ABSTRACT
The word beer derives from the Latin word bibere meaning to drink. The process of producing beer is known as brewing. Beer brewing from barley was practiced by the ancient Egyptians as far back as 4,000 years ago, but investigations suggest Egyptians learnt the art from the peoples of the Tigris and Euphrates where man’s civilization is said to have originated. However, the use of hops is much more recent and can be traced back to a few hundred years ago. Barley beers can be divided into two broad groups: top-fermented beers and bottom-fermented beers. This distinction is based on whether the yeast remains at the top of brew (top-fermented beers) or sediments to the bottom (bottom-fermented beers) at the end of the fermentation. Bottom-fermented beers are also known as lager beers because they were stored or ‘lagered’ (from German lagern = to store) in cold cellars after fermentation for clarification and maturation. Yeasts used in bottom-fermented beers are strains of Saccharomyces uvarum (formerly Saccharomyces carlsbergiensis). Top-fermented beers are brewed with strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. This chapter discusses barley beers, raw materials for brewing, brewery processes, beer defects, developments in beer brewing, sorghum beers, kaffir and other traditional sorghum beers.
