Beer From Jesus' Era Recreated by Jerusalem Brewery Using Gene of Wheat From Biblical Times
A microbrewery in Jerusalem has created a beer it believes was drank during the biblical times of Jesus.
Itai Gutman, owner of Herzl Brewery in Jerusalem, told The Jerusalem Post in a recent interview that he decided to make a biblical-themed beer after learning that Tel Aviv University had isolated a gene of wheat believed to exist during Jesus' time.
"I found this article about these guys at the Tel Aviv University that made the genome of the model of wheat, the same grain I used and just made a light bulb light up and I just contacted them and within a few days I had several kilograms of this material, we just started to process and eventually is this beer that we're drinking," Gutman told the media outlet.
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The brewery owner added that the end product had a "surprising flavor" with hints of fruits, such as raspberries, although there were no fruit fusions in his concoction.
Gutman told Reuters that he and his fellow employees were spurred by curiosity when deciding to make the innovative beer. There are reportedly only a few bottles left, and most of the experimental alcohol was shared between Gutman and his friends, rather than sold to customers.
"We were curious about being able to come up with the first 'biblical' beer," Gutman said. "It's really not the kind of flavor that has a market."
Local wineries in Israel have also tried their hand at recreating wines that Jesus likely drank with his disciples.
As the New York Times reported in December 2015, Recanati Winery in Hefer Valley, Israel released a wine last year called marawi that is believed to be derived from the same grape used in Jesus' time to make the popular alcoholic beverage.
Winemakers at Recanati partnered with researchers at Ariel University in the West Bank to produce the wine, which contains marawi and jandali grapes dating back to A.D. 220.
"All our scriptures are full with wine and with grapes — before the French were even thinking about making wine, we were exporting wine," Eliyashiv Drori, a researcher with the university, told the New York Times. "We have a very ancient identity, and for me, reconstructing this identity is very important. For me, it's a matter of national pride."
Drori added that there is certainly a market in Israel for biblical-era beverages.
"People are very enthusiastic about drinking a wine that King David had on his table, or for the same matter, Jesus or any other biblical figure," he told CNN. "They all grew here, they all lived here, and they all ate and drank wine here."
The researcher added that to him, delving more into ancient alcohol allows him to connect with his history and his ancestors.
"For me, reconnecting to that is actually reconnecting to our roots, to our history, to the way of life of our ancestors. That's a big thing for me," Drori said.
