A brief history of beer: Episode 0.

Beer, as many drinks, has a so long history that humanity is unable to trace completely.
The first time beer is recorded in history seems to be in ancient Egypt around 5.000 B.C. but there are strong evidence that it existed millennia before. However Egyptians were the first civilization that recorded and documented the brewing process on papyrus.
Since then, this amazing drink has evolved enormously and it continues evolving until today.

Sometimes my friends say that I am an original “Zythophile” , a word coming from Ancient Greek ζῦθος (zûthos, “barley beer”) + phile, from ancient Greek φίλος (phílos, “dear, beloved”).

Zythophile is someone who loves beer and all things beer-related. Similar to people who are passionate about wine, a Zythophile will be obsessed with talking about beer, tasting beer, cooking with beer, brewing techniques, pairing beer with food, attending beer festivals, etc…

But what I enjoy more than the things mentioned above, is the history of beer and the various beer styles. And this is because each and every beer style expresses the era, the needs and the habits of the people that consumed and produced it. The evolution of beer was actually lead by historical events like wars, colonisations and trade treaties between nations.

In this Medium blog series, “A brief history of beer”, we will try to explore this history one beer-style at a time.

So grab a bottle or glass of beer and enjoy 🍻!