liquid bread

[Albert]

I read in lots of places that beer was considered as "liquid bread". It is possibly due to the fact that more or less, the ingredients are the same. I don't like that description at all and I even find it is quite weak and not very "lucky". But does anybody know who introduced that expression and when?

[Sud Savant]

I always heard it was called "liquid bread" or "hydraulic sandwiches" because it fills you up like food.  Sometimes enough beer is like eating a meal (grains which equal carbs, sugars, etc), as I'm sure we can all attest.

[Albert]

Allright, thanks.

I didn't know about the hydraulic sandwiches wich is probably a quite recent joke. When did you hear about liquid bread? Could you ask around yourself about that curious thing? Who begun with that analogy?

[Sud Savant]

I don't know when the term "liquid bread" originated, but people throughout history have often used bread as a meal staple.  Monasteries were known particularly well for this (http://www.beerhunter.com/documents/19133-000107.html).  In many countries wine or beer was served as PART of a meal (like potatoes or carrots), not just to wash it down.  Course, this was also partly because water wasn't exactly available at the tap as we have it now.

 

Again, don't know who started it, but the term does have some historically sounds roots.