Chinese archaeologists have found in Shaanxi province ancient brewery.
Chinese and American scientists have studied pottery, which presumably was used for the manufacture of beer five thousand years ago, and found out what ingredients were used in the manufacture of the drink.
The research results were published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Alcoholic beverages were known in China, with more than 9 thousand years ago. They were made by fermenting a mixture of rice, honey, hawthorn fruit, or oranges. Beer in China appeared much later, the oldest known specimens Dating from the period of the 3250 – 3046 years ago. As the main ingredient in use of grain millet, barley and wheat, which was manufactured from malt.
In 2004-2006, the archaeologists discovered two pits that were dug in the soil in an archaeological layer dated to the period 5400-4900 years ago. The depth of one of the pits was approximately 3.7 metres and the other of 2.5 – 2.7 meters. In each pit was made of a pottery kiln, they have been found ceramic fragments of vessels of different shapes: pots with a wide mouth, amphorae and craters.
According to researchers, the pit was intended for brewing. To test their hypothesis, the scientists analyzed sediment found on the shards. It was found that the precipitate contained calcium oxalate, a substance that is formed during the fermentation and storage of beer and is the main substance of the so-called “beer stone”. The main components of beer in ancient China were millet, barley and grass Iovleva tears.
