Want to brew an ancient Mesopotamian ale

[JimBraum]

Hi everyone, I'm beginning to write/research an article on homebrewing an ancient Mesopotamian ale (that I have affectionately called "Siduri's Advice"; based on the advice the Babylonian ale-wife Siduri gives to Gilgamesh in the Epic of Gilgamesh to "Fill your belly <with beer>. Day and night make merry"). I will be malting, crushing and using a large amount of my own 2-row barley (the same type as used in ancient Mesopotamia) to make a brewing bread (Bappir) that I will add to the brew (as discussed in the Hymn to Ninsaki) and will be using date syrup rather than sugar for bottling (again the same as the Mesopotamians). I plan, at least initially to make some compromises for practical reasons: 1) using Mr. Beer fermenter rather than a clay fermenter, 2) using Mr. Beer's yeast rather than adding wild yeast found on grapes (although I will crush and add some sterilized grapes to make a more authentic ancient ale) and 3) using the lowest hop HME extract. Number 3 is a big sacrifice on the authenticity front, as the Mesopotamians did not use hops, but without the antimicrobial hops, at least in this first experiment, I am worried the beer will spoil, and I don't know which "aromatic herbs" are being refered to in the Hymn to Ninsaki, so I am fine to start this experiment with hops, but plan to research Gruit ale based spices/herbs that were present in Mesopotamia 5000 years ago in the next batch.

My questions for all you experienced brewers are:

Has anyone here previously tried to re-create an ancient Mesopotamian ale, and if so what was their experience? And does anyone have any other suggestions as to how to make this a more authentic Mesopotamian ale?

 

[thesemicullen]

This article from the Smithsonian Magazine about Dogfish Head's Midas Touch might provide some insight. This is the only thing close to what you're talking about I've run across.

 

[ImNoExpert]

It sounds like A LOT of work to go through (malting your own grain, make a brewing bread) only to turn around and use a hopped malt extract and Mr. Beer yeast. I would think the yeast would be one of the most important parts to claiming authenticity.

Wouldn't you rather do a small all-grain batch (if using the Mr. Beer fermenter plus you can leave out the hops) and see what kind of wilder or weirder yeasts you can get from the yeast producers?

 

[ImNoExpert]

Just re-read my post. Thought it seemed a little negative. I do think this is a really cool idea!

 

[JimBraum]

This article from the Smithsonian Magazine about Dogfish Head's Midas Touch might provide some insight. This is the only thing close to what you're talking about I've run across.

Great, thanks for the link!

 

[JimBraum]

It sounds like A LOT of work to go through (malting your own grain, make a brewing bread) only to turn around and use a hopped malt extract and Mr. Beer yeast. I would think the yeast would be one of the most important parts to claiming authenticity.

Wouldn't you rather do a small all-grain batch (if using the Mr. Beer fermenter plus you can leave out the hops) and see what kind of wilder or weirder yeasts you can get from the yeast producers?

You're right, the use of HME in particular didn't feel right. You're not being negative you are just highlighting a weak point (use of hops) from the authenticity front. The reason I wanted to use at least some hops was because I could not understand how a beer with no bittering agent at all could be in any way drinkable. I have been thinking about this a lot yesterday and finally realized that the Hymn to Ninkasi held the clue to how the Mesopotamians made their beer balanced, they used burnt bappir bread. I tested this hypothesis out last night, the experiment is here:
http://sidurisadvice.com/bappir.html
Long story short, it basically works and burnt bread is a great bittering agent! So I will ditch the HME after all and use burnt bappir instead. Regarding the yeast, I was planning on upgrading that to a more authentic yeast in a future brew, and probably starting to include lacto-bacteria too (almost certainly would have played a role in the Mesopotamian's semi-natural fermentations) which all together will hopefully result in an anicent ale that balances sweet, sour and bitter to equal delicious

 

[BeerGrylls]

Keep in mind that the grain used then would likely me malted spelt.

 

[roastquake]

Here is the recipe for "Gilgamash Sumerian Beer" from Drew Beechum's Everything Homebrewing

http://www.netplaces.com/home-brewing/experiments-recipes-from-the-laboratory/gilgamash-sumerian-beer.htm

 

[JimBraum]

Keep in mind that the grain used then would likely me malted spelt.

I think malted spelt may have come a bit later, although I could be wrong on this one. Most of the research I have done on the analysis of the Hymn to Ninkasi suggests a recipe for an all barley beer. Unmalted barley for the bappir (burnt or not) and malted barley and date syrup(which they called "honey") as a source of fermeantable sugars.

 

[JimBraum]

Here is the recipe for "Gilgamash Sumerian Beer" from Drew Beechum's Everything Homebrewing

http://www.netplaces.com/home-brewing/experiments-recipes-from-the-laboratory/gilgamash-sumerian-beer.htm

Awesome! Thank you, I appreciate the link.

 

[roastquake]

if you want to make it more shelf stable yet still make it taste unhopped, you can use some aged "lambic" hops. That should give the preservative properties without bittering or flavor

 

[JimBraum]

Here is the recipe for "Gilgamash Sumerian Beer" from Drew Beechum's Everything Homebrewing

http://www.netplaces.com/home-brewing/experiments-recipes-from-the-laboratory/gilgamash-sumerian-beer.htm

I understand why they suggest serving the beer flat. It is probable that much of the Mesopotamian beers would have been completely flat. However, a careful examination of the Hymn to Ninkasi suggests at least one highly prized Mesopotamian ale was at least mildly carbonated, ref:
http://sidurisadvice.com/carbonation.html

 

[JimBraum]

if you want to make it more shelf stable yet still make it taste unhopped, you can use some aged "lambic" hops. That should give the preservative properties without bittering or flavor

That's a perfect solution! I will get the bitterness from the burnt bappir, and the preservative qualities of these aged lambic hops without removing the essential taste of what our ancient ancestors drank. Thanks so much! I knew this was the right forum to figure out how to do this

 

[glick]

I have only tried one example of this style and it is Dogfish Heads Midas Touch. If you haven't had it, try one. It's the only beer I've ever dumped after one sip.

 

[roastquake]

I understand why they suggest serving the beer flat. It is probable that much of the Mesopotamian beers would have been completely flat. However, a careful examination of the Hymn to Ninkasi suggests at least one highly prized Mesopotamian ale was at least mildly carbonated, ref:
http://sidurisadvice.com/carbonation.html

that could be from the beer being drunk during fermentation, I know some indigenous cultures still do that (Central/South American corn beer)

Edit: oops should have read the link before posting

 

[JimBraum]

I have only tried one example of this style and it is Dogfish Heads Midas Touch. If you haven't had it, try one. It's the only beer I've ever dumped after one sip.

Thanks for the tip. I will give one a go, but I suspect that without the bitterness provided by the burnt bappir the result will be a unbalanced sickly sweet beer, would this be close to what you experienced? I guess I am going on faith here that the beer that the Mesopotamians worshiped in the Hymn to Ninkasi was actually balanced and delicious and we just have not managed to recreate it in its true form... I could well be wrong, but it will be fun to find out

 

[JimBraum]

that could be from the beer being drunk during fermentation, I know some indigenous cultures still do that (Central/South American corn beer)

Edit: oops should have read the link before posting

Actually, I think you are probably right that the beers would likely have been consumed during fermentation. While this would result in a lower alcohol content (thus less alcohol-induced euphoria) it would also have potentially helped keep the beer from spoiling. However, the theory that Mesopotamian beer may have been completely non-alcoholic, which I have previously seen proposed, well, I would suggest that the following passage from the Epic of Gilgamesh suggests otherwise:
"Enkidu ate the food until he was sated,
he drank the beer-seven jugs!-- and became expansive and sang with joy!
He was elated and his face glowed." Ref:
http://www.ancienttexts.org/library/mesopotamian/gilgamesh/tab2.htm

 

[glick]

Thanks for the tip. I will give one a go, but I suspect that without the bitterness provided by the burnt bappir the result will be a unbalanced sickly sweet beer, would this be close to what you experienced? I guess I am going on faith here that the beer that the Mesopotamians worshiped in the Hymn to Ninkasi was actually balanced and delicious and we just have not managed to recreate it in its true form... I could well be wrong, but it will be fun to find out

For not having tried one you've got the flavor pegged!!!

 

[feinbera]

Anchor brewed a Hymn-to-Ninkasi-based beer in 1989; they pulled the page about it from their site at some point, but it's still available on the Way Back Machine:

http://web.archive.org/web/20090222001007/http://www.anchorbrewing.com/beers/ninkasi.htm

Fascinating read, with partial recipe, and a reference to a professor they partnered with to help them figure out to how to brew an authentic-as-possible Sumerian beer.

 

[mmurphy]

Probably would've been fermented at a pretty high temp wouldn't it? Depending on what strains of yeast ended up in each batch and the various fermentation temperatures they experienced, I'm guessing that Sumerian beer had quite a bit of variety.

 

[jakenbacon]

This article from the Smithsonian Magazine about Dogfish Head's Midas Touch might provide some insight. This is the only thing close to what you're talking about I've run across.

I was going to say, just go buy yourself some dogfish because I am sure they have done it.... Good luck...

 

[JimBraum]

Anchor brewed a Hymn-to-Ninkasi-based beer in 1989; they pulled the page about it from their site at some point, but it's still available on the Way Back Machine:

http://web.archive.org/web/20090222001007/http://www.anchorbrewing.com/beers/ninkasi.htm

Fascinating read, with partial recipe, and a reference to a professor they partnered with to help them figure out to how to brew an authentic-as-possible Sumerian beer.

Thanks, great link!

 

[JimBraum]

Probably would've been fermented at a pretty high temp wouldn't it? Depending on what strains of yeast ended up in each batch and the various fermentation temperatures they experienced, I'm guessing that Sumerian beer had quite a bit of variety.

No doubt they had a lot more variability than we get we modern technology, but the Sumerians seem to taken great efforts to reduce this variability using specilized equipment (for example certain settlements had fermenting vats half burried in the ground, maintaining a temp difference that slowly stirred at a constant rate), and would have kept the brew at a more constrant and lower temperature overall (a good idea in a generally hotter climate, although Mesopotamia then was more temperate than Iraq today). Also, it is likely they reused the same tools from brew to brew therefore likely seeding the same strain of yeast each time, and they standarized recipes in verbal ways, like the Hymn to Ninkasi, which are remarkably similar even when found on different tablets in different areas.

 

[JimBraum]

I was going to say, just go buy yourself some dogfish because I am sure they have done it.... Good luck...

Thanks, I am going to use the current commercial offerings as a jumping off point, but I think with some dedicated research we can get closer to a more authentic brew. I am not sure burnt bappir and lacto-bacteria have been used in the commercial brews to date...

 

[unionrdr]

Correct me if I'm wrong,but wasn't it the Mesopotamians that drank the beer from under the grains,etc with long curved straws,as seen in ancient texts & tablets? That's what I saw on history or discovery videos on the subject. Youtube might still have them. And that's the beer as found in King Midas' tomb in Turkey. I wouldn't be entirely sure that that would be anything but his own special preference in beer/ale/wine combination,as muscat grape juice is also used in producing it,among other things. There's a video on the scientist that worked with Sam to develope a recipe for Midas Touch.

 

[JimBraum]

Correct me if I'm wrong,but wasn't it the Mesopotamians that drank the beer from under the grains,etc with long curved straws,as seen in ancient texts & tablets? That's what I saw on history or discovery videos on the subject. Youtube might still have them. And that's the beer as found in King Midas' tomb in Turkey. I wouldn't be entirely sure that that would be anything but his own special preference in beer/ale/wine combination,as muscat grape juice is also used in producing it,among other things. There's a video on the scientist that worked with Sam to develope a recipe for Midas Touch.

Yes, the images show the Mesopotamians drinking from long straws directly from the large containers, in fact, the evidence of fitted lids in these images is one of the reasons I propose at least one highly regarded Mesopotamian beer was at least mildly carbonated:
http://sidurisadvice.com/carbonation.html

I saw the Youtube video of Sam from Dogfish developing an ancient Egyptian beer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g4nEKjof74E

I really like his use of wild yeast and appropriate herbs and spices. However, one significant change I would like to make would be the usage of burnt bappir. Sam just added the bread without knowing what its purpose might have been, and suggested it might be a coloring agent. My hypothesis is that the Mesopotamians actually burnt the bappir before adding it, thereby providing the much needed bittering agent to balance the malty sweetness of the beer. My own experimental results appear to support this hypothesis:
http://sidurisadvice.com/bappir.html
I also realized that the fact that the Mesopotamians say the bread is "twice baked" may be their way of saying bake it again to burn it. Also, scholars have been wondering why bappir is not included in the lists of Mesopotamian storable food stuffs, and why it ONLY appears to have been as an ingredient for beer. This makes perfect sense if bappir meant burnt bread, as the the bread would not be eatten by itself and would only have been used in beer. It all makes sense! Hopefully adding burnt bappir will result in an ancient Mesopotamian ale worthy of worship

 

[ewebb]

in case i missed it, have you identified the herbs that were/may have been used in brewing? If not, you might want to start with looking at what medicinal herbs were used in the region (Eliminating the items that are obviously bad ideas) at that time and go from there in small batches. Many herbs with medicinal properties have also been commonly used in culinary applications (Sage, for example), and alcohol has frequently been used to administer medication throughout the ages. Maybe the link is in there?

 

[Squad1Guy]

Great Lakes Brewing Company just recently did this exact experiment. I was able to go to the tasting. They worked with the University of Chicago to attempt an authentic recipe using clay pots and wild yeast. Look Here:
http://beeradvocate.com/community/threads/great-lakes-brewing-company-brews-sumerian-beer.28754/

It was definitely NOT what I expected! But the experience was definitely memorable and a lot of fun

 

[Epimetheus]

JimBraum, my experiences might help. I tried to create a historic Egyptian beer and researched the heck out of it. The effort was to create a compromise between modern and old techniques and flavors. One just cannot get the same flavors from a nice, clean Mr. Beer keg as you might from often-used and contaminated clay jars. Nor would you want to! (Yuk)

• A 2.5 gallon batch, just what a Mr.Beer keg can handle
• 3 lb malted two-row
• 2 lb malted Emmer wheat, an early type of cultivated wheat. It was a special small test batch from the local malthouse and the properties were very close to modern wheat malts so you could substitute modern wheat.
• It was bittered with flowers of common yarrow, 2 oz undried (about 1 cup)
• The yeast was a modern Belgian type to simulate the esters you might get from a wild strain, with reduced risk of infection.
• Very low carbonation in the bottle. Ancient beer was probably flat, brewed in non-pressure vessels and carried in open pots to the workers. Our modern tastes expect some carbonation.

The final result tasted odd, mainly because of the yarrow. I am not used to flavors other than hops and yarrow gave it a distinct herbal, green taste.

I tested the bittering power of unknown herbs by brewing teas of various strengths and boil times, then scaled it up to the batch size

The aromatic herbs could be anything. A common spice mix in the middle east is Za'atar, a mix of sumac, thyme, and salt (the salt was not used in beer). They use the word "thyme" to represent any number of green herbs - oregano, rosemary, cilantro, perhaps even thyme. They did have mugwort and yarrow for bittering. Sumac lends a sour flavor, however I think most of those early beers were sour from bacteria inoculation. They also had coriander and other spices - lots of international trade going through that area!

Go for it! Start with the basic malted barley, spelt, wheat, or a combination - all those grains were available. Bitter it with anything except hops, and season it to your taste. There were as many recipes back then as there are now. You won't be wrong.

Skal!

 

[Epimetheus]

Twice-baked may not be for roasting and darkening. The first baking cause it to rise and fixes the taste. The second baking dries it out for longer term storage. Just like zwieback cookies for teething babies.