Currently brewing our "Sagburu’s Brew" Ancient-Grains beer. As near as I am able,
it is a replication of one of the first beers made in ancient Sumer/Mesopotamia.
NOTE: I did *not* bake a loaf of bappir to use as fermentation starter. I skipped
straight ahead to yeast, though it's a wild culture originating from the area.
It has a bit of a fun history -- recipe passed down orally for 1000+ years until
someone decided they should probably write it down, and they did so in the form of
a song. The
"Hymn to Ninkasi"
is on our website, and the source article with more of the history is linked near
the bottom of that page.
It's effectively 0 IBU -- historically, no hops and, even if it had them,
historically, not-boiled, meaning effectively 0 hop utilization, anyway. NOTE:
it went to 180°F+ for an hour; it's sanitary :) The wort (pre-beer liquid) is
sweet, but not cloying. I think it's be a nice, very-light beer, like the
cream-ale, but with different flavors.
The grains are spelt & heirloom barley, "just like the Sumerians used".
Oh!
Sagburu
-- Sumer/Mesopotamia's first Good Witch!
She's got a great history, too. I figure this sort of "sorcery" is where beer
got its start -- 3 witches standing around a giant cauldron, stirring up concoctions
to drive men wild, or some such. Hence, the name.
