Scientists isolate six yeast strains on ancient beer jugs found at four archaeological sites
Working together with archaeologists and brewers, Israeli scientists have managed to recreate ancient beer using a groundbreaking method that saw millennia-old yeast revived.
Scholars from the Israel Antiquities Authority, Bar-Ilan, Tel Aviv and Hebrew Universities joined forces for the years-long experiment. The yeast was found on beer jugs at four archaeological sites, once populated by Philistines, Egyptians and Judeans.
“What has been done was trying to have the ancient barley or wheat to create the beer, or ancient spices, but never before has anybody given attention to the actual yeast,” Dr. Michael Klutstein, a microbiologist and senior lecturer at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, explained to The Media Line. “Microorganisms are very common in food making because that was the main way of preserving food in the past. They did not have fridges so the only way they could preserve it was to ferment it.”
Brewed from cereal grains, beer is one of the oldest alcoholic drinks in the world, with evidence of a 13,000-year-old brewery having been discovered in northern Israel.
In ancient times, everyone from children, to soldiers and kings would drink beer thanks to its high caloric content and because it was often safer to drink than water.