Countries like India and China had for many centuries before the enlightenment had great mathematicians and technology, but they got stuck at this stage for centuries without making progress. In China I know that the Song Dynasty was the technological and cultural high-point in history. It seems these two countries should have been good candidates for having a revolution but it just never happened, why?
In lieu of a proper historian turning up I'll drum up an explantion from my dusty brain.
I believe it has to do with developing glass. It was European glass that allowed lenses to be made. This led to people reading later into life (glasses), experimentation and observation (microscopes, test tubes, etc) and it's the reason why wine was a bigger deal for us too.
Edit: Source = Probably QI.