1 00:00:00,200 --> 00:00:02,640 Speaker 1: All right, as we stock up for Super Bowl Sunday, 2 00:00:02,720 --> 00:00:06,640 Speaker 1: I want you to remember this before football or flat TVs, 3 00:00:06,760 --> 00:00:11,200 Speaker 1: before wings and nachos. No wait, in fact, before cities 4 00:00:11,400 --> 00:00:15,840 Speaker 1: or money or even written language, human beings were already 5 00:00:15,880 --> 00:00:21,040 Speaker 1: making beer, not wine, not whiskey. Beer. Honestly, beer just 6 00:00:21,239 --> 00:00:25,279 Speaker 1: might be older than civilization itself, and some historians even 7 00:00:25,320 --> 00:00:29,280 Speaker 1: believe its discovery just may have been an accident. I'm 8 00:00:29,280 --> 00:00:33,560 Speaker 1: Patty Steele. The prehistoric roots of cracking open a cold one. 9 00:00:33,640 --> 00:00:40,600 Speaker 1: That's next on the backstory. But the backstory is back, 10 00:00:41,360 --> 00:00:43,920 Speaker 1: all right. As you lean back to watch the Patriots 11 00:00:43,920 --> 00:00:47,200 Speaker 1: and the Seahawks face off on Super Bowl Sunday, there's 12 00:00:47,200 --> 00:00:50,120 Speaker 1: a pretty good chance you're gonna toss back a frosty 13 00:00:50,159 --> 00:00:53,000 Speaker 1: beer or two to wash down those hot wings or 14 00:00:53,040 --> 00:00:57,160 Speaker 1: bean dip. Beer is actually still the number one alcoholic 15 00:00:57,200 --> 00:01:01,760 Speaker 1: beverage of choice worldwide, But hey, where did it originate? 16 00:01:02,440 --> 00:01:06,959 Speaker 1: Anthropologists say beer maybe older than civilization itself, and some 17 00:01:07,040 --> 00:01:10,400 Speaker 1: think it's the reason civilization began in the first place. 18 00:01:10,959 --> 00:01:14,120 Speaker 1: Like the song says, you want to be where everybody 19 00:01:14,160 --> 00:01:17,600 Speaker 1: knows your name, So beer it is got to go 20 00:01:17,720 --> 00:01:22,000 Speaker 1: back around thirteen thousand years to when humans were transitioning 21 00:01:22,040 --> 00:01:25,560 Speaker 1: from nomadic life to life on a farm. Of course, 22 00:01:25,640 --> 00:01:28,800 Speaker 1: one of the first things they grew was grain, barley 23 00:01:28,840 --> 00:01:32,120 Speaker 1: and wheat, because it grew easily and was fairly easy 24 00:01:32,160 --> 00:01:36,120 Speaker 1: to store, except when it wasn't. Our early ancestors had 25 00:01:36,160 --> 00:01:39,759 Speaker 1: one problem. When grain got wet and sat in the sun, 26 00:01:40,040 --> 00:01:44,640 Speaker 1: it fermented. The mixture bubbled and smelled strange. It had 27 00:01:44,800 --> 00:01:49,480 Speaker 1: like a thin oatmeal consistency, and weirdly people decided to 28 00:01:49,520 --> 00:01:55,160 Speaker 1: dig in and then something unexpected happened. They felt relaxed, 29 00:01:55,600 --> 00:01:59,960 Speaker 1: social and really really happy. It was like a party 30 00:02:00,080 --> 00:02:02,520 Speaker 1: in a jug. But you do have to wonder what 31 00:02:02,600 --> 00:02:06,800 Speaker 1: made them tasted. Anyway, beer wasn't invented. It was discovered 32 00:02:06,840 --> 00:02:11,200 Speaker 1: by accident, and it didn't end there. Archaeologists literally dug 33 00:02:11,280 --> 00:02:15,320 Speaker 1: up evidence of fermented green type beverages in ancient pottery 34 00:02:15,360 --> 00:02:19,480 Speaker 1: from Mesopotamia dating back more than seven thousand years. Thus 35 00:02:19,560 --> 00:02:24,079 Speaker 1: the civilization argument. Some historians say humans didn't settle down 36 00:02:24,120 --> 00:02:27,320 Speaker 1: to make bread, leading to communities. They settled down to 37 00:02:27,320 --> 00:02:30,640 Speaker 1: make beer. I mean, once again we see that people, 38 00:02:31,040 --> 00:02:33,800 Speaker 1: whether they lived ten thousand years ago or one hundred 39 00:02:33,880 --> 00:02:37,560 Speaker 1: years ago, wanted the same things we want right here, 40 00:02:37,840 --> 00:02:41,240 Speaker 1: right now they set at a table at a brewpub 41 00:02:41,280 --> 00:02:43,840 Speaker 1: of swords after a long day at work to chat 42 00:02:43,880 --> 00:02:47,000 Speaker 1: with friends and neighbors and sip a cool one. They 43 00:02:47,000 --> 00:02:50,480 Speaker 1: were us. Now fast forward to a mere five thousand 44 00:02:50,560 --> 00:02:53,760 Speaker 1: years ago in ancient sumer By that time, beer was 45 00:02:53,800 --> 00:02:56,840 Speaker 1: sacred for them. Beer wasn't just a drink. It was 46 00:02:57,000 --> 00:03:00,400 Speaker 1: part of daily's survival since water was often un safe 47 00:03:00,440 --> 00:03:05,960 Speaker 1: to drink, but beer aok since fermentation killed bacteria. Even 48 00:03:06,000 --> 00:03:09,760 Speaker 1: little kids drank a weaker beer. You often were paid 49 00:03:09,800 --> 00:03:12,840 Speaker 1: for work in beer rations as much as five liters 50 00:03:12,880 --> 00:03:16,120 Speaker 1: a day. The Samearians even wrote a hymn to the 51 00:03:16,120 --> 00:03:20,240 Speaker 1: goddess of Beer, Ninkazi, which also doubled as the world's 52 00:03:20,280 --> 00:03:26,960 Speaker 1: oldest written brewing recipe. Beer wasn't a luxury. It was medicine, currency, religion, 53 00:03:27,320 --> 00:03:30,440 Speaker 1: and it was food. Since it was still a little 54 00:03:30,440 --> 00:03:33,480 Speaker 1: bit thick with bits of grain, Sumerians had their own 55 00:03:33,560 --> 00:03:37,680 Speaker 1: beer straws. These straws turned the early beer into a meal. 56 00:03:38,280 --> 00:03:41,760 Speaker 1: They'd suck up this thick, liquidy drink through long reeds, 57 00:03:42,080 --> 00:03:44,960 Speaker 1: which allowed them to leave behind the bigger, more bitter 58 00:03:45,080 --> 00:03:48,440 Speaker 1: bits of sediment at the bottom of the big communal jar. 59 00:03:48,600 --> 00:03:51,440 Speaker 1: They all shared and stuck their straws in two together. 60 00:03:51,840 --> 00:03:55,280 Speaker 1: Sounds festive, right. Try handing out beer straws at your 61 00:03:55,320 --> 00:03:59,280 Speaker 1: Super Bowl party. Okay. Inching forward in time, when the 62 00:03:59,320 --> 00:04:03,240 Speaker 1: Egyptians began building the Pyramids around twenty five hundred PC, 63 00:04:03,880 --> 00:04:08,720 Speaker 1: beer became essential once again. Workers again weren't paid in gold. 64 00:04:08,840 --> 00:04:12,200 Speaker 1: They were paid in beer. Each worker got several jugs 65 00:04:12,240 --> 00:04:16,680 Speaker 1: per day. Thick, nutritious, and full of calories. Beer kept 66 00:04:16,720 --> 00:04:20,640 Speaker 1: these guys hydrated, fed and motivated under the desert sun. 67 00:04:21,240 --> 00:04:24,320 Speaker 1: And it wasn't just for the working stiffs. Pharaohs were 68 00:04:24,400 --> 00:04:28,280 Speaker 1: even buried with beer jars for the afterlife. To the Egyptians, 69 00:04:28,440 --> 00:04:33,679 Speaker 1: beer wasn't recreational, it was eternal. So what next. Well, 70 00:04:33,760 --> 00:04:36,359 Speaker 1: after the main part of the Roman Empire collapsed, a 71 00:04:36,440 --> 00:04:40,359 Speaker 1: lot of Europe lost access to clean water systems. Disease 72 00:04:40,440 --> 00:04:44,559 Speaker 1: spread easily, and once again, beer became safer than water. 73 00:04:45,120 --> 00:04:48,720 Speaker 1: But here's the interesting part. Brewing knowledge might have disappeared 74 00:04:48,760 --> 00:04:53,640 Speaker 1: altogether if it wasn't for monks. Yeah, medieval monasteries became 75 00:04:53,680 --> 00:04:59,200 Speaker 1: the world's research labs. Monks experimented with fermentation, cleanliness, and 76 00:04:59,240 --> 00:05:02,520 Speaker 1: the writing great and in the ninth century they had 77 00:05:02,560 --> 00:05:07,560 Speaker 1: a breakthrough idea add hops. Hops preserved the beer longer 78 00:05:07,800 --> 00:05:11,240 Speaker 1: and balanced out the sweetness with the little bitterness. This 79 00:05:11,400 --> 00:05:15,520 Speaker 1: single change transformed beer from a local drink into something 80 00:05:15,560 --> 00:05:18,599 Speaker 1: that could travel across countries. In fact, a lot of 81 00:05:18,640 --> 00:05:23,279 Speaker 1: today's beer styles traced directly back to monastery recipes, so 82 00:05:23,480 --> 00:05:27,680 Speaker 1: monks in the Middle Ages were basically professional brewers with robes. 83 00:05:28,320 --> 00:05:33,240 Speaker 1: And then in fifteen sixteen everything changed again. Bavaria passed 84 00:05:33,240 --> 00:05:36,359 Speaker 1: one of the most important food laws in history, the 85 00:05:36,520 --> 00:05:41,080 Speaker 1: rhine Heidscheboat Yeah you heard me right, rhine Heidschebot God 86 00:05:41,120 --> 00:05:44,919 Speaker 1: bless you, or the German Beer Purity Law, meant to 87 00:05:45,000 --> 00:05:49,040 Speaker 1: standardize beer purity laws. It mandated that beer could only 88 00:05:49,120 --> 00:05:53,320 Speaker 1: contain water, barley, and hops, no yeast at that point, 89 00:05:53,600 --> 00:05:55,840 Speaker 1: but it pretty much shaped what we think of as 90 00:05:55,920 --> 00:06:00,560 Speaker 1: traditional beer today. Actually, most German breweries still follow it 91 00:06:00,680 --> 00:06:04,719 Speaker 1: over five hundred years later. No longer an accident, beer 92 00:06:04,880 --> 00:06:08,560 Speaker 1: was now an art. By the eighteen hundreds, the Industrial 93 00:06:08,600 --> 00:06:13,680 Speaker 1: Revolution added some basics like thermometers, refrigeration, steam power, and 94 00:06:13,760 --> 00:06:17,520 Speaker 1: bottling machines so it could be mass produced by big companies, 95 00:06:17,880 --> 00:06:21,960 Speaker 1: making it cheaper and more consistent. Yes, in nineteen twenty, 96 00:06:22,080 --> 00:06:25,880 Speaker 1: beer brewers in the US took a massive hit during Prohibition, 97 00:06:26,440 --> 00:06:29,080 Speaker 1: but by nineteen thirty three a lot of them were back. 98 00:06:29,480 --> 00:06:32,760 Speaker 1: For decades, it was mostly mass produced and not as 99 00:06:32,839 --> 00:06:36,840 Speaker 1: interesting as the earlier brews, but in the nineteen seventies 100 00:06:36,839 --> 00:06:41,320 Speaker 1: and eighties, craft breweries caught on. They began experimenting again, 101 00:06:41,600 --> 00:06:45,600 Speaker 1: bringing back forgotten styles and more flavor. Today, there are 102 00:06:45,640 --> 00:06:49,560 Speaker 1: over nine thousand breweries in the US, offering thousands of 103 00:06:49,640 --> 00:06:53,960 Speaker 1: styles inspired by recipes older than written history. It's a 104 00:06:54,000 --> 00:06:59,320 Speaker 1: full circle, starting in ancient clay pots, then onto industrial factories, 105 00:06:59,640 --> 00:07:03,240 Speaker 1: and who back to small batches made by passionate people. 106 00:07:04,000 --> 00:07:08,400 Speaker 1: Beer is one of humanity's oldest technologies, a liquid thread 107 00:07:08,560 --> 00:07:11,400 Speaker 1: sort of connecting us to people who lived more than 108 00:07:11,480 --> 00:07:14,800 Speaker 1: ten thousand years ago, and just like us, after a 109 00:07:14,840 --> 00:07:17,800 Speaker 1: long day, they look forward to putting their feet up, 110 00:07:18,040 --> 00:07:21,680 Speaker 1: chatting with friends, and sipping a cold one, maybe through 111 00:07:21,720 --> 00:07:25,560 Speaker 1: a straw. Enjoyed the Super Bowl. I hope you like 112 00:07:25,600 --> 00:07:28,760 Speaker 1: the backstory with Patty Steele. Please leave a review. I'd 113 00:07:28,800 --> 00:07:31,600 Speaker 1: love it if you'd subscribe or follow for free to 114 00:07:31,600 --> 00:07:35,240 Speaker 1: get new episodes delivered automatically. Also feel free to DM 115 00:07:35,280 --> 00:07:37,080 Speaker 1: me if you have a story you'd like me to cover. 116 00:07:37,400 --> 00:07:41,720 Speaker 1: On Facebook, It's Patty Steele and on Instagram Real Patty Steele. 117 00:07:44,920 --> 00:07:48,640 Speaker 1: I'm Patty Steele. The Backstory is a production of iHeartMedia, 118 00:07:48,760 --> 00:07:52,760 Speaker 1: Premiere Networks, the Elvis Durand Group, and Steel Trap Productions. 119 00:07:53,120 --> 00:07:56,680 Speaker 1: Our producer is Doug Fraser. Our writer Jake Kushner. We 120 00:07:56,760 --> 00:08:00,280 Speaker 1: have new episodes every Tuesday and Friday. Feel free to 121 00:08:00,280 --> 00:08:03,200 Speaker 1: reach out to me with comments and even story suggestions 122 00:08:03,280 --> 00:08:06,680 Speaker 1: on Instagram at Real Patty Steele and on Facebook at 123 00:08:06,720 --> 00:08:10,320 Speaker 1: Patty Steele. Thanks for listening to the Backstory with Patty Steele. 124 00:08:10,680 --> 00:08:13,800 Speaker 1: The pieces of history you didn't know you needed to know.