Non-alcoholic beer garden is out of the question at Oktoberfest
Published: Sunday, Aug 4th 2024, 05:20
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Alcohol-free alternatives to conventional beer are the trend - even at Munich's Oktoberfest. However, according to the Wiesn boss and host spokespeople, a separate alcohol-free beer garden on the festival grounds is unthinkable.
The demand for non-alcoholic beer increased slightly and amounted to around four percent, said Wiesn landlord spokesman Peter Inselkammer.
German per capita consumption last year was 88 liters of beer, of which almost 8 liters were non-alcoholic, as the German Brewers' Association recently announced. Alcohol-free beer is increasingly becoming an export hit - for example to other EU countries and the USA.
Non-alcoholic beer also gained in popularity in Switzerland, but is consumed significantly less than alcoholic beer. According to the Swiss Brewers' Association, output in the 2022/23 brewing year rose by 5.3% to just under 280,000 hectoliters. A total of 4.57 million hectolitres of beer were sold, as the Brewers' Association announced at the end of the last brewing year.
More lemonade and apple spritzer
The Oktoberfest is skeptical. The Oktoberfest boss Clemens Baumgärtner (CSU), Peter Inselkammer and the second host spokesman Christian Schottenhamel are not in favor of a separate beer garden at the Wiesn that only serves non-alcoholic drinks, like the one that has just opened in Munich near the main train station.
"The correct Bavarian expression would be: So a Schmarrn!", said Schottenhamel. Nobody is forced to drink alcohol in the beer gardens. And there is an alcohol-free offer, said Inselkammer. "People didn't switch to non-alcoholic beer last year, but rather to other non-alcoholic drinks," he said about consumer behavior. Sales of sweet drinks such as lemonade and apple spritzer increased significantly.
©Keystone/SDA
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