The Meaning of BeerWhat's the oldest and most consumed alcoholic beverage on earth? Beer, of course. And it might just be our more important invention. Since its invention 13,000 years ago, our love of beer has shaped everything from religious ceremonies to advertising, and architecture to bioengineering. The people who built the pyramids were paid in ale, the first fridge was built for beer not food, bacteria was discovered while investigating sour beer, Germany's beer