10 fabulous facts about beer
December 1st 2008 21:28
1.
Beer is the world's oldest and most widely consumed alcoholic drink. It is the third most popular drink overall, after water and tea.
2.
Beer may be older than bread. The first documented use of beer is from the 11th century but the first beer is thought to have been produced in monasteries about the 7th century BC.
3.
Beer was widely popular by the 14th century, partly because it tasted good and partly because it was safer to drink than water during epidemics.
4.
Lager-style beer was invented by the Germans in the mid-19th century. They named it lager, which means ‘storage’ in German, because of the slow fermentation time. Today the term lager is used throughout the English-speaking world to denote that style of beer, but German speakers no longer call it lager.
5.
The world's biggest-selling beer by volume is America’s Budweiser.
6.
The basic ingredients of beer are water, a fermentable starch source such as malted barley, and yeast. Beer is sometimes referred to as ‘liquid bread’ because brewer’s yeast is a rich source of nutrients. Beer can contain magnesium, selenium, potassium, phosphorus, biotin and B vitamins.
7.
Most beers are flavoured with hops, and flavouring beer is the sole major commercial use of hops. Hops give beer a bitterness that balances the sweetness of the malt. Hops also contribute floral, citrus, and herbal aromas and flavours to beer; they have an antibiotic effect that helps the brewer's yeast overcome less desirable microorganisms; hops help a beer keep its foamy head longer; and the acidity of hops acts as a preservative.
Stubble holder
8.
Hops have never grown well in Scotland, and Scots developed and still have a preference for other bittering substances such as ginger, pepper, spices and aromatic herbs. Barley, however, does grow well there. Barley produced in the north of Scotland most often becomes whiskey, but barley grown in the south is better suited to the making of beer.
9.
A 2005 Japanese study found that low-alcohol beer may possess strong anti-cancer properties.
10.
The traditional European brewing nations - Germany, Belgium, Austria, the Czech Republic, Denmark, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and Ireland - all have rich local beer histories and traditions. In some countries, notably the US, Canada and Australia, brewers have adapted European styles to such an extent that they have effectively created indigenous beers.
Edouard Manet: The Waitress
Wikipedia, forum.tapesh.com, www.absoluteastronomy.com, beerfacts.net. images: muzeumhumoru.onet.pl, www.routerforums.com, www.boozebasher.com, picasaweb.google.com, www.watchersweb.com
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