The rise of modern brewing occurred in Northern Europe. There is a possibility that some of the expertise came from the Middle East, although independent discoveries may have also occurred. In the Middle Ages, brewing beer was an everyday thing. “In Burton-upon-Trent, UK, the abbey founded in the 11th century had a brewery whose product contributed to this town's reputation as a center of brewing excellence.” (Boulton et al). Belgian beers owe much to the skill of medieval brewers. Some of these breweries have survived and still produce "the bottled specialty Trappist beers". (Boulton et al) Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Beer was popular, which is reflected in the fact that it was the staple drink of all classes. Sambrook (1996) states that beer consumption in individual medieval noble families was usually between seven hundred and fifty and fifteen hundred hectolitres. The widespread popularity of beer was probably greatly influenced by subsequent Saxon and Danish invasions (Hackwood, 1985). The benefits of using hops in brewing were known in ancient times and there are records detailing their cultivation in ancient Babylon (Corran, 1975). This knowledge was passed on to Europe. Hops were initially used along with other herbs such as rosemary, bog myrtle, sweet wind, coriander, cumin, nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger, yarrow and yarrow. Blends of such herbs were called “gruit” and with local variations were incorporated into beers to add flavor and improve keeping qualities (Forget, 1988). The widespread use of cultivated hops, as opposed to gruit, began in Germany, probably in the 10th century, and from there spread to the rest of Europe. Hops were introduced to Kent in England probably by Flemish weavers in the 15th century (Lawrence, 1990 ). As well as altering the flavor of the beer, the preservative qualities of hops allowed for weaker, longer-lasting beers to be produced as it was no longer necessary to rely entirely on the antimicrobial qualities of ethanol. The arrival of hops in the UK has marked the need to distinguish between ale and beer. The latter has been interpreted as referring only to a fermented, hopped malt drink; however, as Sambrook (1996) discusses, other meanings were also used. Thus, when commercial and home production were parallel operations, the product of the city brewery was often called beer and the home-brewed material as ale. In another sense, ale was used to describe the product obtained from early strong worts, while the term beer derives from later weaker worts, hence the expression “small beer”. Please note: this is just an example. Request an article customization now from our expert writers. Get a Custom Essay There was resistance to the use of hops in most European countries, mostly due to vested interests. Therefore, beer and gruit suppliers all had good commercial reasons to discourage the production of hoppy beers. Ultimately, these sanctions were unsuccessful, and in response to public demand, the use of hops became the norm.