Gruit? Alewives?

By Lucas Ballinger
Contributing Writer

Gruit is the kind of word that if it were thrown around people privy to fermented grain would draw befuddled, curious or excited looks. It has lost its place in today’s common brewing vernacular owing to its almost complete disappearance in today’s and even yesterday’s beer cultures across the world.

It has its meaning as both the actual herb blend in the fermented drinks of past cultures and as the actual beverage itself, Gruit Ale, in modern culture. There are countless varieties of herbs, fruits, roots, saps, plant additives, etc. that were used in recipes which, sadly, haven’t survived.

The major player in the almost total eradication of Gruit as the bittering, antiseptic and flavoring ingredient of beer is known to all of us as Hops. Yes, our most beloved and precious ingredient hasn’t always been so vital and revered in the history of beer. Although Hops came to replace Gruit, the history of its takeover had a very sordid, puritanical, convoluted and bitter, pun intended, transition. It has its roots in both the Protestant Reformation and the Industrial Revolution. Doing research led me to over half a dozen possible factors in Gruit’s extinction.

The exclusive use of Gruit herbs in Europe was gradually phased out in favor of the use of hops alone in a slow sweep occurring between the 11th and 16th centuries, when it was first learned that hops were a very good antiseptic and resisted spoilage more efficiently than gruit. Although it should be noted that other plants such as juniper berries, yarrow, heather, and bog myrtle also have very strong antiseptic properties. During the Middle Ages, Gruit was made from many recipes that were proprietary to the brewer, usually women, or “alewives,” and was brewed primarily for its medicinal properties. Some brews had narcotic and even psychotropic qualities.

The Latin Christian Empire had the monopoly on gruit, known as the Gruitrecht (what?). The Reinheitsgebot (whoa), the Bavarian Purity Law of 1516, which stipulates that the only ingredients that can be used in beer are water, barley, and hops, was created as a protest by the protestant Germans during the Reformation to undermine that monopoly, some have said. Others have said that the switch to hops was a Puritanical move to keep people from dabbling with the aphrodisiac and stimulating effects of Gruit ale by imposing the sedative effects of Hops.

Once western civilization started to grow, brewing eventually turned into an economic enterprise instead of the sacred practice it once was. Economics needs efficiency, which is also a major reason; hops became the workable rule-of-thumb spice. Hops can be cultivated in much of continental Europe and America with their innocuousness being relatively clear and with many aromas, flavoring and bittering characteristics. Hops clearly have the advantage in many respects. Its dominance is well deserved, due to its strong popularity today.

The relative importance of Gruit today is rather small in practical terms, and maybe for many good reasons, but I believe deserves some props due to it’s homebrew ethos of experimentation and creativity that I think all of us can appreciate. Beer has become a source of stimulation for people with its surprises and nuances instead of the same lite, one after another. Gruit, no longer fermented by alewives with their secret herbs and spices, is only brewed by those select homebrew crazies that thrive on obscurity. Maybe, eventually, if the craft brew culture keeps thriving, we’ll all be enjoying a pint of some ale made with sweet gale, ground ivy and ginger. That sounds pretty good to me.

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