The Curiosities of Ale & Beer,
By John Bickerdyke.
In Part collected by the late J. G. FENNELL; now largely augmented withmanifold matters of singular note and worthy memory by the Author andhis friend J. M. D——.
PREFACE.
HATthe history and curiosities of Aleand Beer should fill a bulky volume,may be a subject for surprise to theunthinking reader; and that surprisewill probably be intensified, on hislearning that great difficulty has beenexperienced in keeping this book withinreasonable limits, and at the same time doing anything likejustice to the subject. Since the dawn of our history Barley-wine hasbeen the “naturall drinke” for an “Englysshe man,” and has hadno unimportant influence on English life and manners. It is, therefore,somewhat curious that up to the present, among the thousands ofbooks published annually, no comprehensive work on the antiquitiesof ale and beer has found place.
Someyears ago this strange neglect of so excellent a themewas observed by the late John Greville Fennell, best known asa contributor to The Field, and who, like “John of the Dale,”was a “lover