Mansfield’s terrific biography of Arthur Guinness is filled with intriguing historical insights like this one:
You see, the yeast that is used to brew beer is unique. It is not like the yeast used for bread, which dies at high temperature, never to be used again. Instead, the yeast used for brewing beer grows in the process and can be skimmed off and used again and again. This was such a miraculous discovery to early brewers that they gave this reusable yeast the nickname “God-is-good (Mansfield, In Search for God and Guinness, 73).”
