It is narrated from Mahmood bin Labeed Ansari (may Allah be pleased with him) that when Umar bin Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) came to Syria, the people of Syria complained to him about the plague and the bad climate, and said: Nothing except wine can keep us healthy. So Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said to them: "You should drink honey." They said: We do not recover with honey. One man among them said: If we take wine to such a state that its intoxication is gone, what do you say? He replied: "That is fine." Then they cooked it over the fire until two-thirds of it evaporated and one-third remained, and they brought it to Umar (may Allah be pleased with him). Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) dipped his finger in it, then raised his hand, and it stuck like a string. He said: "This is talaa (thick syrup), it is like the talaa used for camels." Then Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) ordered them to drink it, so Ubadah bin Samit (may Allah be pleased with him) said to him: By Allah! You have made it lawful. Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) replied: "Never! By Allah! O Allah! That which You have made unlawful, I do not make lawful for them, and that which You have made lawful for them, I do not make unlawful for them."
Hadith Referenceمسند الإمام الشافعي / كتاب الأشربة والأنبذة والأوعية / 1546
Hadith Takhrijاسناده صحیح اخرجه البيهقي: 8 /300 ـ وفي المعرفة السنن والآثار له (5213) - ومالك في الموطا، الأشربه، باب جامع تحريم الخمر۔