress of Masada were still fresh although they had been in storage for some years. "When the Romans got possession of those fruits that were left, they found them not corrupted all that while."
All of the above trusted historical writers and many others clearly reveal the art of preserving all types of produce over extended periods of time was not only well-known to the Jews of Jesus' day, but by many other cultures for centuries before Him.
Therefore, in response to my comical but uneducated critic, I say, "No, I do not believe Jesus had a magical refrigerator. But I do believe in the produce and grain preservation technologies of His day. All of these technologies would have made freshly squeezed, unfermented grape juice available any season of the year, including at the Last Supper."
