Beer guzzler? Or just a pub hopper?
These are the best places to relocate to:
1. Czech Republic
Beer is everywhere in the Czech Republic, and it’s very cheap. If you are paying more than $3 in a restaurant for a pint, you’re getting ripped off. Bohemia, where Prague is, has the most beer (Moravia is more famous for wine). The beer in the Czech Republic doesn’t have a lot of alcohol in it, usually around 3.8-5%. Some popular brands include Pilsner Urquell, Budweiser/Budvar (which is Czechvar in America), Kozel (whose dark beer, Kozel Cerny, is very tasty) and Staropramen. The Czechs have the highest beer consumption per capita out of any country in the world. It is common to see people drinking beers on trains at 10 in the morning, or at lunch breaks from work. If you’re studying abroad in the Czech Republic, teachers will sometimes take you on class trips to breweries early in the morning! Pub culture is common. Establishments will usually only carry one brand of beer on tap. Beer in Czech is “Pivo.”
2. Germany
Beer is a huge part of German culture. There are around 1,300 breweries in the country. Germans often do not export their beers, because they want to keep them purely Deustch, and only made of barley malt, water and hops. Beers that do not use barley malt are required to be top-fermented. This purity law is called the “Reinheitsgebot.” They will sell American Budweiser as an alcoholic beverage, but not as beer. Almost half of all the breweries are in Bavaria, which is where Oktoberfest occurs, and you’ll find Biergartens everywhere. Alcohol content is usually around 5%. The most common beers are Oettinger, Beck’s, Krombacher, Bitburger and Veltins. Beer in German is “Bier.”
3. Belgium
Beer brewing in Belgium dates back to the Middle Ages. There are about 125 breweries in the country. The Belgians are more crafty with their beers, which usually have high alcohol content (5-13%), and are often drank like wine out of fancy glasses. There is Lambic wheat beer, which has a unique fermenation process and has a more vinous, cidery, sour taste. Dubbel has a brown color, while Flemmish Red is appropriately reddish. You have to pay attention to what you’re ordering, as there is quite a range of selections.
4. Ireland
Ireland consumes the second most beer per capita, after the Czech Republic. Most of the beer sold in the country is lager, even though Ireland is famous for stout. The most famous stout is Guiness. Since the 1990s, many microbreweries have emerged in Ireland, such as Biddy Early and the Dublin Brewing Company. Pubs are everywhere, and are frequented by locals from neighborhoods.
5. United States
The United States has the highest number of breweries, at 1,500. There are many cheap, low quality beers that are brewed in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, such as Pabst and Schlitz. They even brew some beers in Wisconsin that are only distributed exclusively in certain areas, such as National Bohemian in Baltimore. There are many high quality microbrews that are distributed locally or nationally.
