Beer in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance [Hardcover]

Richard W. Unger (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 2004

The beer of today - brewed from malted grain and hops, manufactured by large and often multinational corporations, frequently associated with young adults, sports, and drunkenness - is largely the result of scientific and industrial developments of the nineteenth century. Modern beer, however, has little in common with the drink that carried that name through the Middle Ages and Renaissance. Looking at a time when beer was often a nutritional necessity, was sometimes used as medicine, could be flavored with everything from the bark of fir trees to thyme and fresh eggs, and was consumed by men, women, and children alike, "Beer in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance" presents an extraordinarily detailed history of the business, art, and governance of brewing. During the medieval and early modern periods beer was as much a daily necessity as a source of inebriation and amusement. It was the beverage of choice of urban populations that lacked access to secure sources of potable water; a commodity of economic as well as social importance; a safe drink for daily consumption that was less expensive than wine; and a major source of tax revenue for the state. In "Beer in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance", Richard W. Unger has written an encompassing study of beer as both a product and an economic force in Europe. Drawing from archives in the Low Countries and England to assemble an impressively complete history, Unger describes the transformation of the industry from small-scale production that was a basic part of housewifery to a highly regulated commercial enterprise dominated by the wealthy and overseen by government authorities. Looking at the intersecting technological, economic, cultural, and political changes that influenced the transformation of brewing over centuries, he traces how improvements in technology and in the distribution of information combined to standardize quality, showing how the process of urbanization created the concentrated markets essential for commercial production. Weaving together the stories of prosperous businessmen, skilled brewmasters, and small producers, this impressively researched overview of the social and cultural practices that surrounded the beer industry is rich in implication for the history of the period as a whole.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Entertainingly written and amply illustrated and referenced...succeeds admirably. -- Journal of Interdisciplinary History, Winter 2007

About the Author

Richard W. Unger is Professor of History at the University of British Columbia. He is also author of A History of Brewing in Holland, 900-1900: Economy, Technology, and the State, The Art of Medieval Technology: Images of Noah the Shipbuilder, and The Ship in the Medieval Economy, 600-1600.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 344 pages
• Publisher: University of Pennsylvania Press (June 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0812237951
• ISBN-13: 978-0812237955
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 5.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,928,749 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Scholarly, factual, deeply interesting, November 5, 2004

By 

Lew Bryson "Amazon says 'Lew Bryson' isn't my... (Pennsylvania, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Beer in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance (Hardcover)

Richard Unger blows a lot of the dust off the casually quoted historical dogma of the "better beer" world. Hops were used for centuries before their description by a nun, and gruit, a mixture of herbs and spices used to flavor beer prior to the use of hops, was actually still popular AFTER hops were introduced. Unger doesn't just quote the last "beer writer" he read when he makes these statements, he cites primary sources, economic records, contemporary correspondence in 60 pages of footnotes and bibliography.

The result is a book that brings to life the beginnings of commercial brewing. Brewing went from a household chore to a commercial enterprise during the Middle Ages and Renaissance, built trade empires, influenced civilizations. Unger puts beer in its proper place in European history as an integral keystone of trade, a solid source of cash taxes, and a perfect example of how over-regulation can kill an industry.

The striking thing about this book for a student of contemporary brewing is not the techniques, the character of the beer. It is the parallels between beer's rise in this period and beer's revival in the 20th Century. Nothing is new under the sun: there were contract brewers, stunningly hopped beers, hugely successful imports, fad beers that really only changed names, fruit beers, and wild advertising. Today's innovations? Not hardly.

Definitely a scholarly work, and tough slogging at times to get through the tax chapters. But full of meat and well worth the effort.

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Primarily an economic history of beer, May 25, 2005

By 

James V. Holton "The Ecclectic Professor" (Lakeland, FL United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Beer in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance (Hardcover)

The title is deceptively simple. Those looking for some sort of popular history of beer may come away disappointed that this book emphasizes primarily the economic history of beer rather than its social aspects. Nor is this book an ode to the drink itself, but rather a tightly focused study of the importance of beer to Medieval/Renaissance economics and trade patterns. Most of its chapters are focused on taxation and trade, with just enough information on the act of brewing itself to interest the lay reader--more than likely, someone with an interest in beer itself. The last couple chapters, on guilds and the decline of beer, get into the cultural aspects.

This book is still an important contribution because it (understatedly) discusses how beer has evolved and how its role differs from the leisure and "party time" image it has now.

5.0 out of 5 stars Good, September 8, 2011

By 

tarotqueen - See all my reviews

This review is from: Beer in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance (Paperback)

It was good as far as the history of beer and beer makeing. I am a home brewer I was hopeing for a little more info that would help with my own beers, still ti was a fun read.