Norwegian Beer

Ale brewing has a long history in Scandinavia, predating written records. It is known, through old writings such as Hávamál, that the Norse culture used brewing to produce ale and mead. Mead was the preferred option, whilst ale was more commonly available. Modern reproductions of Norse brews have been known to produce ale as strong as 9%abv. Up until the 19th century brewing was mostly a matter of production for household needs and as a result the beer was usually weak in alcoholic content and used as an everyday beverage. For celebrations and feasts, stronger "feast-beer" and potent mead was brewed to be stronger in alcohol and flavour. With the advent of industrialism, all this changed. As the cities grew, home brewing became impossible for most people, and so the Scandinavian brewing industry arose.