While the history of commercial brewing can be traced back to the
Sumerians and Egyptians, the origins of beer making itself are as old
as the Agricultural Revolution. Some ten thousand years ago, when
mankind first learned to domesticate plants and animals, the process for
making bread and fermenting bread in water went hand in hand. Almost
every culture in the world, since the dawn of civilization, has developed
some kind of fermented drink.
In the late Middle Ages, when Europeans began making longer sea
voyages, brewing became even more important. The fermentation
process proved a reliable method of purifying and making palatable even
the most unappealing water. Plus, beer would keep on long voyages.
The Pilgrims on the Mayflower dropped anchor in Massachusetts
Bay because they ran low on beer, unwilling to sail further without
replenishing their stock.
The brews that English settlers drank were different than today’s
commercially available beers. While beer was available at public
houses, many people also brewed their own beer at home. Early
colonial legislation regulated the quality and price of beer available
to the public. With so many different people brewing beer in colonial
America, frequently adding their own locally available ingredients such
as pumpkins, pears, or prunes, the number of different varieties of brew
available then was no doubt remarkable!
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