Brunswick Mum (, or Mumia, ), was originally an alcoholic beer from Brunswick in Germany, which ranged from weak to strong depending on the brewing method. One of the first black beers recorded in history.
History
Mum originated in the Late Middle Ages. The composition gave the beer a long shelf life that allowed a wide distribution; Mum became the most important export from Brunswick and, in the early modern period was shipped to places such as India and the Caribbean. The drink is still sold in Brunswick where since autumn 2008, for the first time in about 200 years, it is produced in alcoholic variants.
Composition
The 17th century author David Kellner describes Mum as being held in high esteem for its exquisite strength, lovely taste and beautiful color. It is brewed from barley-malt and hops in different proportions.
In contrast to German sources is Mum in English literature from the early modern period an unhopped strong wheat-beer, made with the addition of various aromatic herbs. The oldest English recipe seems to be published 1682 in The Natural history of coffee, thee, chocolate, tobacco by John Chamberlayne and is said to be recorded in Brunswick.
The recipe calls for seven bushels of wheat-malt, one bushel of oat-malt and one bushel of ground beans to make 63 gallons of Mum. Eggs are added to prevent the beer from becoming sour. Variations of this recipe are published by later authors, for instance John Nott.
References
Further reading
Christian Basilius: Die Mumme-Fibel der Mumme H. Nettelbeck K.G. Geschichte(n) seit 1390. Braunschweig 1999.
Andreas Döring: Wirth! Nochmal zwo Viertel Stübchen! Braunschweiger Gaststätten & Braunschweiger Bier damals. Braunschweig 1997. Anna Klie: Brunswyksche Mumme. Braunschweig 1898. Heinrich Mack: Zur Geschichte der Mumme. Insbesondere des Mummehandels im 17. Jahrhundert. in: Braunschweigisches Magazin. Zwißler, Wolfenbüttel 1911,17. Ernst A. Roloff: Heimatchronik der Stadt Braunschweig. Archiv für Deutsche Heimatpflege, Köln 1955. Gerd Spies: Das Mummetor. Miszellen. Bd 25. Städtisches Museum Braunschweig, Braunschweig 1976.
External links
Official website of Nettelbeck KG, the last mum-brewery
Chambers, E. (1741). Mum. In Cyclopaedia (4th ed.) Krünitz, G. K. (1773). Braunschweiger Mumme. In Oeconomische Encyclopädie German article about the manufacture of the alcohol-free Braunschweiger Mumme Julius Stinde: Zwei Veteranen des Bierstaates (1880) about Mum and Gose About Mum in The Curiosities of Ale and Beer (1889) by John Bickerdyke Official website Braunschweiger Mumme-Meile