Historically Hops, Yeast, Malted Barley, And Water Have All Played The

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Term Paper Title	Historically Hops, Yeast, Malted Barley, And Water Have All Played The
# of Words	1899
# of Pages (250 words per page double spaced)	7.6

Beer

Beer

     Historically hops, yeast, malted barley, and water have all played the
greatest and most important role in society.  For almost 8000 years these
ingredients have been mixed and have been appreciated by all classes of society
in almost all  civilizations.
     The old cliche "accident is the mother of invention" is a phrase that
definitely holds true in the world of beer.  The discovery was made way back
when the Mediterranean region was the seat of civilization and barley flourished
as a dietary staple.  The climate of the Mediterranean was perfect for the
cultivation of barley, and was used as the primary ingredient in breads, cakes,
and other common food products.  A farmer during this period discovered that if
barley become wet, germinates, and eventually dried, the resulting barley would
be sweeter and would not be as perishable as the original state of the barley.
     There is not any first hand knowledge on how beer was discovered, but we
can imagine the incident step by step.  When the farmer discovered that his
barley crop was wet, in order for him to salvage the crop, he probably spread it
out to dry in the sun.  Chances are that germination had already begun, and the
grain had therefore malted and developed a much sweeter taste.  The sweet result
of what the farmer considered a disaster is now modern-day malted barley.  This
malted barley gave a sweeter taste to breads, cakes, or anything which had
previously been prepared with unmalted barley.  After a while when barley malt
became a common ingredient it is thought that a loaf or bowl of this malt was
accidentally left in the rain.  When wet, the dissolved starches and sugars in
the malted barley became susceptible to wild yeast, which started spontaneous
fermentation (5).  The discoverer of this new mix probably tasted it and
realized how good it was.  Unbeknownst to this ancient farmer, he had brewed the
first beer ever.
     Sumerian clay tablets dating from 6000 B.C. contain the first ever
written recipes for beer.  The tablets also detail specific religious rituals
that one had to perform before he could consume the beverage.  The Sumerians
also left the first record of bureaucratic interference when their governments
taxed and put tariffs on beer distribution.
     Some anthropologists say that ancient strains of grain were not  really
good for making bread.  Early wheat  made heavy, pasty dough.  Flour made from
barley made crumbly, lousy bread. It was determined that humankind's f...

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