Customer Reviews

Beer in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance

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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.

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.

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.

Gives an in-depth looking at beer making in the middle ages - before and after the discovery of hops. Academic in tone, the study looks at the impact the beer trade had on different locations in Europe with a heavy emphasis on the Netherlands.