Beer and Archaeology

Now, don't get me wrong. Archaeologists do have a reputation for drinking an ocean of beer at the end of their working day, but that is besides the point. I recently heard about an inventive public archaeology venue, being carried out in Milwaukee, Wisconsin—surely one of the beer-making capitals of the world.

Making Beer the Medieval Way at Archeon. Photo by Hans Splinter

This year marks the second annual set of courses taught in Milwaukee called Ale through the Ages: The Anthropology and Archaeology of Brewing, a series of short courses on ancient beer brewing, bottling and tasting.

Ale through the Ages is taught by staff from Discovery Worlds museum located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. October's class brewed Rhineland Roggenbier, a tasty ale that predates the German purity law of 1516; November will see the brewing of Mayan chicha beer, an ancient recipe made with corn and cocoa; and December promises a taste of the sweet honeyed medieval Mead of Meath ale.

Yum! You can sign up for each class, and the November classes start on the 3rd, so belly on up to the bar!

• Discovery World Programs: Ale through the Ages (scroll down a tad for the course description)
• Ale through the Ages on Kevin Cullen's A Distant Mirror blog
• The Origin of Wine, from an archaeological standpoint
• The Herbal Wines of Ancient Egypt