JERUSALEM—Israeli researchers raised a glass on Wednesday to celebrate a long-brewing project of making beer and mead using yeasts extracted from ancient clay vessels —some over 5,000 years old. ‘Jurassic Park,’ to a pointADVERTISEMENTBut the Israeli scientists say this is the first time fermented drinks have been made from revived ancient yeasts. Aren Maeir, a Bar Ilan University archaeologist, excavates at Tel es-Safi, the biblical city of Gath, where ancient Philistine beer pots yielded yeasts used to brew a beer offered to journalists. “We tried to recreate some of the old flavors that people in this area were consuming hundreds and thousands of years ago,” said Shmuel Naky, a craft brewer from the Jerusalem Beer Center, who helped produce the beer and mead. Naky described the beer as “spicy, and somewhat fruity, and it’s very complex in flavor,” all attributes produced by the ancient yeast.

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer May 23, 2019 18:31 UTC