Recreating Ancient Ale with a 1,100-Year-Old Beer Recipe (Video)
Travis Rupp, far from being an ordinary brewmaster, delves into the past to recreate the tastes and textures of beers from ancient times. His ambition is to understand what the common folk, not just the kings and aristocracy, were drinking over a millennium ago. To this end, Rupp and his team endeavor to meticulously recreate ancient recipes, from Egyptian to Peruvian ales, replicating the brewing methods and beer recipes as closely as possible to their original form. His creations are brewed in modern facilities, but the process and ingredients are an echo of the past, with Rupp adjusting his recipes to include elements used in beer making thousands of years ago. Contrary to popular belief, he found that the beers of antiquity, though brewed in clay pots and usually flat and weak in alcohol content, can be surprisingly palatable.
Rupp's commitment to authenticity leads him to include unique ingredients such as baking yeast, juniper berries, and Mugwort in his brews, emulating the ancient brewing methods. The intricate process of brewing these ancient beers on modern systems presents a unique challenge, necessitating creative solutions and a thorough understanding of historical brewing techniques. Each brew requires extensive research, with Rupp spending months studying ancient civilizations in preparation. His current project involves a Viking beer, a popular drink at least 1100 years ago according to archaeological records.
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Top image: Ancient beer recreated. Source: 9parusnikov / Adobe Stock.
