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Chinese brewed beer 5,000 years ago, research suggests | Chinese brewed beer 5,000 years ago, research suggests |
(1 day later) | |
Chinese drinkers may have been brewing beer as many as 5,000 years ago, new research suggests. | Chinese drinkers may have been brewing beer as many as 5,000 years ago, new research suggests. |
US and Chinese researchers say they found traces of barley, millet, grain, and tubers used in fermentation. | US and Chinese researchers say they found traces of barley, millet, grain, and tubers used in fermentation. |
It was found on pottery discovered in Shaanxi province in northern China during an archaeological dig 10 years ago. | It was found on pottery discovered in Shaanxi province in northern China during an archaeological dig 10 years ago. |
It would be the earliest known instance of beer-making in China and suggest a sophisticated approach. | It would be the earliest known instance of beer-making in China and suggest a sophisticated approach. |
Published in the US Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the study also suggested that barley may have been used for booze before being used for food. | Published in the US Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the study also suggested that barley may have been used for booze before being used for food. |
The findings suggest that drinkers in China first began to develop a taste for beer around the same time as people in ancient Egypt and Iran - from where the barley may have come. | |
The pottery fragments were originally found in an archaeological dig in 2004-2006, but only had their residue analysed by Stanford University researchers in late 2015, confirming earlier speculation by Chinese scholars that they might have been used for brewing. | The pottery fragments were originally found in an archaeological dig in 2004-2006, but only had their residue analysed by Stanford University researchers in late 2015, confirming earlier speculation by Chinese scholars that they might have been used for brewing. |
The find included pots and pottery funnels, covered with a residue of broomcorn millet, barley, a chewy grain known as Job's tears, and tubers. | The find included pots and pottery funnels, covered with a residue of broomcorn millet, barley, a chewy grain known as Job's tears, and tubers. |
It also included stoves that could have been used to heat and mash grains, as well as underground spaces that would have kept the brew at a cool, consistent fermentation temperature - and helped stop it going off quickly once it was made. | It also included stoves that could have been used to heat and mash grains, as well as underground spaces that would have kept the brew at a cool, consistent fermentation temperature - and helped stop it going off quickly once it was made. |
"The discovery of barley is a surprise," lead author Jiajing Wang of Stanford University told the BBC in an email, as it was previously thought the grain arrived in China 1,000 years later. | "The discovery of barley is a surprise," lead author Jiajing Wang of Stanford University told the BBC in an email, as it was previously thought the grain arrived in China 1,000 years later. |
"This beer recipe indicates a mix of Chinese and Western traditions - barley from the West; millet, Job's tears and tubers from China." | "This beer recipe indicates a mix of Chinese and Western traditions - barley from the West; millet, Job's tears and tubers from China." |
The exact taste of the ancient brew will remain a mystery however, as while the scientists say they know what ingredients were used, they don't know the quantities. | The exact taste of the ancient brew will remain a mystery however, as while the scientists say they know what ingredients were used, they don't know the quantities. |
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