New Beer, Old Ale Why was Female to Male as Ale was to Beer?

Abstract In late fourteenth-century Lullington (Sussex), several dozen people brewed for profit. Although some sold ale regularly, brewing was not very professionalized, and most brewers in Lullington in the 1370s brewed for sale on only an occasional basis. Singlewomen and widows probably accounted for about one-third of all brewers, the rest being married women or men. One hundred years later, the brewing trade looked very different. Instead of dozens of brewers, only a handful worked in Lullington, and they often brewed “commonly” throughout the year. Among these common brewers were a few not-married women, but most brewers by the 1470s were married couples. By this time, common brewers also worked alongside other professional victualers, usually two butchers and a baker. Within a few decades, the face of brewing in Lullington would change yet again. In the 1480s, ale (brewed with malt, water, and yeast) began to face a new competitor in Lullington -beer (brewed with malt, water, yeast, and hops). At first, beer was merely sold in Lullington, but by the 1520s it was regularly brewed on site.