Today I drank Bavaria

I won't pretend it didn't happen. There were reasons why, but after years of saying nasty things about their beers today I drank Bavaria. Voluntarily. Several glasses.

(In case you're confused, I mean the Dutch brewery based in Lieshout, not the German state Bayern.)

The sacrifices I make for my kids. Drinking Bavaria is one of the greatest I can imagine. I just hope the little git appreciated my pain while he was stuffing chips down his neck.

Holland isn't that bad. You would be surpised how often unlikely places like museum cafeterias or railway station buffets have something decent. I'm rarely forced to drink low-qulaity Pils. Even when out with the kids. Melkhuis (with a large playground attached) in Vondel Park sells Westmalle, Duvel and Guinness Special Export. Maybe I'm just lucky to live in Amsterdam.

Stout
I had planned one of my classic Porter/Stout rants for today. But I was out longer with Lexie drinking Bavaria (me drinking, not Lexie, I mean) than I had imagined. Nothing's better than pointing out how misguided eveyone is but me. I'd been looking forward to it for weeks.

I won't be a hyocrite. Without the relevant numbers to back me up, I'll keep stum. They should be done tomorrow. I have some great points about London Stout, Guinness and Milk Stout. It'll blow your socks off. If you're wearing nitroglycerine socks. Otherwise you may be lightly amused or slightly intrigued. That'll do.

German beer classifications
Discussions of beer styles are guaranteed to set my temples throbbing. Below are suggested rules from German brewers for naming beers, as cited in "Almanach für das deutsche Brauwesen 1957" pages 73 and 74.

As a trotskyist when it comes to beer classifications (permanent revolution), I welcome the forbidding the use of Doppel, except in Doppelbock. Nowadays they would need to outlaw Imperial, too.



The rule stipulating that beer brewed in Germany can't be labelled to imply it was brewed abroad is a good one as well. As is that against the misuse of geographical names.

I don't think the German government ever accepted the proposals. A pity. They look pretty reasonable to me. Perhaps they should stipulate Märzen be amber. I might add that.

What do you reckon the impact of similar rules on American brewers would be? Budweiser would be out for a start. As would anything with a name starting with Belgian, British or Bohemian.

Beer consumption

Nothing much has hapenned in the last 24 hours, so here, as promised, are some beer consumption statistics. It's fascinating stuff. I'll qualify that statement: fascinating for me.



In case you were wondering, the numbers for 1906 to 1954 come from “Almanach für das deutsche Brauwesen 1957” p.72. I would provide evidence of this, but my scanner's on the blink. I need to get Dolores to take a look at it (she maintains our computer systems).

What do they tell us? For the one, of the collapse in the Dutch Brewing industry in the first half of the 20th century. That the Belgians have always had a fondness for beer, but I guess you already knew that. I certainly did. Ireland, Belgium and the UK are the only countries with lower consumption today than pre- WW I. I'm not sure what significance that has. Probably none. But I thought I would mention it anyway.