Page 31 - ARUBA TODAY

A32 FEATURE
Friday 2 March 2018
'Atlas of Beer' surveys beer culture around the world

By BETH J. HARPAZ So you can order a some- and cereal grains, yeast
AP Travel Editor what customized Irish pub and hops, those are the
Think of beer and you may and have it delivered at four things that can lead
think of Irish pubs or Ger- your doorstep, where you to what we many times
many's Oktoberfest. But a assemble it and you can call beer terroir. You may
National Geographic book serve Guinness beer there. hear the term with wine.
called the "Atlas of Beer" AP: Talk about the ancient People think about wine
surveys beer across six con- roots of beer and how dif- and where it’s grown and
tinents, from banana beer ferent grains grown in dif- how that location imparts
in Tanzania to beer aged in ferent places determine a taste onto the grapes.
wine barrels in Argentina. flavor. And there is quite a bit of
"We like to seek out and PATTERSON: The biggest im- thought that ... different
drink the local beer or pact on the taste of beer is flavors of different types of
just see how it tastes and not so much the grains but beer are in part based on
see how it's different than it’s actually the yeast. So the the locations that they’re
the beers we can get at yeast imparts a lot of flavor made.
home," said Mark W. Pat- on the beers. Talking about AP: Your book mentions
terson, who wrote the book the ancientness or the DNA banana beer in Tanzania.
with Nancy Hoalst-Pullen. of beer, archaeologists HOALST-PULLEN: It’s kind of
Patterson and Hoalst-Pul- have found evidence that a wine-beer hybrid. ... It’s
len, who teach geography beer was being produced quite thick. It’s not what
at Kennesaw State Universi- as long ago as 7000 years most people would prob-
ty in Georgia outside Atlan- B.C. in China of all places. ably consider to be beer,
ta, spoke about the "Atlas They’ve also found it a little that you would drink that
of Beer" and beer culture bit later in time about 5000 would be reminiscent of
around the world in a pod- B.C. in what we would call maybe a lager or most ales,
cast for AP Travel's weekly modern-day Iraq. But they but given where it comes
series "Get Outta Here!" also speculate, too, that from and what’s available
Here are some excerpts, when people would mi- there, it’s probably some-
edited for brevity and clar- grate, they would actually thing that you would want
ity. bring the grains from their to drink to shake off the hot
Associated Press: How has local places and then ac- sun if you’re at the base of
Irish pub culture spread This image courtesy of National Geographic shows their book tually sow the seeds in their Kilimanjaro.
around the world? cover for "Atlas of Beer." new place. And that was AP: What are some great
HOALST-PULLEN: You don't Associated Press specifically for brewing craft beer and microbrew-
have to necessarily be in beer and not for making ery destinations in the U.S.?
Ireland anymore to have panies in Ireland, one in that owns Guinness, and bread. HOALST-PULLEN: California,
an authentic Irish pub ex- particular called the Irish they have five or six styles HOALST-PULLEN: The four especially in San Diego,
perience. When the Irish Pub Co. that was acquired of Irish pubs that they build main ingredients that San Francisco; Portland
diaspora went all over the by Diageo, the company and ship all over the world. make beer, which is water (Oregon) area, on the
world, they brought their West Coast, and Portland,
pubs with them. ... Some Maine. ... The Midwest is
people think it's quite magi- probably one of the really
cal, where you can slip good hot spots to see re-
in and have a pint by an gional beers. So Ohio and
open fire and have a deep Michigan, Indiana. ... Of
conversation with people course, Asheville (in North
that you like. ... A location Carolina). Texas is another
that feels like home is part one.
of what people relate to. PATTERSON: I will add in
AP: Your book describes there Denver. Denver is
the "shebeen queens" of also the home of the Great
South Africa, saying the American Beer Fest, which
term comes from an Irish is the largest beer fest in the
word for places that illegal- U.S.
ly sell alcohol. AP: What’s one of your
HOALST-PULLEN: The wom- favorite places for beer
en (in South Africa) who around the world?
would make the beer PATTERSON: Argentina
would create in their is known for its wine but
homes illicit bars. People what the brewers are do-
would come in and drink in ing is they’re getting to-
those locations. And then gether with the wineries
when they would be raid- and they’re taking their use
ed, they would have ways barrels and then they’re
that they could hide every- aging their beers in used
thing. So it looked just like a wine barrels. And the result
normal place. The shebeen is some of the best beers
queens were some of the In this Sept. 16, 2017, file photo, young people celebrate the opening of the 184th Oktoberfest in the world. ... It’s largely
most powerful people in beer festival in Munich, Germany. Think of beer and you may think of Irish pubs or Germany’s small batch stuff but they
Oktoberfest.
the community. Associated Press are trying to work their way
PATTERSON: There are com- into the U.S. market.q