An Ancient Recipe and Poem About Beer

The Hymn to Ninkasi is an ancient Sumerian poem that praises, Ninkasi,  the Sumerian goddess of beer, and brewing, along with a recipe for brewing beer.

The Hymn to Ninkasi. Copies of the hymn on clay tablets date back to around 1800 BCE during the late Sumerian period in Mesopotamia (modern Iraq).

The Sumerians were the earliest known civilization in the Middle East region, who lived in ancient cities around 4,000 to 6,000 years ago.

The hymn begins by describing Ninkasi's divine parentage - her father, the god Enki and her mother, Ninti, the queen of the abzu (freshwater ocean).

The hymn describes the beer brewing process, carried out by Ninkasi herself.

The steps include:
- Mixing bappir (a type of bread or sourdough) with aromatics in a pit
- Baking the bappir bread in an oven
- Spreading germinated grains to make malt
- Soaking the malt
- Spreading the mashed grains on reed mats to cool
- Holding and brewing the wort (unfermented beer) with honey and wine
- Allowing fermentation in a vat
- Filtering and pouring the finished beer

The hymn compares the flowing beer to the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.

It praises Ninkasi for providing the "blissful mood" and "joyous heart" that beer brings.

The poem may have been sung as a work song by ancient brewers and passed down over generations.

Copies of the hymn on clay tablets date back to around 1800 BCE during the late Sumerian period in Mesopotamia (modern Iraq).

This hymn provides some insight into the art of brewing and the cultural significance of beer in ancient times.

The poem reveals that the beer was made not only from the usual grains, yeasts and water – but also from bread. This "beer bread", came from a twice-baked barley bread, which provided some of the sugars needed to get the brewing process started.

Later, beer became an integral part of Egyptian daily life, religious rituals, and even as a form of currency for workers. 

More information and the recipe here