German Beer Apocalypse - Beer, Wine, Homebrew, and Everything Fermentable!

German Beer Apocalypse

Written by DJ Spiess

Thursday, 27 December 2007

Germany is losing their taste for beer. The four horsemen may be upon us.

In what is sure to be described as one of the signs of the impending apocalypse, Germans are losing their taste for beer. Yes, it gives us shudders too.

The German per-capita consumption of beer fell by 3.5 liters. The average German consumes 112.5 liters of beer a year, placing them third in the world rankings. In the past, Germans used to be the number one country for drinking beer, consuming 156 liters per year during the 1980s.

The per capita beer consumption for Germans rose only once in the past nine years. It rose in 2006 when Germany hosted the World Cup (we’re not sure that should count).

Statisticians believe the drop off is due to Germany’s aging population. They expect there will be twice as many people over 60 than under-20 in 2050. More people are drinking non-alcoholic drinks than beer in Germany.

Is this festive German celebration endangered? (courtesy wikipedia)

It is expected that breweries might start to consolidate or go out of business. (Please protect Paulaner at all costs! I love their Märzen.) Germany has 1,284 breweries, more than any other country in the world. Germany is also host to Oktoberfest , the largest beer festival in the world.

Perhaps they should just sell more to the Czechs or Irish who came in first and second respectively for per capita drinking in the world according to the study published by the Japanese company Kirin Holdings.

Who is behind fermentarium?

My name is D.J. Spiess I've been homebrewing for many years and I hope I can help you enjoy this hobby as much as I do. If you enjoyed this article, please leave a comment, share it, digg it, or stumble it using the icons to the right or the top of the page.
You can read more about me on the about page.