Perhaps the beverage that monasteries are best known for, however, is beer. In the Middle Ages, beer was locally produced because of its perishability, and it was brewed mostly by women in private homes, who sold any excess to neighbors and townspeople. Monasteries followed this same pattern on a larger scale, brewing their own beer for the brothers and their guests, and selling the leftovers.
it’s important to remember that medieval people drank beer from the time they were children, so their tolerance was quite high, and that beer was both less alcoholic and more nutritious than it is now.