From Whence Did Your Beer Cometh?

How much thought have you given the matter of where that cold brew came from originally? Whether you drink it from a bottle, can or your favorite mug, it is a mystery of sorts as to it origin. Whether it was created, discovered or invented is your own choice of description, but what time in history is credited with this much loved beverage is anyone’s guess.

It is believed by some that beer goes back 12,000 years ago, about the time cereal agriculture was developed.  This was the same time when agrarian civilizations began to see tribes settle in. They would grow crops of staples such as barley, maize, rice and wheat for food. Somehow, the fermentation process was discovered and thus brewing beer started. Anthropologists argue the ravenous thirst for hooch that these early civilizations had was a contributing factor to the Neolithic Revolution. As such, new agricultural technologies were inspired.

Maybe It Came From China?

Nonetheless, it is a concoction of fruit, hone and rice that the Chinese created 9,000 years ago that is known to be the first alcoholic beverage. However it is the Middle East that is credited with creating the first barley beer. History would indicate that people were imbibing an alcoholic brew earlier, but beer’s production is credited to Ancient Mesopotamia’s Sumerians just 5,000 years ago.

Before There Were 99 Bottles On The Wall

Ceramic vessels, similar to what we know as a beer mug today have been unearthed by Archeologists that had the sticky residue of beer dating from 3400 B.C. And least we not forget “Hymn to Ninkasi” from 1800 B.C. which describes an ancient brew that was loved by all and made by a female priestesses, the Sumerian goddess of beer. The Sumerian’s saw the sudsy drink as a nutrient that was much safer than the water of those days.

While the Babylonian Empire consumed its fair share of beer, it is the Egyptians that were known for their love of the beverage. The sweet brew was often the pay workers received for their tolling on the Nile River. For the Egyptians, beer was an everyday staple for all ages and all levels of society.

As we kickback to chill on a Friday evening and The Game of Thornes, let us appreciate the accidental discover of our favorite beverage! Had it not been for their accidental findings, we may be sipping on water instead.


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From Whence Did Your Beer Cometh?