Beer is one of the world’s oldest and most widely consumed alcoholic beverages. It ranks as the third most popular drink globally, trailing only potable water and tea. It is crafted through the brewing and fermentation of starches. These starches are primarily sourced from cereal grains, with malted barley being the most common choice. Wheat, maize (corn), rice, and oats also find their way into the mix. During the brewing process, the fermentation of starch sugars within the wort gives rise to ethanol and carbonation, giving birth to beer’s distinctive character.
Hops are a prevalent addition to modern beer, contributing bitterness, flavor, and natural preservation attributes. However, alternative flavoring agents like gruit, herbs, or fruits may substitute or complement hops. In the commercial brewing arena, natural carbonation is frequently replaced with forced carbonation during processing.
Historical Record
The historical record offers glimpses into humanity’s deep-rooted connection with beer. Ancient texts, such as the Code of Hammurabi, even regulated beer production and the operation of beer establishments. “The Hymn to Ninkasi,” a Mesopotamian ode to the goddess of beer, served both as a prayer and a mnemonic device to preserve beer-making knowledge in cultures with limited literacy.
Beer is conveniently packaged in bottles and cans. It is readily available on tap, particularly in pubs and bars. The brewing industry encompasses powerful multinational corporations. There are also countless smaller producers, ranging from brewpubs to regional breweries. Modern beer typically boasts an alcohol by volume (ABV) content ranging from 4% to 6%, though it can span anywhere from 0.5% to 20%. Some audacious breweries have even crafted brews surpassing 40% ABV.
Beer transcends mere libation. It is an integral part of the cultural fabric of many nations. It finds its place in social traditions like beer festivals. Beer thrives within a vibrant pub culture encompassing activities such as pub crawls, trivia nights, and traditional pub games.
Furthermore, when beer undergoes distillation, the resulting spirit transforms into a variant of whisky, adding another dimension to the world of distilled spirits.
Etymology
In the early iterations of English and Scandinavian languages, the common term for beer was the ancestor of the word “ale” as we know it in Modern English.
The term “beer” as we use it today in English has its origins in Old English “bēor,” which, in turn, traces back to Common Germanic roots. While it is not documented in the East Germanic branch of languages, it has a presence in both West Germanic and North Germanic dialects, such as modern Dutch and German (“bier”) and Old Norse (“bjórr”). The precise etymology of the word has sparked debate over time. Three primary theories have emerged. Beer may have arisen from Proto-Germanic *beuzą, with potential links to Proto-Indo-European *bʰeusóm, meaning ‘brewer’s yeast or beer dregs’. It might be connected to the word “barley”. Or it could have been borrowed from the Latin term “bibere,” meaning ‘to drink.’
In the realms of Old English and Old Norse, the term for beer didn’t refer to a malted alcoholic beverage akin to ale. Instead described a sweet, potent concoction crafted from honey and the juice of various fruits, excluding grapes. This type of beer was far less prevalent than ale. Perhaps it was served in small drinking vessels akin to those occasionally unearthed in early medieval burial items. It more closely resembled beverages like mead or cider. However, in the German language, the meaning of the word “beer” expanded to encompass the sense of the word “ale” even before the earliest written records we have.
As hopped ale from Germany gained popularity in England during the late Middle Ages, the English word “beer” gradually took on the German interpretation. Consequently, in English as well, “beer” evolved during the early modern period to signify hopped, malt-based alcoholic beverages.
History
Rock Mortars Raqefet Cave near Haifa in Israel
Beer boasts a remarkable history dating back millennia. Archaeological findings unearthed traces of a beer-like concoction with a gruel-like consistency, produced around 13,000 years ago by the semi-nomadic Natufians for ritual gatherings at the Raqefet Cave near Haifa in Israel. There’s even evidence of beer production at Göbekli Tepe during the Pre-Pottery Neolithic period (around 8500 BC to 5500 BC). The earliest chemical proof of barley-based beer production dates to approximately 3500–3100 BC at the Godin Tepe site in the Zagros Mountains of western Iran. It’s possible that beer’s history stretches back even further to around 10,000 BC when cereal cultivation began.
Ancient Egypt
Beer finds a place in the written records of ancient Egypt. Some historians speculate that beer played a pivotal role in the emergence of civilizations. In the city of Uruk (modern-day Iraq), nearly 5,000 years ago, laborers received their wages in the form of beer.
References to beer consumption also appear in the Epic of Gilgamesh.
Alulu Beer Recipe
Further afield, the Ebla tablets from 2500 BC in Syria provide evidence of beer production. In China around 7000 BC, a fermented beverage involving rice and fruit was created, although it lacked the sake-like amylolytic fermentation using mold.
During India’s Vedic period, a beer-like drink known as sura was documented. Xenophon noted the production of beer in Armenia during his travels.
Beer Production
Beer production potentially emerged independently in various cultures. They realized that sweet liquids, derived from starch sources, could be fermented into a delightful libation. Bread and beer contributed to prosperity, affording societies the time to develop technologies and build civilizations.
In Europe, Germanic and Celtic tribes had been brewing beer as far back as 3000 BC, albeit on a smaller, domestic scale. These early European brews were far from modern beer and might have featured fruits, honey, various plants, spices, and even narcotic herbs. Notably absent was the inclusion of hops, a later addition mentioned in Europe around 822 AD by a Carolingian Abbot and again in 1067 by abbess Hildegard of Bingen.
Purity Law
The year 1516 marked a significant moment when William IV, Duke of Bavaria, enacted the Reinheitsgebot (purity law). One of the oldest food-quality regulations still in use today. According to this law, the sole permissible ingredients for beer are water, hops, and barley-malt.
The Industrial Revolution witnessed the transition from artisanal to industrial beer production. Domestic brewing gradually diminished in significance by the late 19th century. Innovations like hydrometers and thermometers empowered brewers with greater control and knowledge of the brewing process.
Brown Bottle Introduced
In 1912, the Joseph Schlitz Brewing Company introduced brown bottles. This was a widely adopted practice worldwide to shield beer from harmful light, preserving its quality and stability.
Today, the brewing industry is a global enterprise comprising dominant multinational corporations. There also is a multitude of smaller producers, ranging from brewpubs to regional breweries. In 2006, the world consumed over 133 billion liters of beer. This generated total global revenues exceeding $294.5 billion. China, in 2010, surpassed the United States in beer consumption, reaching 450 million hectoliters (45 billion liters). Only a small fraction was premium draught beer, in contrast to countries like France and Germany.
A widely publicized 2018 study warned of potential volatility in beer availability and pricing due to extreme drought and heat adversely affecting barley production.
A Brewed History
A 7 part series on the history of beer. We start at the beginning and work our way through the brewing, the industry, varieties, culture and more. Read all 7 parts!
Part 1 – A Brewed History – The Beginning (Current Page)
Part 2 – A Brewed History – Brewing
Part 3 – A Brewed History – Brewing Industry
Part 4 – A Brewed History – Varieties
Part 5 – A Brewed History – Measurement
Part 6 – A Brewed History – Serving, Packaging and Storing Beer
Part 7 – A Brewed History – Society and Culture