Where Beer Began: Is the Mesopotamian Origin Story Correct & The Birth of Brewing

Hello my curious archeaogastronomers!

Who were the first beer makers? Why did they even made beer in the first place? Can we even find a Civilization to be the clear winner in this "race"? What's the word for beer in ancient Sumerian?

What role the priests and kings plaid in this? Who even drunk beer in the ancient Mesopotamian world? All this and many more questions were buzzing through my mind.

On today's episode I have as a guest the author of the book In The Land of Ninkasi: A History of Beer in Ancient Mesopotamia, Tate Paulette.

Tate’s book has recently won two awards:

Felicia A. Holton Book Award, Archaeological Institute of America

This award is given annually to a writer or writers who, through a major work of non-fiction, represents the importance and excitement of archaeology to the general public. The work should have broad public appeal and be written for an adult lay audience in a clear and engaging style. It should convey the excitement of archaeological discovery accurately and responsibly. It should be well-researched and provide new insight for the general public. 

https://www.archaeological.org/2026-aia-awards-spotlight-felicia-a-holton-book-award/

And he also won the Nancy Lapp Popular Book Award, American Society of Overseas Research:

This award is presented to the author/editor of a book published in the last two years that offers a new synthesis of archaeological or textual evidence from the Ancient Near East and Eastern Mediterranean intended to reach an audience of scholars as well as students and the broader public.

https://www.asor.org/about-asor/honors-awards/previous-award-recipients/

Alright! Time for my delightful and interesting I hope recommendations for this week are the following:

Disco scallops:

Here’s a link:

https://www.discoscallops.co.uk/

A Spirit Never to Betray” before tequila and mescal there was another: David Lauer investigates the fate of a spiky ancient desert plant called sotol, and its alliance with generations of artisans who distil a fiery spirit from its heart.

https://dark-mountain.net/a-spirit-never-to-betray/

And finally the website https://www.ukrainer.net

A community and organisation that has been researching Ukraine and the Ukrainian context since 2016, telling stories to Ukrainian audiences and broadcasting them to the world in dozens of languages.

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Enjoy!

Photo credits : Book Tate Paulette, Cuneiform Tablets Justin Kase Conder, Portrait Kathryn Grossman

Thom & The Delicious Legacy

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