History of the Week

Alcohol History Links Jan 13 - 27
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Classical Translations

The Brewing Classical team is back with their weekly translations!
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Australian Beer History

A look into beer reviews in Australia, with an interesting dichotomy.

"​Yet the 1844 story, written nine years after brewing commenced, praises Tooth`s all-malt beer and claims much local beer was sold as English and no one knew the difference. I cited sources earlier which argued (1860s) that Australian brewing was certainly up to the task, but social snobbery resulted in the product being viewed as second-class."
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Early British Lager

A look into newspaper clippings from the late 1800's on early signs of lager brewed in Britain.

Norwegian Farmhouse Ales

A great rundown of the brewing styles of Norway.

"In Norway the farmhouse ale used to be called "maltøl" in most of the country. The name simply means "malt beer," which might seem odd, since the definition of beer is that it's made from malts. However, a century ago "øl" (beer) was used for many different drinks: maltøl, sirupsøl (syrup beer), bjørkesevjeøl (birch sap beer), sukkerøl (sugar beer), and so on. In each case, the modifier in front stated what the fermentable was. It seems these were all considered beer simply because they were weaker than wine. In any case "maltøl" was the beer made from malts.

Let me make one thing very clear: kveik is the yeast, not the beer. If you want to say "Norwegian farmhouse ale" in Norwegian, then call it "maltøl." However, that's a bit like saying "English ale" or "Belgian beer". There are several styles, and they're very different from one another."
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Madam Gin

A brief look at the history of Gin in England, circa 1700s.
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Preserving Olympia Brewing Co.

Thanks to a $5,000 grant from the local historical society, a wealth of artwork and memorabilia from the Olympia Brewing Co. will now be cataloged and preserved at the Olympia Tumwater Foundation.
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Chhang

A nice introduction to a local beer style from Mechuka, India.