Applied Anthropology Profile: Dr. Patrick McGovern, Ancient Ales Expert

Figure 1: Patrick McGovern posing with the award winning Midas Touch Ale (Source: Penn Museum)

 

Known as the "Indiana Jones of Ancient Ales, Wines, and Extreme Beverages" or Dr. Pat, Dr. Patrick McGovern never expected to become an archaeologist, scholar, and ancient beer brewing collaborator (Figure 1).  He earned his Bachelors in Chemistry and pursued a doctorate in Near Eastern archaeology and history, where he focused his studies on ancient ceramics and their analyses.  McGovern credits his interests in ales to cultural forces around him, his family upbringing, and spontaneous chance.  Growing up throughout the 1960s and 1970s he was surrounded by pop culture images that promoted drug and alcohol consumption, but an experience working as a grape picker in Germany and consuming German wines cemented his interests in wine.  It was in the 1980s, however, where he capitalized on these interests.  The 1980s saw the increased interest in combining chemistry with archaeological study, leading the pioneering field of biomolecular archaeology.  He fell into this field naturally since he had the chemistry knowledge and background, but it was not until 1988 when his career in the archaeology of alcohol began.  A colleague brought him a vessel that she believed once contained wine and she requested McGovern to test it.  Her hunch was correct, and McGovern's destiny was locked as others found out about his work and capitalized on it.

 

Soon McGovern was traveling the Old World, visiting sites and museums to test artifacts to learn more about alcohol creation and consumption.  He eventually discovered the world's oldest beer, wine, and alcoholic beverages, as well as the world's first chocolate.  He has published widely on these discoveries, authoring numerous articles and several books.  This led to him joining the public talk circuit as he was invited to both academic and professional conferences on topics related to alcohol.

 

Figure 2: Midas Touch Ale (Source: Boston)

 

It was in 2000 when McGovern's collaboration with Dogfish Head Brewery began.  At a talk hosted by his current workplace, the University of Pennsylvania Museum, McGovern disclosed that he was interested in recreating a brew discovered in King Midas's tomb, and he invited any and all interested professional brewers to meet with him the next day to discuss a collaboration.  While several brewers representing various breweries met with him he teamed up with the members of Dogfish Head Brewery in part because he loved their beer.  This led to the creation of their first ancient ale, Midas Touch (Figure 2), and they have been working together ever since.  Their ancient ales series includes ancient beers derived recipes discovered in China, Egypt, and the Middle East, all of which are based on the biomolecular work conducted by McGovern.

 

McGovern continues to work at the University of Pennsylvania Museum, serving as their Scientific Director of Biomolecular Archaeology Project for Cuisine, Fermented Beverages, and Health, and he works as an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Anthropology at the university.  He keeps busy analyzing artifacts to further his research on beer, as well as investigating new recipes for Dogfish Head Brewery.

Bibliography

Columbus, C. (2017, June 30). Meet The Indiana Jones Of Ancient Ales And Extreme Beverages. National Public Radion (NPR).

McGovern, P. E. (No Date). About. Retrieved from Patrick E. McGovern, Biomolecular Archaeology Project: https://www.penn.museum/sites/biomoleculararchaeology/?page_id=2

Searles, J. (2018, April 30). Brewing Relics: Archaeologist Patrick McGovern uncovers the secrets of ancient ales and wines. The Growler.

Tucker, A. (2011, August). The Beer Archaeologist. Smithsonian Magazine.