It feels a bit odd putting words down about beer again. Cider and perry and trees and orchards have taken over my complete attention for the past few years. Any writing I have done – and I feel I’ve done a lot, yet somehow not enough – has been on those topics, usually over at Cider Review, of which I ended up be co-editor last year.
But despite having literally thousands of litres of cider
and perry in the cellar, I am still very much a beer drinker. I drink far more
beer than I do cider or even my beloved perry, as it is beer that I reach for
at the end of a day’s work, the almost ritualistic Feierabendbier of
German culture.
What has changed in recent years, though, is that I have lost the desire to constantly chase new beers. I suppose it's a side-effect of living in a small German village that has one small drinks store that sells regional and "TV" beers by the crateload, and an EDEKA supermarket where the most exotic beer is probably Kilkenny. Here, one must put in the effort of searching and ordering online if you want anything out of the ordinary. And if you feel out of touch, as I surely do now, facing a virtual wall of brightly coloured cans and bottles can sometimes lead to decsion paralysis, at least for this brain.
So it is to the ordinary that I have gravitated in recent
years. At least ordinary for around here. Sure, I will occasionally order a big
mixed box of German pale ales or IPAs, or the occasional pack of Rodenbach. And
if I am travelling (a lot less than I used to), I will always seek out bars with an interesting selection
and sample through as much as I can.
But in the comfort of my own yard, or stepping around to a neighbour for a chat, or dropping into that small drink store around the corner, where men gather of an evening, either outside on the bench when it is sunny, or inside, sitting in crates which have had plyboard tops made for them to avoid a bottle up the arse, the choices are usually pretty easy for me. The patrons know what to pass me when I come in.
I am never without these two beers in my cellar. I can go
down right now and make the choice between the two. Sometimes I have the option
of choosing between a 330ml or a 500ml bottle of the same beer. It’s good to have variety after
all. For me, they are the best beers I can drink right here, right now, and if
I look at my social media feed (now solely Bluesky), it will nearly
always be one of these two that is pictured in my hand at the end of a working
day.
Herbsthäuser Edelpils and Distelhäuser Pils.
Both are fairly local, certainly regional beers, from medium-sized privately-owned breweries.
If I want something more floral-toned, brighter and hop forward, I’ll pick the Distel.
If I want something with a little more malt-toned backbone, perhaps a little more chew to it, I’ll pick the Herbsthäuser.
On reflection, it’s more often the latter at the moment, but I have phases. In short, they are both really great beers that you can just simply enjoy, süffig, and definitely the best beers I can drink at home right now. I bet if they were suddenly made more widely available, they would do very well in other lands. But I'm glad to have them in my cellar.
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