Reddit reviews Sacred and Herbal Healing Beers: The Secrets of Ancient Fermentation
We found 29 Reddit comments about Sacred and Herbal Healing Beers: The Secrets of Ancient Fermentation. Here are the top ones, ranked by their Reddit score.
Brewers Publications
I think you should set aside your dog related fears, there are plenty of common household items that you already have that would be way more dangerous than hops. (for the record - I do brew with my dog)
As far as taste goes, that's a much more valid argument. I've read that wormwood has been used as a bittering agent, you might look at some of the traditional Scandinavian brews since they have a different climate and have used berries and such. Finally here is a book that will have some ideas:
http://www.amazon.com/Sacred-Herbal-Healing-Beers-Fermentation/dp/0937381667/ref=wl_it_dp_o?ie=UTF8&coliid=I3H9CZKONQPOV2&colid=1K1774R5OH8L9
Not one I've encountered, but a quick flick through it on Amazon's 'look inside' shows some interesting recipes - though a lot of them come from speculation, rather than historical records.
A book I do use for making 'traditional' beers is Sacred and Herbal Healing Beers which gives both an anthropological history of brewing around the world, and a huge variety of recipes - everything from tribal recipes from indigenous populations, to medieval recipes, as well as meads, psychotropic beers and medicinal recipes.
You could steep it in your beer if you like. It's actually called Mugwort because it was often used to flavor beers. I'll even provide a source! Sacred and Herbal Healing Beers, by Stephen Buhner
Stephen Harrod Buhner's Sacred and Healing Beers
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0937381667/ref=redir_mdp_mobile/184-4529911-3710004
This is the book that got me into herbs and medicinal brewing. Not only is it full of recipes and plant profiles but great lore and history and perspective. A must read- a great chapter on bee products too. I've been eating pollen and honey by the spoonful ever since.
For anyone looking to up their brewing game, I always recommend Brewing Better Beer. It's all about fine tuning your process and simplifying your recipes to only include what you need. It's a sort of zen approach that seems applicable to abbey ales.
Although it's getting a bit out into the weeds, if you're more interested in the farmhouse/wild side of brewing, you might want to have a look at The Drunken Botanist and Sacred and Herbal Healing Beers. It gets into using things that aren't hops in your fermentations. Even though Belgian brewing only grazes herbs and spices, you might find some value there.
I'm from Scotland myself, but I've been transplanted to California. Mugwort is all over the place here, too.
I pulled a recipe from Buhner. I haven't made it before, so I plan on reducing the recipe by 1/4 so I can make a gallon tester.
>Mugwort Ale
>
>(Buhner, pg 379)
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> 3 pounds brown sugar
> 24 oz molasses
> 4 gallons water
> 2 ounces dried mugwort herb
>* yeast
>
>Boil sugar, molasses, water, and herb for 30 minutes. Cool to 70 degrees F, strain into fermenter, and add yeast. Ferment until complete, approximately one week, siphon into bottles brimes with 1/2 teaspoon sugar, and cap. Ready to drink in 10 days to two weeks.
>
>
If you're into that, you might like to read this book: Sacred and Herbal Healing Beers. I think the author gets a little too caught up in the sacred/spiritual malarkey behind the beverages, but there are really quite a lot of interesting beer-like creations in there, most of them with recipes of various levels of detail (most will at least take some guesswork and creative sourcing of ingredients).
This is my full list of books from /r/homebrewing but it includes pro level books:
New Brewers:
Continued Learning:
Specialty/Advanced/Other:
Business Books:
Technical Readings (Textbooks might be expensive):
Check out Bruce (George) Heilshorn's book "Against All Hops". https://www.amazon.com/Against-All-Hops-Techniques-Extraordinary/dp/1624143792
Another good read which Bruce recommends is Buhner's "Sacred and Healing Beers" https://www.amazon.com/Sacred-Herbal-Healing-Beers-Fermentation/dp/0937381667/ref=sr_1_2?crid=3VDTYQE3LECM4&keywords=sacred+and+healing+herbal+beers&qid=1568459625&s=books&sprefix=sacred+and+hea%2Cstripbooks%2C139&sr=1-2
Sacred and Herbal Healing Beers has several interesting chapters on the history and mythological lore surrounding mead, gruits, beer, and numerous indigenous drinks such as pulque (Aztec fermented agave cactus). There are also a ton of recipes and discussion about traditional ingredients, although you might want to consult some modern scientific information about any alleged medicinal or healing properties these ingredients might have.
Juniper and bog myrtle were two of the most common ingredients in traditional Norwegian brewing. Yarrow was also used throughout Scandinavia, often together with St John's wort. Bog myrtle, wild rosemary, and yarrow was a popular combination for gruits. Looking into what people have done with those would be a good place to start.
Id ask r/Homebrewing about mead and whatnot, i brew beers ciders and wines myself and one thing i can tell you is that there are inumerable ways to screw it up, super easy to ruin a batch, afaik mead takes months and months, ale idk but i can brew a decent batch of beer in 2 weeks. Best guess assuming 5e id start with a general intelligence check and a nature check for portions and whatnot then maybe a survival check on behalf of the yeast, it is possibke to give it so much sugar it just says fuck it and dies (not actually what happens but you get the gist) then either a history, insight or medicine check for proper storage, i doybt your going to have them bottle it but you still gotta rack it off/ditch the trub before you let it sit as that can drastically alter the flavor, as well as skunking beer with too much light, though some people (weird people) like it. That's just what i could think of off the top of my head though, theres plenty of ways to brew
Edit i can't personally vouch for the book as i'm still waiting for payday to buy it, but the reviews seem promising on not only numerous varieties of beer but also more ancient methods of brewing, so on reviews alone i'd recommend taking a look at this book
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0937381667/ref=ox_sc_act_image_4?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1
Editedit forgot to mention that while its super easy to screw up, if you don't screw up than it's super easy to make homebrew, sounds weird but that's how it is.
Edit^3* as for how much it can produce i'm not sure on portions for mead but when i do countrywines 3lbs of fruit/veggies/roots/whatever makes roughly one gallon of wine finished product
End ramble.
I was looking at buying Sacred and Herbal Healing Beers: The Secrets of Ancient Fermentation (http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0937381667/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE) - as it contains many gruit recipes but I want to know if it's worthwhile.
Actually, a lot of northern tribes didn't have beer or fermentation. Tobacco was traded all over N. America and used for ceremonial purposes, and certainly hallucinogens, but most of the non-corn-dependent tribes did not use alcohol until contact with Europeans. If you're really interested in traditional beer styles, though, check out Sacred and Healing Herbal Beers. It's a good bit of research that traces a lot of indigenous brewing techniques.
http://www.amazon.ca/Sacred-Herbal-Healing-Beers-Fermentation/dp/0937381667
There's this book, which might help:
http://www.amazon.com/Sacred-Herbal-Healing-Beers-Fermentation/dp/0937381667/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1289413817&sr=1-1
Haven't read it...but it's on my to-do list.
https://www.amazon.com/Sacred-Herbal-Healing-Beers-Fermentation/dp/0937381667
Great book if you wanna read some great history.
I think this book maybe what you are looking for.
I haven't read it myself, but I've heard that Sacred and Herbal Healing Beers: The Secrets of Ancient Fermentation has some good info.
this book has a great beer history section, and recipes
they used herbs like mugwort and wormwood in everything, read this book
some ale spoiled
some ale was exquisite
Belgian Lambic is a great study in natural fermentations
I don't have any problems with bacterial infections, but I use all glass or stainless steel and any hose or air lock or cork I use gets rinsed in Starsan so that the surfactant and phosphoric acid form a no rinse layer of acid that is uninhabitable for the spoiling bugs.
Just start some good brewing habits, brewing GREAT beer is easy, when you know how
Caraway Ale (From Sacred and Herbal Healing Beers by Stephen Harror Buhner)
Original Recipe:
My adaptation of the recipe:
This came out to be a very malty beer. There are no hops in it to balance out the maltiness. This is probably the reason why it calls for unmalted rye. Nevertheless it is a delicious beer. There is something to be said though for the aroma. It is quite strange, and if you brew this I strongly suggest waiting 2 weeks after primary for conditioning because the aroma can be overwhelming at first. I thought I was going to have to dump it because of how awful it smelled, but the smell cleared up nicely after 2 weeks. The aftertaste is a bit unusual too.
If I were to brew this again, I'd probably lighten up on the malts a bit. Probably would raise the % on the pale malt and reduce the chocolate to no more than 2%.
Caraway supposedly has medicinal properties that help you digest food, making this a fantastic beer to have with a meal. So far even with its minor flaws it has been a hit with everyone who has tried it.
I've been reading this book lately and it's pretty out there, but a fun read still. I've not made any of the beers in it, but they have several examples of using millet and buckwheat in their recipes. Like I said tough, the recipes in this book are way off the beaten path... just sayin'.
Hey guys, I've been brewing Gruit for a couple of months now. Got turned onto it by my neighbor who has been doing it for years. Here is a video of his process Brewing Beer Over A Fire Pit, and we will try to upload more as we go.
The brew bible we are working from is Sacred and Herbal Healing Beers, by Stephen Harrod Buhner. I've been doing research trying to find more information and recipes for gruits, and this book seems to be a major resource for almost everyone. It's also a great read, exploring the history of brewing around the world.
The main reason I love gruit, is that without the hops you don't feel tired or full when drinking it. And with the yarrow and wormwood you get a mild psychotropic effect so you feel pleasant and alert. My friend drinks it every night during the winter because these herbs are used for skin care and drinking a bottle or two a night keeps his skin from cracking when he's working outside the next day.
I'm starting to experiment with new recipes, just tried a sage ale and a ginger beer. Bottling tonight, if there is interest I will post info/pictures.
Here is the desktop version of your link
This is what you're looking for
http://www.amazon.com/Sacred-Herbal-Healing-Beers-Fermentation/dp/0937381667
The best collection of intoxicating and medicinal fermented drinks from all over the world. My favorite chapter is entitled "Psychotropic and highly inebriating beers"
Are we talking about just beer here? Anyone thinking about something like Mead?
I've looked into home brewing off and on, try reading this book
Just use the web, I've been brewing for around 20 years
edit, However there is one book that I've found very refreshing
Sacred and Herbal Healing Beers: The Secrets of Ancient Fermentation
Ofcourse you could make it yourself, depending on how aged you want it it can be ready from anywhere between 1 month to a few years. Here is a good link: http://www.bardicbrews.net/. Also wholefood and Central Market have a few varieties. BTW meads are excellent, a superb book on the origines of mead and other indigenous fermentations: Sacred and Herbal Healing Beers
Not sure. The recipe came from Sacred Herbal Healing Beers and followed it to the T, which in retrospect when a recipe is coming from the 1800s or so you might want to tweak it a bit. Ours came out way to sweet, with an odd bitterness from the nettles. I'd like to try it again, but not sure I want to ruin another batch of it.
check this out, one of my favorite beer books.. loaded with recipes like this.
http://www.amazon.com/Sacred-Herbal-Healing-Beers-Fermentation/dp/0937381667