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Codex Fermentarius

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10-commandments
Here’s another interesting list of the The Brewer’s Ten Commandment, this one more contemporary. It was created by Kelly Ryan, my friend Luke’s assistant brewer at Epic Brewing in New Zealand. He apparently recently left to take a job at a new brewpub in Hamilton, and on his new blog, BeeRevolution, proposed the following as his Codex Fermentarius:

Codex Fermentarius

  1. Thou shalt not covet another brewers’ kegs or casks.
  2. Honour thy other brewer’s recipe choice.
  3. Rejoice to thy daughter yeast and thy mother yeast.
  4. Thy glass shalt always be full. Never half full. Never half empty.
  5. Remember thy first brew day. And keep it holy.
  6. Thou shalt not steal another brewer’s hop combination. This is hopdultery.
  7. Thou shalt not covet another brewery’s name. Or beer name. Especially if it is that of a German cyclist.
  8. Seven days thou shalt labour, and do all thy work. Thou art a brewer. Drinking is work.
  9. Taste thy water, taste thy malted grains, taste thy yeast. Don’t taste thy hop flowers.
  10. Thou shalt not drink false beverages. We know what thee are.

In the body of the text, Ryan also offered to expand the list, and invited people to suggest additional commandments. Here’s a sample of some of the ones he got so far:

  • Release not the fruits of thy labour until thou has rested (at least) upon the seventh day (to banish all traces of the unholy VDK).
  • Thou shall wasteth NO beer. Even if it is 8am.
  • Thou shalt have no other beverage before Beer. A whiskey chaser afterwards, fine, but not before.
  • Ever shalt thou have full tanks and clean lines.
  • Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s brewsheet.
  • Thou shall worship local brews, locally – only if your hair doesn’t drop out.
  • Thou shall cry over spilt beer.
  • Thou shall burp as a sign of worship.

There’s some good ones in there. What would you add?

The Brewer’s 10 Commandments

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10-commandments
Here’s an interesting list of the The Brewer’s 10 Commandments, or Die 10 Gebote des Bierbrauers, that I found on the website for the Museum of Beer & Brewing in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It’s origin is apparently from “the Brewers 1887 Convention.”

The Brewer’s 10 Commandments

  1. Thou shalt love the god Gambrinus above all and not cloud his honor with bad beer.
  2. Thou shalt not honor any other beer gods and not stretch your beers with chemical additions.
  3. Thou shalt brew good beer during the week so the people can become healthy again on Sundays.
  4. Thou shalt obey mother Hops and father Barley, honor them as providers of your wealth.
  5. Thou shalt not kill, with beers of poor quality.
  6. Thou shalt watch your taverner more, than the pretty waitresses and women.
  7. Thou shalt not steal money from the people’s pockets, nor fill kegs and bottles with water.
  8. Thou shalt not mix unlawful materials into the beer, nor sell bad beer as good.
  9. Thou shalt not expect more from the people than thy beer hath worth because there is already enough poor quality on the market.
  10. Thou shalt not demand that your wife, children and workers drink your beer if it is spoiled, watered down or of poor taste.

Zumologists In The Zythepsary

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history
Here are some obsolete words that need to be brought back. We all know zymurgy is “the branch of applied chemistry dealing with fermentation, as in winemaking, brewing, the preparation of yeast, etc.” not to mention a magazine, and zymology “is the study of zymurgy, the area of applied science related to fermentation. It deals with the biochemical processes involved in fermentation, with yeast selection and physiology, and with the practical issues of brewing.” So far so good, but have you ever heard of these?

Zumologist
A brewer. Webster’s 1828 has this definition. “n. One who is skilled in the fermentation of liquors.” It’s also an alternate form of “zymologist.” And one dictionary claims this as its origins. “fr. Gk zume, to ferment + -ologist“
Zumology
Webster’s 1828 has this definition. “n. [Gr., ferment; to ferment; discourse.] A treatise on the fermentation of liquors, or the doctrine of fermentation.“
Zythepsary
A brewery, according to “Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, published 1913 by C. & G. Merriam Co.” Apparently it’s from “Ancient Greek ζῦθος (zuthos, ‘barley beer’) + ἕψω (hepsō, ‘boil’)”
One 1835 dictionary lists the word thusly:
ZYTHEPSARY, zidi-iVser-4, n. A place for brewing ; a brewery ; a brewhouse. A pronouncing and explanatory dictionary of the English language: Page 740 James Knowles — 1835.”
And case you’re curious here’s how to pronounce zythepsary.
Zythum
The same 1835 dictionary defines zythum as “n. A beverage ; a liquor composed of malt and corn. A pronouncing and explanatory dictionary of the English language: Page 740 James Knowles — 1835.”

Those are some pretty cool words. Come on people, let’s starting using those again. Who doesn’t want to go for a Zythum, made by a Zumologist at your local Zythepsary?

Here’s a passage by Charles Dickens in the weekly Journal “All the Year Round” using the word zythepsary. It’s from 1861, when the word was already uncommon, apparently.

“But the oddest things of all are to be found in the dictionaries. Why they are all kept there no one knows; but what man in his senses would use such words as zythepsary for a brewhouse, and zumologist for a brewer; would talk of a stormy day as procellous and himself as madefied; of his long-legged son as increasing in procerity but sadly inarcid, of having met wilh much procacity from such a one; of a bore as a macrologist; of an aged horse as macrobiolic; of important business as moliminous,and his daughter’s necklace as moniliform; of some one’s talk as meracious, and lament, his last night’s nimiety of wine at that dapatical feast, whence he was taken by ereption?”

And this Pabst ad from 1897 refers to the Pabst Zythepsary.

Pabst-bock-1897

And here’s science fiction writer Isaac Asimov using zymologist in 1962’s “The Caves of Steel.”

“‘I’m a zymologist, if you don’t mind.’

‘What’s the difference?’

Clousarr looked lofty. ‘A chemist is a soup-pusher, a stink-operator. A zymologist is a man who helps keep a few billion people alive. I’m a yeast-culture specialist.'”

I’ve heard Yeast-wrangler before, but not that one. That’s also pretty awesome. I’d love to start seeing that on brewers’ business cards: “Yeast-Culture Specialist.”

asimov-caves-of-steel

Under the Anheuser Bush

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music
Another historical oddity, Under the Anheuser Bush, was a song written around 1903, with words by Andrew B. Sterling and music by Harry Von Tilzer. This version is sung by Billy Murray and is a 1903 Old Edison Recording.

anheuser-busch-song-1904

Here’s the lyrics:

Talk about the shade of the sheltering palms
Praise the bamboo tree and it’s wide spreading charms
There’s a little bush that grows right here in town
You know it’s name it has won such renown
Often with my sweetheart just after the play
To this little place then my footsteps will stray
If she hesitates when she looks at the sign
Softly I whisper, “Now Sue, don’t decline….”

Rave about the place where you swells go to dine
Picture you and me with our sandwich and stein
Underneath the bush where the good fellows meet
Life seems worth living, our joy is complete
If you’re sad at heart take a trip there tonight
You’ll forget your woe and your eyes will grow bright.
There you’ll surely find me with my sweetheart, Sue.
Come down this evening, I’ll introduce you.

Come, come, come and make eyes with me
Under the Anheuser Bush
Come come drink some Budwise with me
Under the Anheuser Bush
Hear the old German Band
Just let me hold your hand YAH!
Do, do come and have a stein or two
Under the Anheuser Bush!

Here’s Verse 1:

And Verse 2:

Under-the-Anheuser-Bush

Below is yet another version, a little more scratchy than the other one, but is also sung by Billy Murray. It was recorded in Philadelphia on January 15, 1904 and is Take 4. I found it at the National Jukebox at the Library of Congress.

This one was recorded on vinyl by Monarch Records.

dlc_victor_2639_01_b888_04

The Moon-Faced Man

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man-in-the-moon
Here’s an odd artifact, a postcard from 1910, with a Holland, Michigan postmark, featuring an illustration of a moon-faced man and the following poem:

Bike the moon, my brethren dear,
I am “full” as full can be,
Full of grace and lager beer,
Full of food and sanctity!

moon-card

Lines Written On The Barley Corn

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john-barleycorn
Here’s another interesting piece of history, an 1867 woodcut illustration of a farmer and a donkey carrying a bundle of barley corn, with a version of the John Barleycorn song engraved below. This one was printed in Dublin. There were countless versions of the English folksong, and its actual origin unknown. The version written by Scottish poet Robert Burns is probably the most well-known, though it was written around 1782, when it had been around for at least several centuries. It’s also been recorded by numerous bands, including a popular version by the English band Traffic. And finally, I wrote an overview of John Barleycorn a few years ago that includes the Burns poem.

Lines-Written-On-Barley-Corn-trimmed

Reuters TV Interview With Jim Koch

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sam-adams-new
Reuters TV has a lengthy interview with Boston Beer Co. founder Jim Koch, conducted by Robert Wolf, who is “an outsider advisor to President Obama,” on the President’s Council on Jobs and Competitiveness. The interview, part of the “Impact Players” series, is business-focused, but they also discuss the present state of the beer industry and Koch’s history and background. It runs just under half an hour. Enjoy.