双语有声阅读:The History of Beer 细说啤酒

One of the world's oldest stories, The Epic¹ of Gilgamesh, is a lively tale of heroism² and sacrifice from ancient Sumer. It also contains one of the earliest references to beer. In the story, a female friend of the hero changes a wild, primitive³ beast into a cultured human being by giving him seven cups of beer.

In reality, drinking that much beer is more likely to have the opposite effect. Nowadays, it is the beverage⁴ of choice among rowdy young people on a Saturday night out, and it has fueled acts of violence and destruction in more than a few societies. It is, nevertheless, the oldest known alcoholic⁵ drink in the world and is widely enjoyed.

Fermented⁶ beverages⁷ made from various types of grain appeared independently in different locations all over the ancient world from Africa to China. The word beer itself comes from a Latin verb meaning "to drink", and the ancient Romans were certainly no strangers to the brew⁸. However, because they considered it the drink of barbarians⁹ , the Romans generally preferred wine.

In ancient times, people who made beer lacked the means to preserve and filter it properly, so the drink was cloudy and turned bad quickly. It was medieval European monks¹⁰ who introduced scientific brewing¹¹ techniques in an effort to produce a nutritious¹² beverage to supplement their meager¹³ diets.

The monks were not restricted to only brewing the beer, and consumption of it within the monasteries¹⁴ reached astonishing levels. One report from Belgium said that monks were drinking as much as five liters a day. Monastery¹⁵ breweries¹⁶ in Europe also ran their own pubs and enjoyed a tax-free status that came to be resented by the growing merchant class.

As the power and influence of the church declined, the art of brewing became an important commercial activity. Today, beer production is largely a high-tech¹⁷ process in the hands of huge corporations or government monopolies. However, recent years have seen a growth in the popularity of small-scale breweries, reflecting an increasing global demand for quality and variety.

吉尔伽美什史诗》是世界上流传最久的故事之一，栩栩如生地讲述了古代苏美尔地区（古代幼发拉底河下游的一个地区）的英勇事迹及壮烈牺牲的场面。史诗也涉及有关啤酒的最早传说。在故事中英雄的一位女友用七杯啤酒将一头野性，原始的野兽变成了一位文雅的男子。 

事实上，饮用太多啤酒更可能产生相反的效果。啤酒是时下血气方刚的年轻人在周六夜晚狂欢时必备的饮料，而啤酒也在为数不少的社群里激发了暴力和破坏行为。尽管如此，它仍是世界上公认为最古老的含酒精饮料，而且广受喜爱。

这些由多种谷类制成的发酵饮料，古时候从非洲到中国的世界各国都各自单独生产。啤酒这个词源自拉丁文动词，意为“饮用”。古罗马人对啤酒肯定不陌生，不过，由于他们认为啤酒是野蛮人的饮料，因此古罗马人普遍偏好葡萄酒。

古时的啤酒酿造者缺少良好的保存方法及过滤工具，所以啤酒混浊而且容易变质。正是中世纪欧洲的僧侣们引进科学的啤酒酿造技术，制造有营养的饮料， 从而补充了他们贫乏的饮食。

僧侣们不只局限在酿造啤酒，而且还在修道院中大量饮用啤酒，消耗量实在惊人。一份来自比利时的报告指出，僧侣们每天喝五升多的啤酒。欧洲修道院的酿酒厂也经营自己的酒吧，并享有免税的优惠，此项优待引起正在兴起的商人阶级的不满。

随着教会权力和影响的衰落，酿制艺术也就转变为一项重要的商业活动。今天，啤酒的制造在巨型企业或政府的垄断下俨然成为一个高科技流程。然而近年来，小规模啤酒厂的倍受青睐也反映了全球对啤酒质量及多样化日益增长的需求
 

1 epic   

n.史诗，叙事诗；adj.史诗般的，壮丽的

参考例句：

• I gave up my epic and wrote this little tale instead.我放弃了写叙事诗，而写了这个小故事。
• They held a banquet of epic proportions.他们举行了盛大的宴会。

2 heroism   

n.大无畏精神，英勇

参考例句：

• He received a medal for his heroism.他由于英勇而获得一枚奖章。
• Stories of his heroism resounded through the country.他的英雄故事传遍全国。

3 primitive   

adj.原始的；简单的；n.原(始)人，原始事物

参考例句：

• It is a primitive instinct to flee a place of danger.逃离危险的地方是一种原始本能。
• His book describes the march of the civilization of a primitive society.他的著作描述了一个原始社会的开化过程。

4 beverage   

n.(水，酒等之外的)饮料

参考例句：

• The beverage is often colored with caramel.这种饮料常用焦糖染色。
• Beer is a beverage of the remotest time.啤酒是一种最古老的饮料。

5 alcoholic   

adj.（含）酒精的，由酒精引起的；n.酗酒者

参考例句：

• The alcoholic strength of brandy far exceeds that of wine.白兰地的酒精浓度远远超过葡萄酒。
• Alcoholic drinks act as a poison to a child.酒精饮料对小孩犹如毒药。

6 fermented   

v.（使）发酵( ferment的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）激动；骚动；骚扰

参考例句：

• When wine is fermented, it gives off gas. 酒发酵时发出气泡。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• His speeches fermented trouble among the workers. 他的演讲在工人中引起骚动。 来自辞典例句

7 beverages   

n.饮料( beverage的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• laws governing the sale of alcoholic beverages 控制酒类销售的法规
• regulations governing the sale of alcoholic beverages 含酒精饮料的销售管理条例

8 brew   

v.酿造，调制

参考例句：

• Let's brew up some more tea.咱们沏些茶吧。
• The policeman dispelled the crowd lest they should brew trouble.警察驱散人群，因恐他们酿祸。

9 barbarians   

n.野蛮人( barbarian的名词复数 )；外国人；粗野的人；无教养的人

参考例句：

• The ancient city of Rome fell under the iron hooves of the barbarians. 古罗马城在蛮族的铁蹄下沦陷了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• It conquered its conquerors, the barbarians. 它战胜了征服者——蛮族。 来自英汉非文学 - 历史

10 monks   

n.修道士，僧侣( monk的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The monks lived a very ascetic life. 僧侣过着很清苦的生活。
• He had been trained rigorously by the monks. 他接受过修道士的严格训练。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 brewing   

n. 酿造, 一次酿造的量 动词brew的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• It was obvious that a big storm was brewing up. 很显然，一场暴风雨正在酝酿中。
• She set about brewing some herb tea. 她动手泡一些药茶。

12 nutritious   

adj.有营养的，营养价值高的

参考例句：

• Fresh vegetables are very nutritious.新鲜蔬菜富于营养。
• Hummingbirds have discovered that nectar and pollen are very nutritious.蜂鸟发现花蜜和花粉是很有营养的。

13 meager   

adj.缺乏的，不足的，瘦的

参考例句：

• He could not support his family on his meager salary.他靠微薄的工资无法养家。
• The two men and the woman grouped about the fire and began their meager meal.两个男人同一个女人围着火，开始吃起少得可怜的午饭。

14 monasteries   

修道院( monastery的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• In ancient China, there were lots of monasteries. 在古时候，中国有许多寺院。
• The Negev became a religious center with many monasteries and churches. 内格夫成为许多庙宇和教堂的宗教中心。

15 monastery   

n.修道院，僧院，寺院

参考例句：

• They found an icon in the monastery.他们在修道院中发现了一个圣像。
• She was appointed the superior of the monastery two years ago.两年前她被任命为这个修道院的院长。

16 breweries   

酿造厂，啤酒厂( brewery的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• In some cases, this is desirable, but most breweries prefer lighter-type beers. 在一些情况下，这是很理想的，但是大多数啤酒厂更倾向于生产酒度较低的啤酒。
• Currently, there are 58 breweries producing Snow Beeracross the country. 目前，全国共有58个雪花啤酒厂。

17 high-tech   

adj.高科技的

参考例句：

• The economy is in the upswing which makes high-tech services in more demand too.经济在蓬勃发展，这就使对高科技服务的需求量也在加大。
• The quest of a cure for disease with high-tech has never ceased. 人们希望运用高科技治疗疾病的追求从未停止过。