What Is Beer ?

« For a quart of Ale is a meal for a King. »

William Shakespeare

Beer for our greatest happiness accompanies humans since the prehistoric times. Its past meets the evolution of human techniques. The use of raw materials is closely linked to the development of agriculture, while brewing methods evolved with scientific discoveries starting from the domestication of fire.

But what is beer and what makes this beverage so popular?

To respond to the assignment we will study the history of beer, then its fabrication process and ingredients and finally we will see its effects on the body.

I. History

The oldest traces of brewing lead us to Sumer 6000 years ago but traces of its key manufacturing cereal crops in Mesopotamia go back more than 10,000 years ago, around 8000 BC. Prehistoric beer needed three basic elements: grain, water and of course a source of heat. The rest is probably due to chance. The story says that the first beer manufacturers were trying to make a soup soup but it was too abundant in grains to be eaten in one meal so they had to let it cool. Part of the grain starch converted into sugar and go contaminated by wild yeast, transforming sugar into alcohol to become the ancestor of the current beer.

If prehistory provides us with archeological evidence that there was beer making, antiquity gives us the first written sources on our precious beverage. The Sumerian were the firsts to tell us about the making of the famous Sikaru, liquid bread. Egyptians were brewers and beer drinkers who loved, like Sumerian, to flavor beer with honey, dates and spices what brings them close to the spirit of today's brewers. Many testimonies give us an overview of the techniques developed by the brewers of that time. The Greeks and Romans also adopted the beer but the drink of the gods was, to them, wine. In China, the beer named tsiou was made of fermented millet. The Chinese seem to have been ahead concerning a technical point of view compared to the brewers of other countries. Beer came to Gaul by first passing through the Iberian Peninsula. The Gauls and the Germans adopted this drink with enthusiasm, and it is from Europe that innovations came during the following centuries.

The middle ages is an important period in the history of beer, refine techniques and hops began to be used as a basic ingredient, under the influence of a religious, Hildegard de Bingen, during the 12th century.

At that time, it is often the monks and nuns who lead developments in many areas of life, particularly in agriculture.

Though it was not until the 15th century and John the Fearless, that hops became mandatory and beer, as we know it was born.

This is from the late 18th century that the adventure of beer and of humanity in general engaged a gear that will change the lives of every day and the perception of the world.

Inventions and discoveries occurred at a high speed: the innovations resulted by a standardization of the taste beer in all countries.

II. Fabrication Process

Making beer is easy, making good beer is hard. To intent to do so, there is a specific fabrication process that needs to be respected.

1) Ingredients

The Bavarian Reinheitsgebot (purity law) of 1516 stated that beer could be made from three ingredients: water, barley and hops. Yeast was added in the 19th century after Louis Pasteur identified as the agent of fermentation. Most of the beers are still made from only these four ingredients:

- Water

Water makes up more than 85 % of the volume of beer. The brewer must check its mineral content in addition to the filter of any sediment, bacteria and harmful products such as chlorine.

- Malt

The cereal is the body of the beer. It is subjected to a harvested malting process which releases enzymes which in turn allow the starch to be converted to simple sugars . In addition this process cooks malt at different times, temperatures and various rates of humidity. We then have malts with different tastes and colors.

Barley is a cereal that is most commonly malted. Wheat, oats, rye and buckwheat are also among the cereals used.

During the conception of a beer, a large portion of slightly colored malt that contains lots of starches and enzymes is used. The specialty malt is then added to color and define the taste of the beer.

Malt is high in protein, which helps the collar (foam) also called lace.

- Hops

Hops are the spices of the beer. It gives bitterness, flavor and aroma depending on the method used. It contributes to the retention of the collar and the shelf life of beer. It can be used in cone, its most fresh form, or in compressed pellet form which is convenient and durable.

- Yeast

Yeast dictates the beer’s caratere. Its provenance is therefore of great importance. It converts simple sugars into alcohol and CO ². By-products are created which give some taste and aroma characteristics of a beer.

Some yeast is responsible for the famous " banana flavor " of Weizen.

To these ingredients we can add the following, less common:

Unmalted grains (such as corn, rice,

...