The apocalypse must be nigh if Germans are losing their taste for beer. According to the German brewery association, the country that was once the world's largest consumer of barley soda and hop juice has lagged way behind the Czech Republic and Ireland in the past decade.
Per-capita consumption of beer in Germany, once the world's largest consumer of the drink, fell by 3.5 litres in 2007 to 112.5 litres -- the eighth decline in the last nine years.
The only time that beer consumption has risen in the past nine years was during the 2006 World Cup, which Germany hosted, and industry figures have shown that Germans are apparently drinking more [gasp!] non-alcoholic beverages these days.
In the face of this blasphemy, certain crafty brewers have begun looking to other markets for their suds, with at least one brewery marketing their gold elixir to a very surprising demographic: Germany's Jews (and any other Jews who will drink it, for that matter).
A kosher beer called Simcha, its name means "joy" and it's a white pilsner with an alcohol content of 4.9%. Every step of its production is overseen by a rabbi. That means that, among other rules, the barley that it's made with can't have been grown during Passover, and no pregnant or menstruating women are allowed to participate in its production (because pregnant and menstruating women are filthy, duh).
Annnyway. With a price of approximately 80% more than the average German beer, it's unlikely that Simcha and the Jews are going to restore Germany to her long-lost title as the cold-water-sandwich capital of the world.
Not to say there isn't a ton of legitimate beer history there or that a lot of good stuff isn't still being brewed, but really, Germany has long since been surpassed in quality beer by Belgium and American craft breweries. The fact is that the Reinheitsgebot Bavarian Beer Purity Law has become an albatross over the country's beer production for quite some time, all but eliminating experimentation and innovation from the brewmasters.
Rafi said:
Not to say there isn't a ton of legitimate beer history there or that a lot of good stuff isn't still being brewed, but really, Germany has long since been surpassed in quality beer by Belgium and American craft breweries. The fact is that the Reinheitsgebot Bavarian Beer Purity Law has become an albatross over the country's beer production for quite some time, all but eliminating experimentation and innovation from the brewmasters.
The Reinheisgebot, while antiquated, is part of a national brewing tradition that includes strict adherence to style and technique, and I think it's that sense of tradition which keeps innovation and experimentation quelled, not the laws.
The laws' restrictions are minimal, limiting the grain to barley and eliminating the use of adjunct sugars which IMO rarely add more to the final product than changes in color, body, and abv. All variables controllable through technique. What is allowed are a sea of different malts, and more new hop varietals than ever. Combine that with a multitude of readily available yeast strains and an imaginative brewer has a lot of room to experiment even under full compliance with the Reinheisgebot. But, for the most part they don't. I think it's just a "if it ain't broke don't fix it" situation for most, as well as a sense of pride in tradition.
Rafi said:
Not to say there isn't a ton of legitimate beer history there or that a lot of good stuff isn't still being brewed, but really, Germany has long since been surpassed in quality beer by Belgium and American craft breweries. The fact is that the Reinheitsgebot Bavarian Beer Purity Law has become an albatross over the country's beer production for quite some time, all but eliminating experimentation and innovation from the brewmasters.
But. But...
We do not want experimentation or innovation, thank you very much.
Fact is, the Reinheitsgebot is the best law in the universe.
Rafi said:
Not to say there isn't a ton of legitimate beer history there or that a lot of good stuff isn't still being brewed, but really, Germany has long since been surpassed in quality beer by Belgium and American craft breweries. The fact is that the Reinheitsgebot Bavarian Beer Purity Law has become an albatross over the country's beer production for quite some time, all but eliminating experimentation and innovation from the brewmasters.
The Reinheisgebot, while antiquated, is part of a national brewing tradition that includes strict adherence to style and technique, and I think it's that sense of tradition which keeps innovation and experimentation quelled, not the laws.
The laws' restrictions are minimal, limiting the grain to barley and eliminating the use of adjunct sugars which IMO rarely add more to the final product than changes in color, body, and abv. All variables controllable through technique. What is allowed are a sea of different malts, and more new hop varietals than ever. Combine that with a multitude of readily available yeast strains and an imaginative brewer has a lot of room to experiment even under full compliance with the Reinheisgebot. But, for the most part they don't. I think it's just a "if it ain't broke don't fix it" situation for most, as well as a sense of pride in tradition.
Rafi said:
Not to say there isn't a ton of legitimate beer history there or that a lot of good stuff isn't still being brewed, but really, Germany has long since been surpassed in quality beer by Belgium and American craft breweries. The fact is that the Reinheitsgebot Bavarian Beer Purity Law has become an albatross over the country's beer production for quite some time, all but eliminating experimentation and innovation from the brewmasters.
The Reinheisgebot, while antiquated, is part of a national brewing tradition that includes strict adherence to style and technique, and I think it's that sense of tradition which keeps innovation and experimentation quelled, not the laws.
The laws' restrictions are minimal, limiting the grain to barley and eliminating the use of adjunct sugars which IMO rarely add more to the final product than changes in color, body, and abv. All variables controllable through technique. What is allowed are a sea of different malts, and more new hop varietals than ever. Combine that with a multitude of readily available yeast strains and an imaginative brewer has a lot of room to experiment even under full compliance with the Reinheisgebot. But, for the most part they don't. I think it's just a "if it ain't broke don't fix it" situation for most, as well as a sense of pride in tradition.
I can definitely understand that line of thought. However, I think that Germany's natural appreciation for their brewing history and tradition would mean, even if the Reinheisgebot was lifted, that the vast majority of beer producers (especially among the monastery breweries) would nonetheless continue brewing traditional styles using traditional methods, while perhaps a handful would relish the chance to explore the boundaries a bit more.
Look no further than Belgium to see this in action - the country has just as rich a national traditional of beer fermentation but are not bound by brewing laws intended to preserve those traditions. As a result, while the bulk of abbey and lambic breweries (Rochefort, Cantillion, Watou, etc.) have retained their ancestral customs, others (De Dolle, Urthel) have experimented to great effect, and even integrated developments from the American craft movement into their product (such as the introduction of the Belgian IPA). The resulting combination of traditional and innovational has consistently kept Belgium at the very leading edge in the world for the brewing of high quality and interesting beers.
I can definitely understand that line of thought. However, I think that Germany's natural appreciation for their brewing history and tradition would mean, even if the Reinheisgebot was lifted, that the vast majority of beer producers (especially among the monastery breweries) would nonetheless continue brewing traditional styles using traditional methods, while perhaps a handful would relish the chance to explore the boundaries a bit more.
There's no doubt Purity Laws have shaped tradition, and while it may have historically stifled creativity, it did preserve quality in an industry during many rough periods of history where dubious brewing practices became commonplace. Many foreign brewers were not above adding vitriol, opium, tobacco, strychnine and extract of poppies to a brew. Without the beacon of purity that is and was Germany during this time who knows what would now be accepted as commonplace during the brewing process.
If anything the modern style guidelines are to blame more than the Reinheisgebot as it is now for the lack of current innovation due to the promotion of competition based more on strict adherence to style than the overall quality of a given product.
Look no further than Belgium to see this in action - the country has just as rich a national traditional of beer fermentation but are not bound by brewing laws intended to preserve those traditions. As a result, while the bulk of abbey and lambic breweries (Rochefort, Cantillion, Watou, etc.) have retained their ancestral customs, others (De Dolle, Urthel) have experimented to great effect, and even integrated developments from the American craft movement into their product (such as the introduction of the Belgian IPA). The resulting combination of traditional and innovational has consistently kept Belgium at the very leading edge in the world for the brewing of high quality and interesting beers.
But if the difference between Belgium and Germany's brewing traditions were truly due to the Reinheisgebot, then why do so many other countries that lack legislation also lack stylistic creativity and innovation in league with that of Belgium or the US? It all comes back to tradition and what it dictates, which in Belgium and America means innovation.
GeorgeLiquor said:
DUKE NUKEM FOREVER COMING OUT!?
Duke Nukem Forever ? I remember hearing about it back in 1670, but I thought it was a joke - games for thinking machines aren't very common in my time... Now it's coming out? Already?
IPOD
RADIO
Rahodeb
Los Angeles, CA
March 2006
DEC 30, 2007 07:15 PM