The History of Beer

Beer was the first alcoholic beverage known to civilization, however, who drank the first beer is unknown. Historians theorize that humankind's fondness for beer and other alcoholic beverages was a factor in our evolution away from a society of nomadic hunters and gathers into an agrarian society that would settle down to grow crops (and apparently drink). The first product humans made from grain & water before learning to make bread was beer.

Favorite Recipes

Nearly every culture developed their own version of beer using different grains. Africans used millet, maize and cassava. The Chinese used wheat. The Japanese used rice. The Egyptians used barley. However, hops the main ingredient in moden beer beverages was not used in brewing until 1000 AD.
The modern era of brewing beer could not begin until the invention of commercial refrigeration, methods of automatic bottling, and pasteurization.

Beer Traditions - The Honeymoon

4,000 years ago in Babylon, it was an accepted practice that for a month after the wedding, the bride's father would supply his son-in-law with all the mead or beer he could drink. In ancient Babylon, the calendar was lunar-based - based on the cycle of the moon. The month following any wedding was called the "honey month" which evolved into "honeymoon". Mead is a honey beer and what better way to celebrate a honeymoon.

Beer in a Can

On January 24, 1935, the first canned beer, "Krueger Cream Ale," was sold by the Kruger Brewing Company of Richmond, VA.

This article was brought to you by http://inventors.about.com/od/bstartinventions/a/beer.htm By Mary Bellis