The Luxury That Is Hot Water

Giving an often overlooked drink the credit it deserves

- Smt. Simone Preuss

In Europe, in olden times, it is said, that people used to drink beer or wine because it was cleaner than the water, which was highly contaminated and contained all kinds of bacteria that could lead to serious diseases like cholera, diarrhoea, dysentery, hepatitis A, typhoid and polio.

Thus, people drank wine and beer, fermented and brewed according to their region's purity laws. (Did you know that Germany today still follows the Purity Law of 1516 that determines that a pure beer should only contain hops, malt, yeast and water?) They liked the taste too, of course, but purity was also a factor. They even gave beer and wine to children for the same reason and to keep them quiet.

When I first heard this fact, it fascinated me because beer and wine today are so much more expensive than water (especially in India) and even common people drinking those beverages like water seems quite a luxury.