Retiring professors are sometimes presented with a Festschrift, a collection of academic writings in their honour. When Martin Jones, George Pitt-Rivers Professor of Archaeological Science, decided to hang up his digging trowel and his academic gown, his colleagues decided that something more interesting and more appropriate was his due.

Hence, 'Cerealia' - a 4.2% ABV Festbier was born. This collaborative beer was brewed with Professor Jones and some of his colleagues, at Milton Brewery, and is to be launched at the Cambridge Beer Festival on 21 May. It is named for the Roman festival Cerealia – in honour of the goddess of agriculture and fertility.

Professor Jones's career has been dedicated to the study of food in prehistory. His academic work has taken him around the globe, researching the origins of our most basic necessities; this, of course, includes beer!

Beer has been produced since ancient times and the basic grains employed (barley, wheat) are well known. However, Prof Jones has observed to us that slightly different traditions exist in China. In recognition of this, Milton Brewery has employed the Chinese tradition of wu-gu 五谷 or Five Grains to add oats, a special type of rice, and millet, to the standards of barley and wheat. Cerealia further employs hops from Five Nations 五个国家 ; United Kingdom, United States, Slovenia, New Zealand and South Africa.