While the history of alcohol and humanity go far back in time, it’s accepted as fact within anthropology that beer came before all other alcohols. Beer jugs have been found dating back at least 10,000 years BC, whereas other alcohols, like wine, began appearing in Egyptian pictographs around 4,000 BC.
How has beer served not only as a beverage, but an integral part of societal developments throughout history? Let’s explore a bit about the history of beer as a social drink, from the earliest neolithic cavemen, to modern craft beer clubs at your local pub.
What makes beer preferable to hard liquor?
Why is wine or hard liquor less popular in comparison to beer? Beer is a good moderation drink since it contains less alcohol per ounce than other beverages. Different forms of alcohol elicit different emotions, at least in a placebo sort of way, and the sensations of a cold, frosty beer may be more thrilling than mainlining shots of hard liquor.
The relative ease of brewing beer also lends to increasing the popularity of microbrewery clubs. Craft beer, whether formulated by microbreweries or home-brewists, exploded in popularity in recent times, allowing consumers to experiment with a huge diversity of flavors and craft styles. Starting or joining a mug club is a great way to meet new people and expand your beer knowledge palette. Beer has become an essential part of our culture. Magazines and online publications like The Beer Connoisseur help unite beer lovers all over the world and it makes this drink not limited to local communities.
In a research published in the British Medicine Journal, almost 26,000 people from 21 countries were polled, and all respondents were tested for each kind of alcohol. Beer drinkers were less violent than those who consumed alcohol.
Only 7% of beer drinkers also regularly drank hard alcohol. In addition, just 17% of beer drinkers reported feeling ill the following day, compared to nearly 48% of those who consumed hard liquor.
The idea of drinking beer socially isn’t necessarily to get plastered-drunk, but to facilitate social activity with lowered inhibitions. Hard liquor on the other hand gets people drunk faster, and can cause them to be more antagonistic, leading to stubborn arguments and even fist-fights.
Designated beer-drinking establishments and ritual sites
Wherever alcohol is available, it is evident that a certain drinking environment occurs almost always, and that each culture has its own particular public drinking locations. Drinking establishments are generally unique, in that they represent a separate realm of existence, a private social universe with its own set of laws, rituals, and values.
Drinking establishments are typically socially integrative, classless environments, or even situations in which status differences are determined by criteria that differ from those used outside. Finally, it appears that social contact and social connection reinforce the critical function of drinking establishments in virtually all civilizations.
We can say with utmost certainty that ancient civilizations incorporated beer and alcohol as part of ritual or celebration. The Göbekli Tepe, one of the oldest beer-brewing sites with chemical traces dating back nearly 10,000 years, was one such festival site. Neolithic men and women congregated to feast on beer and drink from a drinking trough, and take part in megalithic rituals.
Another known historical ritual involving beer is found in Egypt’s Middle Kingdom, but it may have originated elsewhere. It was initially held in Egypt (2040–1782 BCE) and was known as “The Drunkenness Festival.”
In the New Kingdom, the story of Sekhmet’s rampage and transformation, which was carved onto the graves of Seti I, Ramesses II, and others, was especially popular. The guests at this Hathor festival drank heavily, fell asleep in a certain hall, and awoke to the drums.
It can safely be assumed that, once our hunter-gatherer ancestors discovered how to utilize fire, they started holding festivals at least 400,000 years ago. The human species was able to develop strong relationships around the campfire as people exchanged food, tales, and gossip.
Beer-drinking was considered patriotic in modern western history
After the English civil war in the 17th century, becoming drunk became an essential social habit. It was a way for you to demonstrate your dedication to the state via your toasts. Abstaining from drinking suggested you weren’t having much fun, but it also signified you were dangerous or seditious, particularly if you didn’t toast your allegiances.
In that sense, refusing to drink was perceived no differently than refusing to stand for one’s national anthem, which is controversial even in contemporary times. The news today is full of reactions to athletes refusing to stand for a national anthem, and historical societies had this same sort of reaction to people refusing to observe drinking customs.
Toasts could also be seditious, of course, but that’s a different matter.
Conclusion
While liquor stores today may stock a huge variety of designer alcohols and labels, and bartenders are expected to know catalogues of fancy cocktails, beer is cemented in history as being a simple, no-frills beverage for people to just come together and celebrate, well, whatever it is that they’re celebrating. Three cheers for beer!