I don't see the revelation here. The reality always had to be much more nuanced than a simple "they always drank short beer, never water." That's silly. Of cour

I don't see the revelation here. The reality always had to be much more nuanced than a simple "they always drank short beer, never water." That's silly. Of course people would be able to recognize clean water, and would not hesitate to drink water they felt was clean. It was, after all, probably the second liquid every human ever born became familiar with. However, sources of clean water were much harder to come by in historical times than they are now. A short beer, with alcohol content low enough not to cause inebriation, but high enough to make bad bugs uncomfortable, was a reliable alternative.