What do you know?

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DID YOU KNOW?

Beer is the world's oldest and most widely consumed alcoholic beverage

 and the third most popular drink overall after water and tea. It is produced

 by the brewing and fermentation of starches which are mainly derived from

cereal grains — most commonly malted barley although wheat, maize (corn),

 and rice are also used. Alcoholic beverages which are distilled after fermentation,

fermented from non-cereal sources such as grapes or honey, or fermented from

un-malted cereal grain, are not classified as beer.

The two main types of beer are lager and ale. Ale is further classified into varieties such as pale ale, stout, and brown ale.

Most beer is flavored with hops, which add bitterness and act as a natural preservative. Other flavorings, such as fruits or herbs, may also be used. The alcoholic strength of beer is usually 4% to 6% alcohol by volume (ABV), but it may be less than 1% or more than 20%, and at least as high as 55%.

Beer is part of the drinking culture of various nations and has acquired social traditions such as beer festivals, cantus, pub culture, pub games, and pub crawling.

The basics of brewing beer are shared across national and cultural boundaries. The beer-brewing industry is global in scope, consisting of several dominant multinational companies and thousands of smaller producers, which range from regional breweries to microbreweries.

The Impact of Guiness on Brewing

By the end of the 19th Century, the brewery had grown to 60 acres, sales of Guiness Stout were over 1.2 million barrels a year and was available worldwide. Guiness revolutionized the way beer was brewed and many other beer makers followed suit.

World's Oldest Brewery

Arthur Guiness was born in Celbridge, County Kildare in 1725. Arthur first learnt the art of brewing from his father Richard, whose job as a land steward included brewing beer for workers on the estates of Dr. Arthur Price, later Archbishop of cashel.

In 1759 at the age of 34 Arthur Guiness signed a 9000 year lease for the St. Jame's gate Brewery, Dublin at an annual rent of L45. The brewery was small and had little brewing equipment. But in only 10 years, despite competition from Imported English beers, Arthur Guiness began to export his beer to England. Thus began the long history of Guiness.

The History of Beer in America

http://video.answers.com/history-of-american-beer-170911439

Spirit Consumption in the United States.

Would you believe that in 2005 Americans consumed 7.4 billion gallons of beer?

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ABOUT ALCOHOL

Alcohol was around for centuries as a component of wine and beer, but it was not identified as a separate compound. The first person who discovered pure alcohol (ethanol) by distilling wine was a well known Iranian alchemist by the name of Mohammad ibn Zakaria Razi (864-930 AD).

He not only discovered alcohol, and the use of alcohol in medicine, but also discovered sulfuric acid.

How was the fermentation of Alcohol discovered?

Probably by accident. Primitive man stored fruits and grains in containers made of animal skin and pots. Wild yeast infected the beverages and converted the sugars to alcohol over time. It took many centuries to realize that there was yeast involved.

When was it discovered?

Alcohol dates back to 5400-5000 BC from the residue of wine on ancient pottery artifacts. These findings were discovered in the northern zagros mountains located in modern day Iran.

What role did alcohol play in early colonial America?

As the Revolutionary crisis deepened, taverns and pubs became the central meeting places for discussions of ideas about resistance. Taverns were also places where resistance pamphlets and leaflets could be distributed, and meetings for the planning of protests and demonstrations could be held. Massachusetts had the most elaborately developed tavern culture, which was perhaps one reason why the spirit of resistance grew more quickly there than anywhere else.

How did prohibition start in the United States?

Prohibition began with the members of temperance movements, mainly Christians, who agreed not to drink alcohol since they saw that it did damage to family life and they wanted to stop it. There were mostly made up of two main movements called the Anti-Saloon League and the Women's Christian Temperance Union. These movements were so strong in some states that they persuaded the government to ban alcohol within the state. Soon enough, the campagin gathered pace and within several years, it became a national campaign to ban alcohol throughout the country.

What did the Volstead Act do?

The 18th amendment entered America into the time called the Prohibition Era. This was January 16, 1920. The 18th Amendment was ratified on December 5, 1933, when it became legal to buy and sell alcohol unless prohibited by a state law.

Do you know how much a pint of beer was in the year 1812?

Beer was only sold in cast iron containers called Ding Dongs which went for the princely sum of one nickel.

Do you know what the two big excise taxes were by 1883 after most others were repealed?

You guessed it, tobacco and alcohol.

The Way of The World