From Barley to Beer: The Most Important Beverage

Question 3: Reflect on our Monday lecture and our Field Study and discuss the importance of Barley to mankind, both historically and now.

What makes beer so important, you may be wondering? Well first of all, cereals were the first plants to be domesticated in the Fertile Crescent, or the "cradle of civilization." Evidence indicates that barley played a key role in forming early neolithic farming communities, meaning that humans could maintain a more sedentary lifestyle. Known as a Neolithic founder crop, barley was a critical source of nutrition in early farming communities. In other words, barley allowed humans to involve into the developed species that we are today. No big deal or anything (it's a big deal).

The "cradle of civilization"

At some point during this time (no one is sure precisely when), beer began to crop up in multiple settlements around the world. It is not known exactly how beer was discovered. Because creating beer is a pretty scientific process for early humans, it is assumed that beer was discovered accidentally, through some turn of fate. Indeed, it is quite possible that a barrel of barley was left out in the rain and somehow yeast was introduced to the mixture. Perhaps a young man tasted the water and liked it then reproduced the process. However it happened, it was an incredibly important innovation for the world.

As A Brief History of Beer put it, "Beer is almost a wonder food: nutritionally enriched, hedonistically satisfying, and medically protective." In fact, beer has played an important role in human health through the ages. For example, when water borne illnesses were prevalent, beer was a safer alternative for hydration and nutrition. Today beer is still chosen over water in less developed countries because the alcohol kills deadly germs and parasites.

Meanwhile in modern Denmark, beer production is important for the economy and society. The Carlsberg Group is a Danish brewing company - the fourth largest brewer in the world. Carlsberg accounts for approximately 6.2% of world beer production and a stunning 40% of the Russian market. Through a field study to the Carlsberg Laboratory, we learned about their innovative research on barley breeding. Not surprisingly, consumers are not fans of GMO (genetically modified organisms) barley. Therefore, Carlsberg selects for barley with the best genes, hoping to increase productivity the old fashioned way. The Carlsberg tour continued to repeat one important phrase, "brewing is old fashioned." And it is - beer brewing hasn't really changed for thousands of years. It is an ancient science that has left its mark on the world and will continue to do so in the years to come.

For more fascinating information on how beer is made, check out this BBC documentary. 

You should also check out this video about the Carlsberg Laboratory. 

Sources:

Bamforth, Charles. "Grape vs. Grain: A Brief History of Beer." Cambridge University Press. 2008.

http://www.therichest.com/expensive-lifestyle/entertainment/top-five-largest-beer-brewing-companies-in-the-world/?view=all

A Wealth in Spices

Question 2: Explain the ways in which the desire by European monarchies / governments to control the spice trade changed world history. 


Today most people only think of spices when they open up a random drawer in their kitchen to make cooking a little bit more exciting. Spices are not seen as particularly precious commodities. Rather, it is entirely normal to put spices in the majority of our food. 

Several hundred years ago, this was not the case. First discovered in the eastern part of the world, the spice trade was dominated by Arab merchants in the 7th century and later on by the Romans. However, after the Roman empire fell, spices decreased in popularity. 

It wasn't until the Christian crusades that Europe rediscovered their taste for spices between 1095 and 1275. It was the spice trade that stimulated the Age of Discovery, prompting European explorers to travel further than ever before because Western Europe did not want to depend on non-Christian traders for their spices. Explorers searched for their own sea route to the Indies - especially the infamous Spice Islands. 

The Portuguese explorer, Vasco de Gama

Christopher Columbus and Vasco de Gama were the most successful explorers during this time, and they are still still the most famous today. While Columbus headed in the direction of the Americas, de Gama is known as the first European to sail around Africa to India - a very dangerous trip. 

Vasco de Gama's first route

The Portuguese rapidly expanded their spice trade after de Gama made it to India, finding huge economic success. As Portuguese explorers returned to Europe, the price of pepper in Lisbon dropped to one-fifth that in Venice. While the Portuguese dominated the spice trade for many years, Spain, Holland, and Britain were also important players in the global spice trade. During the 15th, 16th, and 17th centuries these countries fought Portugal for control of the Spice Islands. Ultimately, the Dutch took control of the spice trade in the 17th century. 

In conclusion, spices were crucial when it came to the expansion of trade routes and the discovery of new continents. Spices facilitated colonization of the East, the Americas and much more. Spices were key to development and they are still hugely important to culinary traditions all over the world today. Just think about it...what's your favorite dish? What spices does it include?

Fun fact:
Today, the most widely used spice in the world is the peppercorn. Here is a link to an article with some surprising facts about pepper. You won't believe some of them! For example, peppercorns were used as currency at one point in history!   

Photo citations: 
Photo 1: http://st.houzz.com/simgs/81c15ac30d85fdef_4-9666/traditional-cabinet-and-drawer-organizers.jpg
Photo 2: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8d/Vasco_da_Gama_-_1838.png
Photo 3: https://s-media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/originals/71/aa/4b/71aa4bfc4ca010cb379cd7e89fa68f60.jpg

The Founders of America were Plants?

Question 1: Tobacco and Cotton were two founder crops of the United States of America. Explain how and why, highlighting any connections / similarities between the crops.

 

The Seeds of A New World Power

Both tobacco and cotton played intrinsic roles in the foundation of the United States of America, empowering the new world colonialists to free themselves from British rule and build a strong economy.

It all began back in the early 1600s when English settlers initiated a new colony near the Chesapeake Bay. The new colony had nearly failed when a savior appeared in the form of a strange crop – tobacco seeds from Spanish plantations in the West Indies. Almost immediately Jamestown, Virginia changed from a tragic wasteland to a burgeoning economic power. This influx of money from the tobacco trade allowed the American colonies to develop a sense of independence from their British benefactors, who came to be seen as a real nuisance due to heavy taxes and a monopoly on exports from the colonies. Ultimately, it can be argued that tobacco led to the independence of the United States of America and the freedom that modern Americans cherish so much.

While the economic benefits of tobacco production can hardly be contested, it also led to the development of slavery in the United States which would go on to change the country forever. African slaves were first brought to America in 1619 during the advent of the colonies for the purpose of growing tobacco. The institution of slavery only became more popular with the introduction of cotton in the late 1700s. In the Southern states such as Georgia (my home state), Alabama, and Mississippi cotton was king. It is said that cotton accounted for more than half of American exports in the 1800s. Britain purchased the majority of raw cotton and produced cotton products in their factories – this powered the southern states to become exorbitantly wealthy and finally allowed America to be truly economically independent. However, the wealth that free labor created came to be morally questioned by the northern United States. The disagreement over slavery was one of the driving forces that ignited the American Civil War in 1861, which tore the United States in half.

After four years of conflict the Union (northern states) won the war, the south was left in shambles, and slaves were declared to be free. At that point, slaves had accounted for almost half of the population in the South. The years that followed, known as the Reconstruction era, were wrought with strife as society struggled to accept African-Americans as equal. It was a not a respectable time in American history and things only got worse until the Civil Rights Movement started to change America for the better and the south was slowly rebuilt. Today, the United States still hasn’t recovered completely from the devastating effects of slavery, which brought about by its tobacco and cotton production.

The tragic conclusion is that tobacco and cotton both left scars on America, even as they lifted the country up as the greatest economic power in the world. 

Cotton is still grown in Georgia today - thankfully in a much less morally reprehensible manner. This image depicts my friend and me standing in a cotton field in rural Georgia with our brothers and my dog. 

Photo citations: 

Photo 1: http://www.speedlivin.com/2011/04/how-tobacco-helped-the-colonization-of-america/

Photo 2: http://social.rollins.edu/wpsites/hist120/files/2012/11/Picking-cotton-Jones-County-Courtesy-of-Georgia-Department-of-Archives-and-History_jpg1.jpg

Photo 3: Personal photo

Related links: 

http://www.ushistory.org/us/22b.asp