10,000 years

Beer is one of the oldest beverages humans have produced, dating back at least 10,000 years and recorded in the written history of ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia.

It is believed that alcohol regulation was first instituted in ancient Greece, Mesopotamia, Egypt and Rome. In 594 BC, Greece proscribed the death penalty for drunken magistrates and all wine was ordered to be diluted with water before being sold.