Beer is Serious Business

Hallo,

I knew Germans took beer very seriously, but I didn't realize how important it is to their lifestyle. With 1,274 breweries nationwide and over 5,000 different brews it is easy to tell that they like their beer. They even passed the first food quality law ever, the Purity Act of 1516, to ensure that their beer was protected. They eventually got to food a centuries later with their organic food obsession.

It is also different how they drink their beer. In America people drink tons of beer without any "beer drinking etiquette." In Germany you have to toast your tablemates and take your time with your beer, or else risk being insulting. This is expected because the waiters/waitresses take their time delivering your beer, as the article says you should order your second right when you get your first. It was also interesting to read about all the different kinds of beer. I thought most beer tasted the same but apparently there are tons of different varieties and flavors for someone to choose from. It was pretty interesting that some would make you feel worse than others.

Of course all this drinking has been met with some opposition. Legislatures in Germany are now considering banning drinking in public places, to cut down on crime and public drunkenness. That is shocking for me to read that you can juts stroll down the street and break out a beer and start drinking. In America you'd get busted by the police instantly. It makes sense that beer drinking would be accepted in a culture that literally invented the stuff. There was also concern about youth who were drinking way to much alcohol. I attribute this to influence from American TV shows and movies that glorify drinking and being drunk. On the other hand, the legislatures don't want to punish law-abiding citizens. I think public drinking spaces could be a good solution to the public drunkenness problem. However, it still makes the law-abiding citizens be cramped in with all the drunkards.

Overall I thought that articles were an interesting read. Maybe the reason Germans think all the jokes were funny is because they drink so much beer. :P

Auf Wiedersehen!