Written by Sammie Longhorn, Lime Wood’s resident forager

With the arrival of hot weather comes the inevitable reappearance of a beloved national obsession: the beer garden. ‘A few cheeky pints’ can be seen as a bit of a guilty pleasure, but this may be part of a lineage that is much more ancient and sacred than many realise.

As is the case in many old brewing towns, the tracks and waysides of my hometown, Ringwood, are full of the beautiful creeping plant, hops. This creeping nature is alluded to in hops' botanical name, Humulus lupulus, meaning ‘the climbing wolf’. I am very rarely lucky enough to find any of the unusual, papery flowers, but in spring we love to harvest the straggly, winding hop shoots, which we fry in butter. Mild and nutty, they have been likened to asparagus, and we love them!

Medicinally, the bitterness of hops, which really aids the brewing process, can soothe poor digestion. Hops are a popular ingredient in many commercially available herbal sedatives and are gently soporific, meaning they have the ability to induce sleep.

Hops may feel synonymous with beer; however, they are not native to the UK, first being cultivated here in the late 1500s. Of course, we were brewing for centuries before this, and the plants we used were native, wild and far more magical than the sedative hops that subsequently replaced them.

Before hops, our wild and native plants were used. Each was chosen for its ability to add flavour, preservative qualities and even healing properties. These herbal brews were known as gruit or small beer and were, in many cases, safer than water. The boiling, herbal properties and fermentation not only removed harmful bacteria but also improved the drink's nutritional value.

The legacy of beer-making is hinted at in the names of some of our herbs today, such as Alehoof (Ground Ivy) and Mugwort. Other brewing herbs include Heather, Bog Myrtle and Pine, all of which flourish in abundance in the New Forest. The resurgence of interesting botanicals in brewing is really taking off and, if it is something that intrigues you, I recommend seeking out Old Tree Brewery.

Ordinarily, wild beers were very low in alcohol, but some of the plants, including the aforementioned Mugwort and her close relative Wormwood, were deliberately chosen for their magical and psychotropic properties. Biomolecular archaeologist Patrick McGovern has written about how these drinks were considered deliberately religious, mind-altering medicines. These sacred infusions were often associated with the revelries of pagan ceremonies.

Although there is a lack of documented evidence, it is strongly suspected that the encouragement to use hops contained a puritanical element. Dampening the libido, they may have been looked upon more kindly by the Church. An additional benefit of hops for the authorities was that, as a cash crop, they could be taxed. In fact, in Germany, in 1516, a law was passed stating that only hops were permitted in beer-making.

As was the case in all aspects of our ancestors’ lives, the plants selected for brewing were dictated by the seasons. Greens such as Yarrow and Nettle may have been used in spring, flowers and fruits in summer, and wild roots in autumn, such as Dandelion and Burdock.

Modern beer brewing is a technical and complex process, involving lots of equipment and science. This was not the case centuries ago, so only expertise and experience could be relied upon. Our ancestors would not have been purchasing brewer’s yeast either, instead relying on the wild yeasts found on the surfaces of the plants they gathered, making the brewing process far more unpredictable.

It was considered that the best brewers were women and monks. In centuries past, you may have been lucky enough to come across an alewife on your travels, a woman who would brew beer over a large pan on an open fire. If this is giving you a witchy mental image, I hope it is cemented by the fact that a besom broomstick hung above the front door was the traditional adornment of an alewife’s abode, alerting villagers that this was an excellent place to buy beer.

Want to join Sammie on one of her foraging experiences? Click here to view upcoming dates and availability: Foraging · Lime Wood Hotel

Want to keep up to date with Sammie’s foraging activities? Visit her website: The Hedgerow Yogi