The Comic Book Story of Beer

Introduction The World's Favorite Beverage 1
Chapter One Beer in the Ancient World 11
Chapter Two The Brewing Process 33
Chapter Three Dark Ages and Medieval Beer 50
Meet the Beer: Lambic 60
Meet the Beer: Trappist Dubbel 65
Chapter Four The Hops Revolution: Beer Becomes a Commodity 69
Meet the Beer: Bock 83
Chapter Five Empire and Industry: Beer Goes Big 85
Meet the Beer: Porter 94
Meet the Beer: India Pale Ale 97
Chapter Six Science and Politics Transform Beer-But for the Better? 100
Meet the Beer: Pilsner 108
Chapter Seven Prohibition and Homogenization Blues: Beer Goes Stale 118
Meet the Beer: American Lager 135
Chapter Eight Drinking on the Shoulders of Giants: Beer Today 138
Meet the Beer: American Pale Ale 146
Meet the Beer: Belgian Wit 157
Acknowledgments 171
Index 172

JONATHAN HENNESSEY is the author of two previous nonfiction graphic novels, The U.S. Constitution: A Graphic Adaptation and The Gettysburg Address: A Graphic Adaptation, as well as the history-based time travel series Epochalypse. Based in Los Angeles, he works in film and television.

MIKE SMITH has worked in breweries large and small for the last two decades. He is currently head brewer at Back East Brewing Company in Bloomfield, Connecticut.

AARON McCONNELL illustrated The U.S. Constitution: A Graphic Adaptation and The Gettysburg Address: A Graphic Adaptation, as well as various other nonfiction, historical fiction, and fantasy comics. He is a graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design and a member of Periscope Studio in Portland, Oregon. You can find more of his work at aamcconnell.com