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599 BCE
Prehistory "Before 600 B.C.E."
Back when settled agriculture first began Beer quickly became a crucial part of a civilized world, all this from a beverage that was probably created by mistake. In 4300 BC, Babylonian clay tablets had detailed recipes for beer. It was considered a vital part of civilization for the Babylonians, Assyrians, Egyptian, Hebrew Chinese, and Inca cultures. -
476
Classical Era 600B.C.E - 476A.D
While beer was created from different cereals and grans in different cultures, everyone seemed to have created a version of this classic drink. The first brewers were women, brewing in their homes, it was often used to pay workers and as currency and soon there were over 20 varieties of beers brewed in large quantities. -
1450
The Middle Ages
A Gift from the Gods. Being a large source of energy and calories for the working men, as well as a nice buzz beer was consumed as more than just a source of a safer form of hydration. While brewers started out as women brewing in their homes the monasteries soon became the primary brewery creating a more quality beer with a recipe that they developed and continuing to make a better product. -
1516
*Milestone* German purity law
A German created the purity lass that stated the basic ingredients used in beer brewing. These ingredients were laid down in the so-called ‘purity law’ in the Bavarian city of Ingolstadt in 1516. The purity law requires that "nothing other than barley, hops, and water were to be used" to produce beer. The importance of yeast was not known at the time and was added later. -
Early Modern Era 1450 - 1750
Hopps was introduced to brewing and hopped beer spread throughout Europe, the preservative effects of the hops meant that beer could be kept longer. Now beer could be made in greater quantities and stored, as opposed to being drunk within a matter of days. This was the beginning of large brewing corporations and beer being transported across seas. Giving way to a better understanding of a variety of brew styles and brewing processes. -
*Milestone* Industrialization
The Industrial Revolution brought a way for the mass production of beer. It was produced on a large scale and shipped around the world, this paved the way for giant modern beer companies. Some of which are still around today. -
*Milestone* The invention of aluminum cans
Coors Brewing Co. introduces aluminum cans. -
*Milestone* Yeast genetic blueprint
An international team of scientists has identified all of the more than 6,000 genes that control reproduction, life, and death in yeast cells, the relatively sophisticated single-celled organisms used in brewing. This is the first time researchers have spelled out the entire genetic blueprint of any organism so closely related to human cells. This is a huge milestone for the medical community as well. -
Modern Era 1750 - Present
The breweries' new technology has improved brewing processes, inventory management, quality control, and delivery. There have been multiple changes on large scale in the modern era of brewing, including a better understanding of the process, more artistic flair to the craft, manufacturing efficiencies, and much much more. This is a very exciting time in the industry with all the new technology and diversity of the industry,