Hopped beer (hops as preservative)
Cerveza lupulada (lúpulo como conservante)
- Date
- c. 822 · confidence low
- Place
- Corbie, Somme, France
- Credited to
- Benedictine monks of Corbie and brewers of northern Europe
- Field
- Life & health
⚠️ Disputed: the sources disagree.
What it is
Hops add bitterness and antimicrobial compounds that preserve beer far better than herb mixtures (gruit). Their use spread from Carolingian monasteries until they dominated European beer.
The statutes of Abbot Adalhard of Corbie (822) are the earliest accepted mention of hops; a 736 charter citing hops in the Hallertau is much disputed. General use in beer appears in the 12th century (Hildegard) and spreads in the 13th-15th centuries.
What it led to
- durable beer fit for long-distance trade (Hanse)
- decline of gruit and its feudal monopoly
- styles such as pilsner and lager