沒有人知道人類究竟是從什麼時候開始製作發酵飲料。有證據顯示，這最早可追溯到公元前 7000 年的中國，通過研究那時的陶罐殘留物，我們知道人們已經開始利用發酵的大米、粟米、葡萄和蜂蜜製作酒精飲料了。那麼，酒精到底是怎麼一步步地演變成全球貿易與探險開拓產品的呢？羅德 · 菲利普斯探索了酒精的演化歷程。
Nobody knows exactly when humans began to create fermented beverages. The earliest known evidence comes from 7,000 BCE in China, where residue in clay pots has revealed that people were making an alcoholic beverage from fermented rice, millet, grapes, and honey. So how did alcohol come to fuel global trade and exploration? Rod Phillips explores the evolution of alcohol.
中英文對照
This chimpanzee stumbles across a windfall of overripe plums.
這隻黑猩猩偶然發現了 一堆熟透了的李子。
Many of them have split open,
好多已經爛熟的咧開了口子，
drawing him to their intoxicating fruity odor.
飄出醉人的水果香氣。
He gorges himself
它不由得狼吞虎咽起來，
and begins to experience some… strange effects.
然後一些……奇怪的感覺產生了。
This unwitting ape has stumbled on a process
這只不知情的黑猩猩 碰巧經歷了一種作用過程，
that humans will eventually harness
這一過程後來被人類 所運用於製造啤酒、
to create beer, wine, and other alcoholic drinks.
紅酒和其他酒精飲料。
The sugars in overripe fruit attract microscopic organisms known as yeasts.
熟透的水果裡的糖分 吸引來一些名為酵母的微生物。
As the yeasts feed on the fruit sugars they produce a compound called ethanol—
當酵母進食果糖後， 便產出一種名為乙醇的化合物，
the type of alcohol in alcoholic beverages.
即酒精飲料裡的酒精。
This process is called fermentation.
這個過程被稱為發酵。
Nobody knows exactly when
我們不知道人類第一次
humans began to create fermented beverages.
製作發酵飲料的確切時間。
The earliest known evidence comes from 7,000 BCE in China,
已有的證據顯示 最早可追溯到公元前 7000 年的中國，
where residue in clay pots
出土陶罐中的殘留物表明
has revealed that people were making an alcoholic beverage
那時人們已經開始利用經過發酵的 稻米、粟米、葡萄和蜂蜜
from fermented rice, millet, grapes, and honey.
製作酒精飲料了。
Within a few thousand years,
在幾千年間，
cultures all over the world were fermenting their own drinks.
世界上各個文明利用發酵， 製造著屬於自己的飲品。
Ancient Mesopotamians and Egyptians made beer throughout the year
古代美索不達米亞和埃及地區
from stored cereal grains.
一年到頭都在 利用儲存的穀物釀造啤酒。
This beer was available to all social classes,
這種啤酒向社會各個階層開放，
and workers even received it in their daily rations.
甚至每日向工人們定量發放。
They also made wine,
他們還製作紅酒，
but because the climate wasn’t ideal for growing grapes,
但由於當地氣候不適宜種植葡萄，
it was a rare and expensive delicacy.
那是一種稀有而昂貴的佳釀。
By contrast, in Greece and Rome, where grapes grew more easily,
相反，希臘和羅馬的環境 適合葡萄生長，
wine was as readily available as beer was in Egypt and Mesopotamia.
那兒的紅酒就如同埃及和 美索不達米亞的啤酒一般平常。
Because yeasts will ferment basically any plant sugars,
由於酵母幾乎能使 任何一種植物糖發酵，
ancient peoples made alcohol
古人就利用當地的
from whatever crops and plants grew where they lived.
各種農作物和植物釀酒。
In South America, people made chicha from grains,
在南美洲，人們用糧食釀酒，
sometimes adding hallucinogenic herbs.
有時還添加致幻草藥。
In what’s now Mexico, pulque, made from cactus sap,was the drink of choice,
在墨西哥，由仙人掌汁液製成的 龍舌蘭酒也大受歡迎。
while East Africans made banana and palm beer.
東非的人們製作 香蕉啤酒和棕櫚啤酒，
And in the area that’s now Japan, people made sake from rice.
而在如今是日本的地區， 人們用大米製成清酒。
Almost every region of the globe had its own fermented drinks.
世界上幾乎各個角落都 創造了其獨屬的酒飲。
As alcohol consumption became part of everyday life,
隨著飲酒成為了一項生活日常，
some authorities latched onto effects they perceived as positive—
權威們對酒精帶來的積極效用 產生了濃厚的興趣。
Greek physicians considered wine to be good for health,
希臘醫師們宣稱 紅酒有益於身體健康，
and poets testified to its creative qualities.
詩人們也讚嘆 酒精對創造力的顯著裨益。
Others were more concerned about alcohol’s potential for abuse.
其他人則對酒精的濫用表達了隱憂。
Greek philosophers promoted temperance.
例如，希臘的哲學家們就提倡要節制慎飲。
Early Jewish and Christian writers in Europe integrated wine into rituals
早期的歐洲猶太教和基督教的 作家們將紅酒融入禮教，
but considered excessive intoxication a sin.
但將醉酒斥為罪孽。
And in the middle east, Africa, and Spain,
在中東、非洲和西班牙，
an Islamic rule against praying while drunk
一項伊斯蘭律法禁止醉酒時祈禱
gradually solidified into a general ban on alcohol.
逐漸演化成對酒精的全面抵制。
Ancient fermented beverages had relatively low alcohol content.
古法發酵飲品的酒精濃度相對較低。
At about 13% alcohol,
大約發酵到 13% 時，
the by-products wild yeasts generate during fermentation
野生酵母就會產生有毒副產品
become toxic and kill them.
並殺死酵母。
When the yeasts die,
酵母失效後，
fermentation stops and the alcohol content levels off.
發酵過程也終止了， 酒精濃度便隨之穩定。
So for thousands of years, alcohol content was limited.
所以幾千年來， 酒精濃度都是有限的。
That changed with the invention of a process called distillation.
而蒸餾的發明改變了這一切。
9th century Arabic writings describe boiling fermented liquids
9 世紀的阿拉伯文獻有記載，
to vaporize the alcohol in them.
沸騰的發酵液體能揮發出酒精。
Alcohol boils at a lower temperature than water, so it vaporizes first.
由於酒精的沸點比水低， 所以會首先揮發掉。
Capture this vapor, cool it down, and what’s left is liquid alcohol
將揮發的氣體收集起來，並冷卻， 便能得到比任何發酵飲料
much more concentrated than any fermented beverage.
純度高很多的液體酒精。
At first, these stronger spirits were used for medicinal purposes.
一開始，這些高濃度酒精被用於醫療中。
Then, spirits became an important trade commodity
接著，它成了一種重要的交易品，
because, unlike beer and wine, they didn’t spoil.
這是因為酒精 不像啤酒和紅酒那樣會變質。
Rum made from sugar
歐洲在加勒比的殖民地
harvested in European colonies in the Caribbean
所收穫的糖，發酵產生了朗姆酒，
became a staple for sailors
並成為貿易中的主要商品，
and was traded to North America.
被海員們賣到了北美。
Europeans brought brandy and gin to Africa
歐洲人又將白蘭地和金酒引進了非洲，
and traded it for enslaved people, land ,and goods like palm oil and rubber.
用它們來交換奴隸、土地和物品， 例如棕櫚油和橡膠。
Spirits became a form of money in these regions.
烈酒在這些地區成為了一種貨幣。
During the Age of Exploration,
在大航海時代，
spirits played a crucial role in long distance sea voyages.
烈酒在長途航海中有著重要的作用。
Sailing from Europe to east Asia and the Americas could take months,
從歐洲到東亞和美洲 常常要航行數月，
and keeping water fresh for the crews was a challenge.
保持海員生存所需的淡水清潔， 是嚴峻的挑戰。
Adding a bucket of brandy to a water barrel kept water fresh longer
往水桶中添加一勺白蘭地 能延長淡水的保質期，
because alcohol is a preservative that kills harmful microbes.
因為酒精作為一種防腐劑 能殺死有害微生物。
So by the 1600s,
到了 17 世紀，
alcohol had gone from simply giving animals a buzz
酒精是一種能讓動物感到暈眩的物質，
to fueling global trade and exploration— along with all their consequences.
演變成全球貿易和探險開拓的重要產品， 同時帶來了種種影響。
As time went on,
隨著時間的推移，
its role in human society would only get more complicated.
酒精在人類社會中的 角色將會變得越來越複雜。