Beer is the world’s most widely consumed and probably oldest alcoholic beverage, and is the third most popular drink overall, after water and tea.
A sweeping statement and undoubtedly true, because that’s what it says on Wikipedia. If you’re still not convinced, however, perhaps you should mosey on down to the Cape Town Festival of Beer at Hamilton’s rugby club in Green Point next weekend – a celebration of brewing heritage and craft from around the world featuring almost 100 brands and the fifth beer festival in the past three months.
We asked organiser Martin Tucker what set this particular one apart from all the rest and this was his answer: “This is an event where all brewers are on a level footing, all stands are the same size, all signage above the stands is the same and no favouritism is shown. It is up to the consumer to choose what he wants to drink.
“Each brewer does dress up their own stand and this may play a role in attracting the public, but ultimately it is the beer. There are over 100 beers on show, which to the best of our knowledge is the largest single amount of commercially available beers in one place in the southern hemisphere, and twice as many as last year. The event is outdoors and indoors, with live music all day and many prizes to be won as well as a huge range of food options and an area for the kids. It is centrally located with plenty of parking and public transport hubs all around the venue.”
SAB (which most people forget was once a small independent brewery itself, back in the day), Robsons, Brewers & Union, Brew Dog, Gallows Hill, Triggerfish, Camelthorn, Darling Brewery, Bavaria, Corona, Napier, Jack Black, Paulaner, Mitchells, Royal Mzansi, Devil’s Peak Brewing, Fosters, Erdinger, Liefmans, Oettinger, Cobra, Tiger, Singha, Duvel, Maredsous and Valentines are just some of the participating micro and mega breweries taking part.
“Never has there been so much choice for beer drinkers.
“The craft brewers are now starting to get their acts together, becoming more commercially viable and establishing themselves in venues next to the big brands with loyal followers,” says Tucker.
“They are also competing on taste and are introducing styles that haven’t been seen commercially in SA before, such as pale ales, dark lagers and Weiss beers.”
Typically a pale wheat beer, hence its name, Paulaner master brewer Wolfgang Koedel will be whipping up a batch of red Weiss beer specially for the festival. “I am using a caramel malt which gives the beer a complex flavour and an amber colour,” explains Koedel, who brews his beer according to ancient Bavarian recipes right in the heart of the V&A Waterfront, 60m below the Paulaner beer garden and below sea level.
With all this talk of slow beer and craft beer, it can get a bit confusing.
“We went through the process of premium, craft, boutique, real beer, etc, and none of those descriptions resonated with me. “I call my beers ‘slow beer’ because the process is natural and the brewing time longer (slower) than industrial beers,” says Kevin Wood of Darling Brew. “It also links back to the geometric tortoise, which we initially choose as the brand’s icon.”
While the trend is certainly in favour of these slow-crafted beers, not all are created equal and there is much variety in flavour. For example, Wood calls his Native Ale “a rusty ale” because of the colour.
“Ales are generally fruitier and more flavoursome than lager and are referred to as real beers,” he says.
“The Native is brewed at 18ºC and is top fermented. Besides the other ingredients we use a small amount of chocolate malt which gives it the colour and adds to the rich flavours.”
Bone Crusher, on the other hand, is a wheat-based beer with coriander and orange peel. “The cloudy character when poured into a glass reminded me of the colour of dried-out bones, which in turn made me think of the hyena which led me to the name Bone Crusher,” says Wood. “The beer, like the animal, is misunderstood in South Africa, which I thought linked nicely together.”
This is just a small taste of what will be on offer at the festival, and taste you will. The entrance fee is R60, a glass costs R25 and tastings are free. Groups of 10 can book themselves a kings’ table which includes mugs, a 30 litre keg and a dedicated fraulein to see to their needs.
l The Cape Town Festival Of Beer runs from November 25-27 at Hamiltons RFC, Green Point.
Book at www.webtickets.co.za, e-mail [email protected] for kings’ tables, corporate and VIP tickets, or see www.capetownfestivalofbeer.co.zafor more information. - Sunday Argus