Image Credit: “Sumerian beer drinkers with drinking straws, around 3,000 B.C.” Near East Museum, Berlin The harlot spoke to Enkidu, saying: "Eat the food, Enkidu, it is the way one lives. Drink the beer, as is the custom of the land." Enkidu ate the food until he was sated, he drank the beer --seven jugs!-- and became expansive and sang with joy! He was elated and his face glowed. He splashed his shaggy body with water, and rubbed himself with oil, and turned into a human. -The Epic of Gilgamesh, Tablet II (c.2100-1200 BC) , Translated by Maureen Gallery Kovacs, Electronic Edition by Wolf Carnahan, 1998 (www.ancienttexts.org) 10,000 years ago in the lands of the Levant, something new, and remarkable was beginning to happen. For 300,000 years (12,000 generations!) or more, Homo Sapian groups had moved and spread nomadically to every inhabitable corner of the Earth. 10,000 years ago, some of them decided to stop – for a beer. It sounds absurd to claim that humanity was brewing and developing a love for beer even before we domesticated barley. More so to claim that our infatuation with beer may have played a role in the very development of agriculture. Even more so to suggest that our love for beer has also directly influenced our development of pottery, livestock, architecture, bureaucracy, germ theory, industrialization, and so much more… but if you’re among those Homo Sapiens who share a love of great beer, then maybe these claims make you thirsty to learn more. In that spirit, we cordially invite you to a special evening, and a Louisville Beer Week exclusive program, filled with history, tasting, talking, touching, and learning all about humanity’s greatest beverage. Join the Frazier, the Louisville Ale Trail, and partner breweries for: “How to Brew Beer in 10,000 Years.” ←(hyperlink to ticket page) On Tuesday, October 22, (6-9 PM) the Frazier’s main hall will transform into our “Brewseum”, where you will be invited to sample your way through unique exhibitions, each focusing on the flavor and history of one of beer's four fundamental ingredients: grain, hops, water, and yeast. Because all this learning is thirsty work, each exhibit will also feature a tasting station with carefully selected beers from our Louisville breweries that illustrate each ingredient's impact on the beer’s final flavor and offer a taste of history with classic and historical representations. Finally, with a beer in hand, join us in the Brown Foreman Theater for a presentation of “How to Brew Beer in 10,000 Years” a 30-minute, multi-media program exploring the co-evolution of beer and humanity, the links between beer and pivotal points in history, and how beer has helped to shape the vibrant and “weird” culture that we all enjoy in Louisville today. Tickets limited, available now: How To Brew Beer in 10,000 Years ←(hyperlink to ticket page) Tuesday, Oct 22. 6-9pm Frazier Main Level
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2nd Annual Oktoberfest Celebration Returns to Downtown Louisville |