There was a time when the sophisticated drinking classes considered beer a bit … low-brow. But not any more, thanks to microbreweries and artisan beers.
Fullerton Museum educator Aimee Aul says beer bashing is nothing new.
"Ever since the Roman Empire when it was known as the drink of the Barbarians — because in the north, you grew barley, whereas in the Mediterranean you could grow grapes — we’ve been fighting that stigma for many years. But I think beer is making it to high-brow time."
Beer has now made it to the museum, too. The Fullerton Museum Center opens an exhibit tonight called “Kegged, Casked, Bottled or Canned: 10,000 Years of Beer.”
It’s one of the oldest beverages known to humankind, dating back to at least the 6th millennium B.C. And the story of beer is part of the story of civilization, said Aimee Aul, an educator with the Fullerton Museum Center.
"The cultivation of grains was fueled as much by the production of beer as the production of bread, so it’s a very venerable and important part of civilization."
The Fullerton Museum exhibit includes an image of the earliest known written reference to beer: a Sumerian cuneiform tablet from about 2500 B.C., said Aul.
"It’s actually two things: It’s a hymn to a Sumerian goddess and it’s also a recipe for beer. So as you’re chanting the hymn, you’re also reminding yourself of the steps in the fermentation process."
The Fullerton Museum Center exhibit runs through October 10.
