Beer has deep, deep roots. The stuff predates so many things, from actual religious figures and way-back eras like the Middle Kingdom of Egypt to fellow fermented beverages like wine. How beer is made has changed quite a bit over that long arc, but the amazing fact remains: it’s one of the oldest beverages on earth.
Undoubtedly, the first versions of beer tasted very different than what we’re accustomed to today. That’s pretty much the case with most things we eat and drink (ancient Roman wine, anyone?). Regardless, humans were interested in fermenting grain several thousands of years ago and that’s pretty cool to mull over.
When was beer invented?
The first evidence of beer was found in the Middle East and is believed to go all the way back to 7,000 BCE. More like a mead made with some rice, the beer-like drink was made in what is now China as well. Beer made with barley occurred later, at least where it didn’t grow naturally — but still a long, long time ago — in Iran around 3500 BCE. Egypt too seems to have played a big role in beer’s formative era, incorporating it into the daily diet and even presenting it as an offering to the dead, according to Jeff Alworth’s outstanding read The Beer Bible.
For the record, that makes beer more than 9,000 years old, which is astonishing. And there have been additional findings suggesting that perhaps it goes back even farther than that. It was first concocted during essentially the Neolithic Revolution or so-called New Stone Age period, when humans began transitioning from hunting and gathering to farming. What was the evidence? Often, researchers would discover signs of malting, like buildings used specifically to process grain.
It’s a fascinating scenario as it seems to prove that beer and human civilization practically coexisted from the get-go. Beer, whether as a celebratory drink, protein source, form of currency, or something else, has long been by our side. Commercially, beer is only about 1,000 years old. Eventually, there was industrialization and trade which made beer more of a product by the 19th Century. The came the craft beer movement, which took off in the 1980s and 90s in the U.S. and beyond, ushering in scores of new styles.
What are the oldest styles of beer?
There are several beer styles that came about early on, some of which are enjoying something of a renaissance today. Among them, Sahti, a farmhouse ale originating in Finland. Fairly strong and yeast-driven, this beer was made before hops entered the scene and is enjoying a bit of a comeback these days. Gruit is another, which counted on herbs instead of hops for flavoring and dates back to the 10th Century in countries like Belgium and Germany.
A couple of others come out of Belgium, including the lively and sour lambic beer style as well as the Flanders red ale. Keep in mind, folks were brewing long before these styles emerged, but the lack of records makes defining the styles a bit harder. It’s widely accepted that in ancient brewing areas like Egypt and Iraq, brewers were making a number of styles (the Sumerians reportedly creating at least 20). Their customs involved deities like Ninkasi, the goddess of beer, and the drink even showed up in a lot of their early renderings and writings.
The very first genuine American beer style? That would be steam beer, created in the Bay Area in the 1800s with the impetus being the creation of a lager without the aid of refrigeration.
How has the brewing process changed?
Making beer has changed dramatically, with the most significant changes happening in very recent history. Interestingly, we’re returning to a lot of these foundational styles, out of both curiosity and as a chance to revive and potentially improve them with new methods (plus, we’re still tiring of machine-made stuff and seeking out hand-made wares). The major traits of modern brewing are the result of a number of new technologies and tools.
After industrialization and things like refrigeration, making beer became much more predictable. Brewers had much more control, not just in terms of temperature, but regulating fermentations with commercial yeast strains and ultimately bottling or canning a beer that was stable. The Scientific Revolution and set the stage for a better understanding of the chemistry of beer and labs and microbiology became all the more important in shepherding the beer-making process from start to finish, while maintaining consistent quality.
Larger beer brands especially rely on automation throughout most of the process. Bottling lines, computers, and tanks look after the beer, at least at a lot of the largest factories. But the process continues to change, especially in craft, with new hop hybrids being developed in ag schools across the land, brewers playing with new adjuncts, or seeking out native grain sources or yeast strains. It’s an exciting time, as the traditionalism is very much bring honored, reinvigorated even, while the newest tools allow brewers to elevate the industry at large to new heights.
