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Oct.5,2012A concise timeline of beer history by Prof. Linda Raley, Texas Tech University.
BEER HISTORY
Ancient History
Historians speculate that prehistoric nomads may have made beer from grain & water before learning to make bread.
Beer became ingrained in the culture of civilizations with no significant viticulture.
Noah’s provisions included beer on the Ark.
4300 BC
, Babylonian clay tablets detail recipes for beer.
Beer was a vital part of civilization and the Babylonian, Assyrian, Egyptian, Hebrew, Chinese, and Inca cultures.
Babylonians produced beer in large quantities with around 20 varieties.
Beer at this time was so valued that it was sometimes used to pay workers as part of their daily wages.
Early cultures often drank beer through straws to avoid grain hulls left in the beverage.
Egyptians brewed beer commercially for use by royalty served in gold goblets, medical purposes, and as a necessity to be included in burial provisions for the journey to the hereafter.
Different grains were used in different cultures:
a) Africa used millet, maize and cassava.
b) North America used persimmon although agave was used in Mexico.
c) South America used corn although sweet potatoes were used in Brazil.
d) Japan used rice to make sake.
e) China used wheat to make samshu.
f) Other Asian cultures used sorghum.
g) Russians used rye to make quass or kvass.
h) Egyptians used barley and may have cultivated it strictly for brewing as it made poor bread.
1600 BC
Egyptian texts contain 100 medical prescriptions calling for beer.
If an Egyptian gentleman offered a lady a sip of his beer they were betrothed.
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