Sugar

[Bill Smith]

So a mate of mine has just been round talking about his new brewing hobby and he told me he was brewing using 2 kit cans and no sugar. This got me thinking, before sugar was introduced into this country, what was used in its place.

 

[MaxStout]

Malted grain.
Fruit juice.

 

[Bill Smith]

Malted grain.
Fruit juice.

Hmmmm fruit juice would probably only have consisted of apple or pear pulp; wild raspberry or BlackBerry pulp. Not a lot of options for 'fruit juice' in those days I would have thought.

 

[MaxStout]

Hmmmm fruit juice would probably only have consisted of apple or pear pulp; wild raspberry or BlackBerry pulp. Not a lot of options for 'fruit juice' in those days I would have thought.

Have you ever pressed fruit? You get pulp and juice. Whether apple, pear, berries, grapes, whatever, it contains fermentable sugars. That's what people used before "sugar" was available.

 

[worlddivides]

Hmmmm fruit juice would probably only have consisted of apple or pear pulp; wild raspberry or BlackBerry pulp. Not a lot of options for 'fruit juice' in those days I would have thought.

Peaches, sour cherries, raspberries, strawberries, blueberries, blackcurrants, grapes, and on and on and on and on.

Infinite options for "fruit juice" in those days. The problem with fruit juice hundreds of years ago is that they wouldn't stay juice for long because they would start naturally fermenting, but that's not a problem if you're trying to make alcoholic beverages with them.

The easiest option for beer, though, has always been just mashing malted grains. BAM! Easy way to get sugars for the microorganisms to ferment!

 

[Kickass]

2 kit cans and no sugar. This got me thinking, before sugar was introduced into this country, what was used in its place.

Before sugar was invented they used processed and canned malt extract. This would have also been before juice was invented.

 

[Beekeeper]

Before sugar was invented they used processed and canned malt extract. This would have also been before juice was invented.

This would likely have been before can openers were invented.

 

[Broken Crow]

This would likely have been before can openers were invented.

They still used the tool that evolved into todays waiters-corkscrew:

 

[kevin58]

before sugar was introduced into this country, what was used in its place.

The manufacture of cane sugar in granule form as we know it has been around for several thousand years. Before that use of sweet juice from sources like sugar cane began somewhere around 4,000 BC. So I'm pretty sure beer brewers have pretty much always had access to sugar. Also, what country are you referencing?

 

[OakIslandBrewery]

Sugar or fruit doesn't need to be used when making beer. Malted barley is all you really need to brew beer.

That said, canned extracts (LME) are normally void of added sugar.

 

[BrewZer]

Don't forget beets...

 

[HM-2]

Don't forget beets...

I think beet sugar is a relatively recent thing- IIRC the process for making sugar from sugarbeet is only about 200 years old.