Beer might be older than you think

Beer dates back at least 5,000 years

Beer is as old as history — and by some counts, even older. Many experts assert that the emergence of Sumerian cuneiform in the fourth millennium BCE marks the beginning of recorded history. Similarly, the first hard evidence of beer brewing also comes from the Sumerians of Mesopotamia, in a town called Godin Tepe (now part of Iran). In 1992, archaeologists there discovered traces of beer in jar fragments dated around 3500 BCE. However, some scholars suggest that beer is as old as grain agriculture itself — which would put the boozy beverage’s invention at around 10,000 BCE, somewhere in the Fertile Crescent. 

Strangely (or not), thousands of Sumerian tablets make mention of beer. In fact, it even makes an appearance in the Epic of Gilgamesh, often regarded as the oldest surviving piece of literature. But among all these references, no recipes for this ancient brew were ever recorded. The closest thing to step-by-step instructions is a text known as the Hymn to Ninkasi(aka the goddess of beer). Written around 1800 BCE, this hymn describes the malts, cooked mash, and vats used in the beer-making process. It seems that Sumerian beer had mostly two ingredients: malted barley and beer bread, or bappir, which introduced yeast for fermentation. The beer was then drunk from communal jars, and its sediments were largely filtered out by drinking the concoction from reed straws. In 1989, the Anchor Brewing Company of San Franciscoworked with anthropologists to recreate this Sumerian concoction; they deemed their results “drinkable.” Thankfully, beer has undergone significant innovations since its invention thousands of years ago.

“Beer before liquor rule” has no scientific basis

Beer before liquor, never been sicker; liquor before beer, you’re in the clear” is an adage of unknown origin claiming that low alcohol-by-volume (ABV) beers are best imbibed at the end of a night of drinking rather than early on. However, no scientific studies support this myth. Once in your stomach, alcohol is absorbed immediately into the bloodstream, so the order in which you drink that alcohol won’t positively or negatively affect your hangover future. The only kernel of truth is in how these drinks affect your decision-making abilities. If you switch to higher ABV beverages (like liquor) late into the evening, your impaired judgment might miscalculate how many drinks you’re actually having. In the end, it doesn’t matter what order you knock ’em back, but other factors can impact your morning hangover — such as smoking history, genetics, and food intake (contrary to popular belief, drinking water won’t save you). At the end of the day, the best advice is to just drink less; experts recommend never drinking more than four drinks in an evening.