Bavarian Beer; Wikimedia Commons CCAS Version 2.5
Reaching the golden age of 21 in 1969, I did not fully appreciate the desirability of beer. Perhaps that was not entirely my fault. Even as all most of the public knew before the Japanese import invasion was the Detroit rendering of what an automobile should be, so it was with the favorite beverage of the common man. Pilsner was pretty much it. Even at that, it was the American version of Pilsner - not bad, just unimaginative.
The American public since WWII has undergone many basic societal changes. We’ve experienced the Beatnik, the Hippie, and the Yuppie. It was inevitable that changes (already experienced in other lands) would occur in the favorite beverage of the common American man. Enter imported beers and microbreweries…
Popular diversions give birth to special events associated with them. It happens with automobiles. It happens with sports. What was lacking was some special event that would elevate the malted beverage. Enter Oktoberfest.
True, Oktoberfest has been an ongoing celebration for 200 years. But what was originally a festival of a Bavarian wedding has become an international celebration. The occasion inspires the brewer to new heights. Specialty malts abound. Even commercial enterprise releases ordinarily unavailable Oktoberfest brews. Some will pop up at the local grocery. Such brews are not to be quickly dismissed by the beer-drinking public.
There is a danger, though. Try one of these beers, and you may suddenly become disenchanted with what you’ve been drinking for decades. Oktoberfest beers have a way of exposing the mundane. Take the international perspective, and you may dispute what really is the king of beers. Even if the beer-consuming customer finds one Oktoberfest beer he or she doesn’t like, there are so many others out there. The variety is immense. It’s like comparing color photography to black-and-white. Black-and-white is great for certain atmospheric photographs, yet color opens up so many new vistas.
Please note that I do not wish to encourage anyone to take up drinking alcoholic beverages. This article is intended for those who are already moderate consumers.
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