is a spirituous liquor made from any farinaceous grain, but generally from barley. It is, properly speaking, the wine of barley. The meals of any of these grains being extracted by a sufficient quantity of water, and remaining at rest in a degree of heat requisite for the spirituous fermentation, naturally undergo this fermentation, and are changed into a vinous liquor. But as all these matters render the water mucilaginous, fermentation proceeds slowly and imperfectly in such liquors. On the other side, if the quantity of farinaceous matter be so diminished that its extract or decoction may have a convenient degree of fluidity, this liquor will be impregnated with so small a quantity of fermentable matter, that the beer or wine of the grain will be too weak, and have too little taste.

These inconveniences are remedied by preliminary operations which the grain is made to undergo.—These preparations consist in steeping it in cold water, that it may soak and swell to a certain degree; and in laying it in a heap with a suitable degree of heat, by means of which, and of the imbibed moisture, a germination begins, which is to be stopped by a quick drying, as soon as the bud shows itself. To accelerate this drying, and render it more complete, the grain is slightly roasted, by making it pass down an inclined canal sufficiently heated. This germination, and this slight roasting, changes considerably the nature of the mucilaginous fermentable matter of the grain. The germination attenuates much, and in some measure totally destroys, the viscosity of the mucilage; and it does this, when not carried too far, without depriving the grain of any of its disposition to ferment. On the contrary, it changes the grain into a saccharine substance, as may be perceived by malting grains beginning to germinate. The slight roasting contributes also to attenuate the mucilaginous fermentable matter of the grain. When the grain is thus prepared, it is fit to be ground, and to impregnate water with much of its substance without forming a glue or viscous mass. The grain thus prepared is called malt. This malt is then to be ground; and all its substance, which is fermentable and soluble in water, is to be extirpated by means of hot water. This extract or infusion is sufficiently evaporated by boiling in caldrons; and some plant of an agreeable bitterness, such as hops, is at that time added, to heighten the taste of the beer, and to render it capable of being longer preserved. Lastly, this liquor is put into casks, and allowed to ferment; nature performs the rest of the work, and is only to be assisted by the other most favourable circumstances for the spirituous fermentation. See Fermentation.

Foreigners have framed divers conjectures to account for the excellency of the British beer, and its superiority to that of other countries, even of Bremen, Mons, and Rofoch. It has been pretended our brewers throw dead dogs flead into their wort, and boil them till the flesh is all consumed. Others, more equable, attribute the excellency of our beer to the quality of our malt and water, and the skill of our brewers in preparing it.

Sour beer may be restored divers ways; as by salt made of the ashes of barley-straw, put into the vessel and stirred; or by three or four handfuls of beech-ashes thrown into the vessel, and stirred; or, where the liquor is not very foul, by a little put in a bag, without stirring: chalk calcined, oyster shells, egg-shells burnt, sea-shells, crabs eyes, alkalized coral, &c. do the same, as they imbibe the acidity, and unite with it into a sweetens.—Beer, it is said, may be kept from turning foul in summer, by hanging into the vessel a bag containing a new-laid egg, pricked full of little pin-holes, some laurel-berrys, and a few barley-grains; or by a new-laid egg and walnut-tree leaves. Glauber commends his sal mirabile and fixed nitre, put in a linen bag, and hung on the top of the cask so as to reach the liquor, not only for recovering sour beer, but preserving and strengthening it.

Laurel-berrys, their skin being peeled off, will keep beer from deadness; and beer already dead may be restored by impregnating it with fixed air.

Beer taffling of the cask may be freed from it by putting a handful of wheat in a bag, and hanging it in the vessel.