Transcriber’s Notes: The original spelling, hyphenation, and punctuation have been retained, with the exception of apparent typographical errors which have been corrected. Text in Italics is indicated between _underscores_. Text in small capitals has been replaced by regular uppercase text. AMERICAN BEER Glimpses of Its History and Description of Its Manufacture NEW YORK: UNITED STATES BREWERS’ ASSOCIATION 1909 PREFACE This book is composed mainly of selected parts of two separate essays written by the undersigned and published many years ago on two different occasions and for two widely dissimilar purposes. The reproduction of these sketches in the present form appears to be warranted by a growing demand for information concerning the process of brewing of which one of the two essays here referred to contains a popular description, often quoted not only in magazines and newspapers, but also in encyclopaedias. That booklet, copyrighted by Mr. George Ehret, is now out of print; but with characteristic kindness Mr. Ehret has authorized the United States Brewers’ Association to reprint the whole or any part of it, as present needs may demand. We have, accordingly, reproduced without abridgment everything relating to the processes of brewing, malting, refrigeration, etc., and have only changed or amplified the remainder of the text in such a manner as to bring it up to date. As to the historical part, the sketches herein contained are not intended to go beyond the narrow limit indicated by the sub-title. They afford only random glimpses of the history of American brewing, but enough, probably, to create in the mind of the reader a desire to read those other books published by the Association, in which the subject is treated fully and comprehensively from various points of view. G. THOMANN. NEW YORK, NOVEMBER, 1909. CHAPTER I. NEW ENGLAND The writer of an historical essay dealing with the origin of the art of brewing, even in countries of comparatively recent civilization, cannot escape the necessity of taking into account a certain element of mythical obscurity, calculated to throw a legendary glamour around and about the introduction of a beverage, the invention of which has been ascribed by the popular imagination of ancient times to certain benevolent gods, either male or female, according to the mythological systems of the different countries.