Some people like to say that back in the day people were just chugging alcohol all the time. Others like to use the Bible to justify frequent alcohol consumption. But in reality, it seemed to be more of a strategy to prevent illness than to be hedonistic degenerates.
It's true that ancient Greeks and Romans mixed water and wine—but technically they were putting wine into their water more than they were putting water into their wine. Back then, wine was seen as a way to purify and improve the taste of the (often stagnant) water source.
How dilute was the water/wine combo? In Homer's Odyssey, a ratio of 20 parts water to one part wine is mentioned, but other accounts put it closer to three or four parts water to one part wine. There are also reports of adding lemon, spices, resin or even seawater to dilute wine.
Many modern believers like to look at verses in the Bible as promoting alcohol consumption (as we think of it today) despite the contradiction with clear commands against drunkenness and drunkards.
As we see in 1st Timothy, it's proper use is medicinal:
"Stop drinking only water, and use a little wine because of your stomach and your frequent illnesses." [1 Timothy 5:23]
And as we see in Proverbs we read:
"Wisdom has built her house,
She has slaughtered her meat,
She has mixed her wine"
[Proverbs 9:1,2]
She has mixed her wine. There was have wine mixing again. Mixing with what? Water seems to be the likely culprit.
I will add to that a personal story. I knew a man who was a professing Christian and church goer who liked to drink, but was otherwise an outwardly good man (at least to the public). One day he ended his life in a murder-suicide. I was not in the Word at the time and never discussed doctrine with him, but suffice to say his doctrine was likely not very sound.
Do you think that you have discovered something new? I literally learned this in school as a child.
That's great. I already knew how not to be a d-bag in school, but we all learn things at different times.