The History of Beer

One of the world's oldest stories, The Epic of Gilgamesh, is a lively tale of heroism and sacrifice from ancient Sumer. It also contains one of the earliest references to beer. In the story, a female friend of the hero changes a wild, primitive beast into a cultured human being by giving him seven cups of beer.
In reality, drinking that much beer is more likely to have the opposite effect. Nowadays, it is the beverage of choice among rowdy young people on a Saturday night out, and it has fueled acts of violence and destruction in more than a few societies. It is, nevertheless, the oldest known alcoholic drink in the world and is widely enjoyed.
Fermented beverages made from various types of grain appeared independently in different locations all over the ancient world from Africa to China. The word beer itself comes from a Latin verb meaning "to drink", and the ancient Romans were certainly no strangers to the brew. However, because they considered it the drink of barbarians , the Romans generally preferred wine.
In ancient times, people who made beer lacked the means to preserve and filter it properly, so the drink was cloudy and turned bad quickly. It was medieval European monks who introduced scientific brewing techniques in an effort to produce a nutritious beverage to supplement their meager diets.
The monks were not restricted to only brewing the beer, and consumption of it within the monasteries reached astonishing levels. One report from Belgium said that monks were drinking as much as five liters a day. Monastery breweries in Europe also ran their own pubs and enjoyed a tax-free status that came to be resented by the growing merchant class.
As the power and influence of the church declined, the art of brewing became an important commercial activity. Today, beer production is largely a high-tech process in the hands of huge corporations or government monopolies. However, recent years have seen a growth in the popularity of small-scale breweries, reflecting an increasing global demand for quality and variety.