Beer... The final frontier

Pity the fool who holds beer in neither his hand nor in his gut for he knows not the true virtues of a kuier. Once thought to be the poison of your average-waged working man - think the likes of Homer Simpson or your bra Koos dopping quarts at the local shebeen - our dear friend is slowly but surely enjoying a triumphant return to centre stage of the bar, as well as the hearts of upper society's most brooding conniesuers.

Stringent of purity laws

To whom or to what do we owe this modern day revolution? The answer, in short, is to none other than a handful of talented brewmasters, who adhering to the most stringent of purity laws, use only the finest of quality ingredients for their beer, and to the good folk at the Cape Town Festival of Beer who slave away soberly to bring their beer to the masses. On Saturday, 24 November, I boarded the MyCiti bus and made my way to the beer fest. Here's how it all went down.

When I arrived at the fest, my only concern was whether there would be enough beer. The venue, the picturesque Hamiltons Rugby Club, was packed to the brim with thousands of beer-guzzling enthusiasts. Having walked a fair distance from the bus terminal, I had worked up quite a thirst and was eager to get my complimentary Carling Draft glass topped up.

Like the embrace of a long lost friend

I commenced my thirst-quenching with my all-time favourite, Erdinger Weissbier. Like the embrace of a long lost friend its sweetness lingers long after you've both parted ways. It has an unmistakeable full wheaty and wholesome taste and is, for me, quite probably the best wheat beer on the planet. Do drink some. You can enjoy Erdinger beer at Rick's Café, and you can also buy some at Midmar Liquors. Another wheat beer which holds its own has got to be the Namibian-brewed Camelthorn wheat beer. I would highly recommend it. The next beer to grace my glass was an Amigos Tequila beer. Now I know what you're thinking, tequila beer? Surely thats got to be harsh; on the contrary, its quite easy drinking. It can best be described as a cider with a dash or two of tequila, but why not try it out for yourself and you be the judge. You can find Amigos Tequila beer at most Tops bottle stores.

Giggling like a bunch of schoolgirls

With a few drinks under my belt I ventured onwards and I met up with my colleague Dave. It was not too long after, that Dave and I started to giggle like a bunch of schoolgirls. This was when I began to realise that my early departure might come about sooner than expected. "Got to go melt some ice," I excused myself and made my way to the men's toilets. It's not uncommon to find women using the men's bathrooms at these fests, which is why I wasn't too concerned when this lady started peeing next to me at the urinals. Stranger things have happened, or so I tried to convince myself. I almost pissed myself when I realised, jislaaik, it's an oke in a dress!

Life, the universe and beer

A few beers later and a light snack, I said my goodbyes and boarded the bus. Sadly, I never got to see any of the games which included the keg lift, beer pong, darts and beer taste testing. I was just too preoccupied with the beer. Arriving home I couldn't help but reflect on the days events. As I lay my beery head, the room began to spin. I started to think about life, the universe, beer and my place in it. Then I passed out. Mission accomplished!

www.capetownfestivalofbeer.co.za