I've never traveled any great distant solely with the intention of drinking. I have, however, found that no matter where I've ended up there were always plenty of interesting traditions to partake in. Whether was the dirt flavored potato schnapps in Iceland, Eiswein festival in the Rheinland or the Bierdiplom in Bamberg, there always seems to be a local drinking culture that has made my visit all that much more enjoyable. I'm far from an expect on the subject and maybe that's why I find the whole concept fascinating. I've compiled a short list of some of my favorite beer tourism events, some of which I've done and others which just sound like crazy amounts of fun.The Mumbles Mile
The Mumbles mile is a glorified pub crawl in the town of Mumbles. Mumbles is in Wales on the western coast of England. In Mumbles there is a main road along the harbor which is lined with a dozen or so pubs, your goal is to drink a pint at each of these pubs in a single day. Being so close to Ireland, the drink of choice is naturally Guiness. If stouts aren't you're thing you can find any number of bitters and lagers, Wales is part of Great Britain after all. The mile is pretty straight froward, no tricks, if you can handle 5 litres of beer then you should be golden. The main drag is even drunk friendly, its basically a straight line. You can start at one end and drink yourself down the street until you've accomplished your mission. There are no tricky hills or one way streets to hamper your boozing.Here is a video that sums it all up nicely. I'll warn you though, it's hosted by All-Star Number One Douche Bag Supreme Zane Lamprey.
Brew to Brew Run and the Hillsborough Hike
You don't have to leave the U.S. to find similar activities. The Brew to Brew Run and Hillsborough Hike a couple examples. The Hillsborough Hike is similar to the Mumbles Mile in that you have a stretch of road lined with bars and your goal is to stop as each one, getting a drink at each stop along the way. The Brew to Brew Run is a bit different. Here you'll be be hitting every brewery along the fourty four mile long route, but there are only two - one at either end. The Brew to Brew Run is a relay race from Kansas City, Missouri to Lawrence, Kansas. Starting from the Boulevard Brewery in Kansas City, you and your team of up to five runners' goal is to reach the Freestate Brewery in Lawrence some fourty miles away. I don't enjoy 'fun runs' but I do enjoy beer from both Boulevard and Freestate.Þorrablót
Þorrablót is probably the grossest shit ever. This is the Icelandic midwinter feast where the old timers bring out all of the nasty crap modern folks don't have to eat anymore. How nasty are we talkin'? How about fermented shark, or sheep's balls. So what does all of this have to do with drinking? When you eat this shit you've gotta wash it down with some pretty strong booze. Brennivín is the drink of choice after you eat some of this crap. Brennivín is potato schnapps, it's pretty brutal. So why would anyone volunteer to eat this junk in the modern age of refrigeration? Why not, how many people do you know that have eaten fermented shark and sheep's balls and lived to tell about it? To the right is another video, this time it's from No Reservations Anthony Bourdain's masterpiece series of brilliance. Enjoy.Das Bamberger Bierdiplom
The Bamberg Bierdiplom is, literally, a diploma proclaiming your mastery in the beer of Bamberg, Germany. There are nine or ten breweries in Bamberg (depending on who you ask) and in order to earn your diploma you must obtain a stamp from each of the breweries on your official bierdiplom document which is issued by the university. Each brewery has a different threshold you have to meet to receive a stamp. In most cases this means downing one or two pints of beer but could mean drinking on of each of the brewery's special beers. You're pretty much at the mercy of the brewmaster here. The breweries of Bamberg are not in a nice neat row like in Mumbles, there is a little forward planning required on your end. When starting out you'd be advised to take a bike or the bus to the Greifenklau brewery as it is the furthest from the town center. From here you should still be sober enough to make it back into town and hit Kaiserdom and a couple others before you're obliterated and having to ask for directions from the locals. Most bierdiplom evenings tend to wrap up at the Fäßla or Spezial breweries which are right across the street from each other. It was here that I first ran into a couple of guys who were finishing their diploma. After talking to them they could tell I was an American and jokingly said that American's can't do the bierdiplom, they have a special Schnapps Diploma program for remedial drinkers. It was all in good fun, but I did prove them wrong a month or so later.
This was by far the most fun I'd had drinking before. I'm not sure if it was the setting, the challenge, the beer or a combination of all of those things. For my money, these events are infinitely more enjoyable than taking a brewery tour or just going to a watered down Oktoberfest knock-off.
