Book of Lists: 3) Best Beer Culture Events

#3

A publishing phenomenon arrived in the 1970s: The Book of Lists. It was a series of apparently wildly popular books first published in 1977 that functioned as pre-internet topic-surfing. Which got me thinking: blogs were basically invented for this kind of thing! Thus was born a modern-day version of the Book of Lists here, on the subject of beer.

Today we turn to an unusual but rewarding topic: beer events or seasons that bubble up from the cultural stew. If you try to do a web search to discover these often obscure happenings, you will instead find lists of beer festivals. Now, nothing against beer festivals. There’s a little-known volksfestival in Southern Bavaria that may make the list, for example. But our indefatigable team of researchers have uncovered other, less obvious cultural expressions that edged out most of the fests according to the rigorous methodology they applied.

The timing isn’t accidental. It seems that a dip in temperature, the harvest, and the coming of the dark all impel people to gather round mugs of beer, so a number of these events will soon be upon us, including our tie for number 1.

What is a beer culture event? Well, it’s one of those things that emerged as a singular expression of a place, and has beer as a central element. As one dimension of the “research” I did for this post, I asked people what their own lists might be, and it produced some unexpected answers. The Super Bowl, for example. It’s not a bad answer, either. It is extremely American—very little brings this country of 350 million together like a game of 22 helmeted men bashing each other while chasing a ball. But does beer play enough of a role? Our researchers say no: while watchers often drink beer, it is a subsidiary and not strictly necessary ritual.

Beer fests, meanwhile, are very much about the beer. But do they arise from something essential and unique in the culture of the place they are staged? Could the Dutch host a barrel-aged beer festival rather than Chicago, for example? The question answers itself.

Finally, it’s worth acknowledging that culture and beer intersect more powerfully in Germany, and especially Bavaria, than anywhere else in the world. Two of the best cases made our list, but fans could easily make an argument for another ten. For promoters of beer and beer culture, take some notes on how the Germans do it.

But enough preamble, here’s the list.

5. Ridderschap van de Belgische Brouwers (Brussels). Anyone who has visited the Grand Place in Brussels has seen the guildhall for the country’s brewers. In some form or another the brewing guild goes back more than six hundred years. So when a group of people dress up in robes, looking either like Catholic monks or professors at a college graduation, they have earned their pomp. These are the Knights of the Brewer’s Mash Staff, and they gather during Belgian Beer Weekend to induct new members, including honorary members who promote Belgian beer. Short of a Nobel prize in literature, I regard it as the greatest honor on earth.

4. Bockbieranstich (Franconia, Germany). This one really flies under the radar, yet it’s absolutely delightful. Each year, the breweries in Franconia release their seasonal autumn bocks at special weekend tappings (anstich). The breweries all select their weekend the way movie studious divvy up summer, and on the appointed day people turn up to rub elbows with each other and warm their bellies with strong, warming lager. Historically they would have been darker, and many still are, but the tradition is evolving.

3. Norsk Kornølfestival (Hornindal, Norway). The annual farmhouse festival on the banks of Europe’s deepest lake brings together farmhouse brewers from Norway, Lithuania, Finland, and elsewhere for a beer festival unlike any other. But more than just tasting these farm-made beers—itself a remarkable experience—organizers arrange both a brew day at a local farm/home brewery as well as an oppskåke—a traditional Norwegian party that happens after someone makes a beer. This is a relatively recent fest—give it another few decades and it might top our list.

1 (tie) Oktoberfest (Munich). A perfect example of a cultural fest, this celebration grew out of a wedding party 214 years ago. It is not quite a beer fest, but rather a “volksfest,” or people’s fest. The volksfest is a community celebration, with traditional food, costumes, music, and amusements. So while beer is featured heavily, there’s a lot more going on. This is the reason it has survived these two centuries.

1 (tie) Fresh Hop Season (Pacific Northwest, USA). This will seem a controversial choice for some, but not to the residents of Oregon and Washington. Indeed, fresh hop season in the Pacific Northwest is one of the most exhilarating spectacles in the beer world—but one few people outside the region have experienced. For normies, summer travel has ended, and the kids are back in school, so it makes sense. But even in the beer industry and among my beer-writer friends it remains unexperienced. Many travel to the region for hop-selection, but in doing so they miss the bacchanal of the beers themselves, the hunt to find them, the festivals and pop-ups, and the frenzy all this produces. Labor Day, roughly, marks the start of the season, but it doesn’t hit full tilt until the third week of September. That’s when the world should be descending on Portland and Seattle, and perhaps with a bit more promotion, we’ll get there. In the meantime, you’re all invited.