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After consuming a bucket or two of the intense brew they called aul, or ale, the Vikings would head fearlessly into battle often without armor or even shirts. In Norse the term "berserk" means "bare shirt" , and eventually that became the meaning of their wild battles. |
In English pubs, ale is ordered by pints and quarts, so in old England, when customers got unruly, the bartender would tell them to mind their own pints and quarts and settle down. That is where we get the phrase "mind your P's and Q's." | | |
The passengers of the Mayflower, had hoped to land in a mild Southern climate, but were forced ashore, in part, due to a shortage of beer. The journal of a Mayflower passenger, dated December 19, 1620 reads: "We could not take time for further search or consideration, our victuals being much spent, especially our beer." | | |
BEER: |
Fermented alcoholic
beverages made from cereal grains that have been converted to
malt. Beer may be brewed from several kinds of high-starch
grains. In the United States beer is generally made from malted
barley, with corn, rice, or sugar added as a malt adjunct, and
hops used for flavoring.
In Japan, beer (called sake) is
brewed from rice. African tribes make beer from grains native to
their regions, such as teff, millet, or grass seeds. Russians
use rye bread to prepare their beer, called quass or kvass. Beer
has always been a popular beverage because it does not
deteriorate during long periods of storage and is adaptable to
all climates. With various names and in many forms it has been
produced from the earliest times. It was made in ancient
Mesopotamia, Egypt and Greece | | | |
Why do brewers use barley as a main ingredient? Barley is the
magic grain for beer. It is the only grain that contains the enzymes
necessary to convert starches into fermentable sugars. In the
malting process, when the barley is steeped it activates growth of
the enzymes. Brewers need those enzymes in the brewing process to
convert the starches in the grains to fermentable sugars | | |
Beer is divided into two basic
categories | |
ALES |
LAGERS | |
Any beer fermented with
yeast that "works" at warm temperatures (60-75 ) producing a
distinct often fruity flavor. Traditional ales include porters,
stouts and Belgian specialty beers. |
Any beer fermented with
yeast that "works" at lower temperatures (40-50 ) The cooler
temperatures extend the fermenting time producing a deep
aromatic quality. | |
TRAPPIST ALES |
MALT LIQUOR |
Designation of six specific
ales brewed by Trappist monasteries in Europe. The Brands are
Chimay, Orval, Rochefort, Westmalle, Westvleteren and La Trappe.
The complex beers are very strong, at 5.5 - 11%. |
An extra-strong beer
(5.5-7.5%)
usually a lager.
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SAKE |
PILSNER |
An Asian fermented rice beer
- with an alcohol content at 15-20%. |
A golden style lager named
for its birthplace (Plzen) in Bohemia. (Czech Republic) It
was the first light/golden European lager. It is of moderate
strength (about 5%) |
Brewery Definitions:
MICROBREWERY: A small
brewery which produces beer and packages it primarily for sale
at retail outlets (supermarkets, beer stores, restaurants, etc.)
The brewing industry defines microbreweries as those producing
less than 15,000 barrels per year(30,000 kegs). As the craftbeer
movement has grown, however, many microbreweries have grown
beyond this classification. Rather than consider a production
number, most beer lovers define 'micros' as producers who
produce relatively small amounts of high quality, flavorful,
traditional-style beers.
BREWPUB: A brewery located
in a restaurant and/or pub which produces beer for consumption
on their own premises.
REGIONAL BREWERY: A brewery
in the United States or Canada that produces between 15,000 and
1,000,000 barrels of beer annually and packages all of its beer
for sale off the premises.
LARGE BREWERY: A brewery
that produces more than 1,000,000 barrels of beer annually.
BEER MARKETING COMPANY: A
company that puts its own label on beer that is brewed for them
by a Brewpub, Microbrewery, or Large Brewer. (Sometimes called a
"contract brewer", but more correctly described as a "contract
brewee".) |
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