sanitation back in the day

I'm just curious. Sanitation is obviously extremely important for making beer.

... So how was beer made before the invention of sanitizers?

Was beer just less good or even bad?

Has anyone ever made a batch without sanitizing their equipment first just to see what the results would be as a historical experiment?

There was merely less consistency. Lack of sanitary processes doesn't ensure that your beer will be infected, it just increases the probability. So some batches would turn out fine, others would be infected. Modern sanitary practices simply reduce the likelihood of an infection, thus increasing the consistency of the finished product.

I've never done a non-sanitized batch before, because I don't have the time to take a chance on an "historical" experiment...but I have seen major mishaps in sanitation end up with perfectly great beer.

Jack said:

I'm just curious. Sanitation is obviously extremely important for making beer.

... So how was beer made before the invention of sanitizers?

Was beer just less good or even bad?

Has anyone ever made a batch without sanitizing their equipment first just to see what the results would be as a historical experiment?

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I might be wrong but I would assume that the lack of population would lead to less molds and bateria floating around.

I've always toyed with the idea of doing an open/spontaneous fermentation in a big vat out in the yard but I figured my local "wild" yeasties would end up tasting like airport emissions, hot pavement, low tide salt marshes and brazillian rotisserie mystery-meat from the house next door. Revere, Mass is not Brussels!

There are breweries that still use the open fermentation methods and prodcuce good beer with the natural wild yeasts. With a fermentation without yeast cultures you just have to hope that the yeast that dominate your brew are good. In ancient times I bet there was a lot of not so good brews in certain areas depending on the quality of the wild yeast.

Also, I am pretty sure that ancient beer was usually high in alcohol in order to compensate for lack of sanitation.

Sanitation is relative.

People in the middle ages didn't bath but once a year.

Even in the 20th century spoiled meat was sold to the masses.
Read, "The Jungle" by Upton Sinclair.

Fiery Sword said:

I've always toyed with the idea of doing an open/spontaneous fermentation in a big vat out in the yard but I figured my local "wild" yeasties would end up tasting like airport emissions, hot pavement, low tide salt marshes and brazillian rotisserie mystery-meat from the house next door. Revere, Mass is not Brussels!

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You got it.

I like the fact that they used the remnants of the last batch (trub) in the next batch. All before knowing even knowing why it worked let alone what yeast even was. How did they make the first batch, then? Wild yeasts.

Todd said:

I might be wrong but I would assume that the lack of population would lead to less molds and bateria floating around.

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I don't know. Molds and bacteria outnumber us humans many trillions to one.

Todd said:

I might be wrong but I would assume that the lack of population would lead to less molds and bateria floating around.

Click to expand...

Then again, hygiene standards were far less than ours today. Except in the case of Cheesefood or Dude.

ultraplop said:

There are breweries that still use the open fermentation methods and prodcuce good beer with the natural wild yeasts.

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Most of these are in advantageous locations, where the wild yeast and bacteria present are largely beer friendly (certain areas of Belgium, in particular).

People are incredibly resourceful, and they do indeed learn from mistakes and good fortune. I bet even some of the most ancient brewers figured out that heat/boiling could improve their end product in some way, shape, or form. We don't give our predecessors enough credit sometimes, IMHO.

Fiery Sword said:

I've always toyed with the idea of doing an open/spontaneous fermentation in a big vat out in the yard but I figured my local "wild" yeasties would end up tasting like airport emissions, hot pavement, low tide salt marshes and brazillian rotisserie mystery-meat from the house next door. Revere, Mass is not Brussels!

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I laughed out loud when I read your post. My mom's family are all from Revere and Chelsea. Her maiden name is Botticelli. My uncle Frank Botticelli was a Revere firefighter for 25 years. The only thing he is fighting now are the alligators on the golf course down in Florida!

John

olllllo said:

Even in the 20th century spoiled meat was sold to the masses.
Read, "The Jungle" by Upton Sinclair.

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Not recommended if you ever wish to eat sausage again, though. :cross:

Howdy Ya'll,

That reminds me of a batch of wine my Dad made 25-30 years ago.
I have been making homebrew for 15 years but at the time,
I had no idea how it was done.
I heard how 'Dad was making a batch of wine',
and assumed he had bought a book or something.
Or he at least knew what he was doing.
Wrong.
Some of it was good and most of it was bad. So he mixed it all together and added a bottle of everclear.
It sat in the pantry for years, lots of half gallon bottles,
and I ended up bringing a couple of bottles with me to 'Dew' Texas
to hunt some deer with my friend Randy and 'Cousin Joe'.
Now when we had drank up all our beer and Joe asked about something to drink, I brought out the 'wine my Dad made', "and its got everclear in it."

Joe said it was horrible but it gave you a buzz.
Randy and I were walking around the next day when I snapped my .06 to my shoulder as I thought I had seen something move,
it was cousin Joe.
Laying in the dirt drunk, a long way from camp with an nearly empty 1/2 gallon jug of 'the wine'.
Randy and I threw him in the back of the truck and brought him back to camp just leaving him in the truck all night.

Dad had, by mixing the good with the bad had not done anything at all for the bad and had ruined the good. Years later after I became a good homebrewer, I asked Dad on the way out to the Pecos wilderness area:
How did you make that wine ?
I questioned him and come to find out he had not even boiled it,
just let a bunch of grapes rot in a big bucket.
'No yeast or anything' ?
"Naw."
Haven't you even read a book on the subject, I asked ?
"Those people back in the bible days made wine."
Hell they didn't have any books,
they just made it."

{ Dad's.}

J. Knife

ewww. too bad for Joe!

johnsma22 said:

I laughed out loud when I read your post. My mom's family are all from Revere and Chelsea. Her maiden name is Botticelli. My uncle Frank Botticelli was a Revere firefighter for 25 years. The only thing he is fighting now are the alligators on the golf course down in Florida!

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Good to hear some local conection to homebrewing! I was beginning to think that my bro and I are the only brewers who at least descend from this city of 45,000! Needless to say, I'll check your Mom and Uncle off the list of people I'll be able to talk into drinking my Backyard Mystery Lambic.

And by the way, your Uncle just might have been present when a school friend of mine busted his ankle sliding down the firehouse poll during a field trip about, say, 15-20 years ago! That would have definitely resulted in a lawsuit nowadays.