Dylan McDonnell brews an ancient Egyptian beer using ingredients such as sycamore figs, Israeli golden raisins, frankincense and 3,000-year-old yeast.
ABC4Dylan McDonnell’s beer, nicknamed “Sinai Sour,” is slightly salty with apricot aromas and a floral aftertaste.
During the COVID-19 lockdown, countless people picked up new hobbies: some took up knitting, others took up baking. Beer-loving Utah native Dylan McDonnell decided to try brewing beer just like the ancient Egyptians did 3,500 years ago.
His experiments required ancient Egyptian recipes, a number of unusual ingredients, and a lot of patience, but McDonnell has now succeeded in brewing a beer that closely resembles the beer drunk in Egypt around 1500 BC.
Dylan McDonnell decides to brew beer like the ancient Egyptians
Vasil/Wikimedia CommonsDepicts Syrian mercenaries drinking beer from the Egyptian 18th Dynasty (c. 1550/1549 BC – 1292 BC).
As McDonnell said All interesting thingsHe had heard of people baking bread with ancient yeast during the pandemic and had the idea to brew ancient Egyptian beer.
“The idea came to me after watching Seamus Brackley recreate a 4,500-year-old sourdough bread, but I’ve always been interested in brewing beer and trying to come up with new and unique blends to go with it,” he explained. “I also have a BA and MA in Middle Eastern Studies, so it was a natural match.”
The first step was to come up with a recipe.
McDonnell began by looking at the Ebers Papyrus, a 3,500-year-old document from ancient Egypt that’s packed with medicinal recipes. The document lists “cures” for a variety of ailments, from dermatitis to tapeworms, and even includes a recipe for beer.
Welcome ImagesThe Ebers Papyrus, written around 1500 BCE, contains recipes for beer as well as numerous medicines.
McDonnell found and documented about 75 recipes, zeroing in on the most common ingredients the ancient Egyptians used to make beer: desert dates, sidr honey from Yemen, sycamore figs, Israeli golden raisins, prickly juniper berries, carob kernels, black cumin and frankincense.
“The papyrus listed the ingredients and their relative quantities, so it seemed like the perfect candidate to make a beer from that period,” he said. All interesting things.
Dylan McDonnell/XDylan McDonnell gathered some unusual ingredients to create his “Sinai Sour” beer.
Gathering the materials wasn’t always easy, McDonnell said. All interesting things It was “a lot harder than most people think,” he said, and he ended up buying ingredients he didn’t use. And other ingredients, like sycamore figs, were especially hard to find.
“Why aren’t Sycomore figs commercially available?!?!,” McDonnell wrote to X. “Seriously, I’d pay anyone for the time and cost of the figs. I’ve heard they are available in Israeli markets. I just need someone with connections who can get me Sycomore figs.”
But by some luck, McDonnell was eventually able to gather the necessary ingredients, including yeast from 850 BCE, and he got to work.
The taste of ancient Egyptian beer
Dylan McDonnell/XIt’s part of the brewing process that produces McDonnell’s tart, apricot-flavored sour beer.
Three years after first coming up with the idea, McDonnell has finally brewed a beer using both the ancient method and ancient ingredients. He began brewing in January 2024 and recently had a successful experiment.
“I’m very happy with the outcome,” he said. All interesting things“It’s refreshing and thirst quenching. It’s no wonder the ancient Egyptians enjoyed this kind of beer after a long day. It’s unforgettable. It’s not bad, but it’s definitely different from most beers others have had (more fruit and honey, less hops).”
McDonnell is interested in brewing other kinds of ancient beers, but notes he is unlikely to have the same opportunities to collect rare ingredients and ancient yeasts. He does, however, have plans to brew another type of beer, one that will “use only turbo yeast to achieve 25 percent alcohol by volume and age in barrels for a year.”
Ultimately, McDonnell’s experiment is not only a fascinating test of an ancient method, but it also sheds light on the long and fascinating history of beer itself. While archaeologists tend to focus on the history of wine, beer played an important role in ancient civilizations around the world.
Hanai/Wikimedia CommonsPhilistine beer mug (12th century BC to 604 BC)
For most people, trying Sinai Sour seems impossible — McDonnell wrote to X that Utah law prohibits sales, but he’s open for private tastings — but it’s surely a testament to how strong humanity’s love for beer remains: 3,000 years after the ancient Egyptians brewed their own version, people still seem to love the taste of a very similar beer.
Learn about the fascinating and ancient history of beer after reading about a man who brewed beer using a 3,500-year-old ancient Egyptian recipe, then read about beer brewed with 5,000-year-old Egyptian yeast.
