A Pint of Preservation

That's right folks, this week we're talking about beer. It may seem completely unrelated to historic preservation, but stick with me for a moment and you'll see that it has everything to do with it.

In my historic preservation law and economics class, we're reading an interesting book called The Restoration Economy written by Storm Cunningham. In the book I came across a fascinating story of the William Brothers Brewing Company in Scotland.

You probably know that beer has been a major staple of most cultures for millennia. Without a refrigeration system, letting grains and yeast ferment was a safe way to preserve food supplies. In some places of the world fermented beverages were also a healthier alternative to local water. According to Cunningham, archaeologists have discovered remnants of brewing sites in Scotland dating back over 4,000 years. The Scots have a long history of ales that used such local ingredients as leaves, flowers, berries, pine needles, bushes and even seaweed. Heather ale is likely the most well known. As Scotland is so famous for its beautiful Heather this is no surprise.

This image was taken from: www.lastminutecottageholiday.co.uk

Cunningham further notes that these homemade brews were forbidden by English invaders. Thus, many of the original recipes were lost. Instead, Scots were required by law to only make beer using ingredients like barely malt and hops. For those of you sold on 'American Lager', I must include this quote: "Of course, even this formula is far superior to the corn-based chemical soup that comes from the major U.S. industrial brewers, many of whom add plastics to form a longer-lasting head." Ouch!

As the House of Lords owned all of the hop farms, we can see why this law was enacted. Indeed those were dark days for the Scots, but rejoice in the fact that the Williams Brothers have brought these original homemade brews back to life! These beers have quite the reputation world wide, winning countless awards along the way. Please visit their website for a bit more on the history and the outstanding different flavors: www.williamsbrosbrew.com



Besides making a great brew, the brewery operates out of an early 18th century mill which was restored under the non-profit Scottish Heritage. Furthermore, the brewery saved a square mile of peat-and-heather-based ecosystem known as flat moss from being turned into a monoculture tree farm. The widely popular Fraoch ale relies on this moss, and the brewery pays the tenant for its harvests. If anyone is going to Scotland soon, or if there's an extremely well stocked liquor store in your area, would you please buy me one of these, I'm dying to try one!

Actually, scratch that, I think I'd rather try a Kelpie. Ok, if there was ever a beer that was good for you this has got to be it:
A beer both good for you and the earth! The Kelpie brew is made with bladderwack seaweed. This is important because a traditional Scottish method of fertilizing fields uses this seaweed. This use was dying out in recent times but has enjoyed a bit of recovery thanks to the brewery. Seaweed is an incredibly rich resource of vitamins and minerals, and quite tasty too! The barley used in their production is organically grown on a farm that has revived this important practice.

This is truly a brewery I could stand behind. I've never given much thought to beer production in the past. And coming from Missouri I can't say I've ever felt much loyalty to Budweiser. But a brewery that has revived an ancient method of brewing, using recipes that were lost for thousands of years, brewing in a historic building, and encouraging environmentally sound practices, I'll toast to that!

*This blog is dedicated to Jimmy and Tyler- you know why!