Reproducing an Ancient New World Beer

The Edible Geography blog has an amusing piece about Patrick McGovern, the "Indiana Jones of Ancient Ales, Wines, and Extreme Beverages," and his role in the production of a 3,400-year-old Mesoamerican beer recreated from a chemical analysis of pottery fragments. "McGovern describes his collaboration with Dogfish Head craft brewers ... to create a beer based on the core ingredients of early New World alcohol: chocolate beans (in nib form, as the cacao pods are too perishable to transport from Honduras to Delaware), honey, corn, ancho chillis, and annatto. ... The result? Cloudy and quite strong (9% A.B.V.), but more refreshing than you would think: the chocolate is savoury rather than sweet, and the chilli is just a very subtle, almost herbal, aftertaste. There is almost no head."

Comments

Head down in shame

[oldhack]

This is the sorta thing that shames me when facing the Russians. Stop it.

Re:Head down in shame

[morgan_greywolf]

In Soviet Russia, ancient mesoamerican beer shames YOU!!!

Re:Almost no head

[nickdwaters]

You need to powerup and upgrade to a new wife, my friend. The other didn't get a big enough ring.