OnTap Magazine

There is lingering debate among historians and archeologists about when and where exactly beer was born. For years, it was believed that humans made their first grain-based beverage in Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq and parts of Iran, Kuwait, Turkey and Syria) between 3,500 and 3,100 BCE. Archeologists later uncovered evidence of the first fermented beverage (made with fruit, honey and rice) in China around 7,000 BCE. Despite this latter finding, historians largely agree that the earliest confirmed traces of barley beer were in Godin Tepe, a region in western Iran, in the fourth millennium BCE. There is also a general belief that settlers in Sumer likely began growing barley for beer (and/or bread) as far back as 10,000 BCE. As Tara Nurin, the official historian of the Pink Boots Society, tells us, while experts may differ on geographic and timing specifics, they all agree on one thing: women brewed the beer. Sumerian women brewed beer not only for regular consumption, but also for religious ceremonies. It is likely that they served as priestesses of the goddess Ninkasi, who they believed reigned over the brewing process. The ‘Hymn to Ninkasi’ is considered to be history’s oldest written beer recipe. Babylonian women continued the tradition of beer brewing, and it is believed by archeologists that they brought it over to their neighbours, the Egyptians. We have hieroglyphics that show women drinking and brewing beer, and we know that they also worshipped a beer goddess named Tenenit. T hese comments on a brewery’s Instagram page stopped me cold mid-scroll. Founder and sole brewer, Zahra Tabatabai, whose parents immigrated to the US from Iran, had shared screenshots of posts on her page in response to her Persian-inspired beer business, Back Home Beer. The comments–intended to belittle and ultimately silence–brought out a familiar feeling in me. That feeling is frustration with the continued erasure of women, people of colour, and other so-called marginalised groups from their roles–even their very existence–in history. And in this case, that applied invisibility feels particularly egregious given that we are talking about beer history. Beer that was brewed by women. Where's her hijab? Lmfao Middle Eastern flavour back to craft beer? Ah yes, who can forget such flavours as halal. Honestly, isn't the Middle East mostly Muslim and they reject alcohol? In all ancient societies, in the religious mythologies of all ancient cultures, beer was a gift to women from a goddess, never a male god, and women remained bonded in complex religious relationships with feminine deities who blessed the brew vessels.” Alan Eames, The Secret Life of Beer. Zahra’s parentsmoved to theUS from Iran to attend university and then stayed on given the unfolding of the Iranian Revolution that began in 1979. Her grandparents soon followed, joining the family in Georgia, where Zahra grew up. While she has visited Iran, the most recent trip when she was just a teenager, inmany ways the “Home” in her brewery’s name is a place made most real by stories heard since childhood. One of those stories was about beer: her maternal grandfather was a homebrewer in Shiraz, southern Iran. While Zahra was only four years old when he passed away, he was a constant presence in the memories her mother, aunts and grandmother would share, frequently referencing how he infused his beer recipes with ingredients from his garden, later left to ferment in his cellar. On a trip to visit her family in Georgia, Zahra’s grandmother mentioned how much she missed her husband’s beer. Zahra thought to herself, ‘Maybe I can recreate it.’ It hurts me that there are thousands of years of history of fermentation in the region that are being erased because of what the governments are doing today,” Zahra tells me. “This is particularly the case in Iran over the last 40 years…Most people are very surprised to learn about beer’s origins in the region. Gholam-Reza Fakhrabadi, Zahra's grandfather who made beer and wine in Shiraz, Iran before the revolution Zahra still personally delivers her beers in her Prius A GRANDFATHER'S LEGACY ANCIENT BEER GODDESSES ontapmag.co.za | Winter 2023 | 27