Book description
This delightful book tells you everything you ever wanted to know
about real ale - from its first recorded brewing by the Sumerians
5,000 years ago through its spread to Europe via the cultivation of
grains to its establishment as a British favourite. Did you know beer
was buried with the Pharaohs in Egypt and used as an offering to the
gods? Or that in Norse mythology, a warrior who died in battle would
go to Valhalla and be entitled to drink as much beer as he wanted?
Real Ale unearths all these unknown snippets and is packed
with trivia that will inform and entertain.
From the origins and history of brews like Bitter, originated in
Burton-on-Trent due to the particular style of the water supply, and
Black Beer created as a prophylactic against scurvy, this tantalising
book includes accessible recipes for brewing and cooking classic beer
dishes like Beef and Guinness stew and Welsh rarebit. With delicious
recipes alongside little known facts, Real Ale will appeal to
everyone from the avid foodie to anyone who simply savours a good pint.
Bill Laws is a writer and social historian, based in Herefordshire.
The author of ten books and has written about country crafts including
cider-making and brewing for publications including the
Guardian
and
Daily Telegraph
,
Period House
, BBC History and BBC's
Who Do You Think You Are
. He currently edits a series of journals and books on country matters,
the latest being the social history of a West Midlands livestock market,
A Slap of the Hand
. Bill also runs a small photographic library, Arkitype.
