Europe is a popular travel destination among Americans. Steeped in history and loaded with unforgettable scenery, Europe is a hotbed of cultural and natural beauty. It’s also a continent with a strong brewing tradition and it is home to some of the oldest and most respected breweries in the world. Bob and Ellie Tupper love beer and they have a special affection for the beers of Europe. They have traveled the world and tasted/evaluated thousands of malt beverages and in this book, Drinking in the Culture: Tuppers’ Guide to Exploring Great Beers in Europe, Bob and Eliie take you on a journey to some of the best watering holes and breweries the world has ever known.
From Country to Country
Europe is the continent most often associated with great beer and the Tuppers have spent much time over the past few decades visiting different European countries and cities and the bars and breweries that make them special. The book profiles a total of 24 different cities including such notable beer heavyweights as London and Manchester England, Munich Germany, Prague Czech Republic, and others.
With each city, Drinking in the Culture advises the reader on the best beers available and where to find them. The book examines the beer culture in each locale, highlighting some of the best beer and the greatest bars, beer gardens, brewpubs, and other places to track down the tastiest suds each city has to offer. The authors also recommend side trips to other, smaller cities that are reachable in reasonable time and have beer worth seeking out.
Other Sites to See
Beer takes center stage with this book, but it’s actually much more than a guide to great beer. Europe, as already stated, is a great place for history buffs and the book makes sure to point out some of the ‘can’t miss’ historical and cultural attractions in each city along with notable restaurants, recommended places of lodging, entertainment options, and transportation. The book even points out things to avoid such as scams and other issues common to some of the countries.
Who’s Ready to Explore?
Drinking in the Culture is a very useful and well- written guide to the beer and history of this highly influential region of the world. Bob and Ellie Tupper are two beer and history buffs with many decades of devotion to the pursuit of beer and the often fascinating history that often comes with it. From historic brewing operations run by monks to gigantic beer gardens where the beer flows with abandon, the Tuppers have extensive experience with the European continent and they share their wisdom openly in the pages of this book, serving up recommendations for beer, bars, hotels, and more.
This guide makes for good reading material, thanks to the writing style, which is conversational with a small dose of wit (as in humor, not wheat beer) thrown in to entertain the reader. Most will consider this a reference guide more than anything and I suppose it is, but it is also highly readable and many people, like me, will want to read all of the pages and soak up the history and beer culture that pervades this part of the world.
Drinking in the Culture doesn’t organize its cities by country or region. Instead, the book lists the cities in alphabetical order, beginning with Amberg, Germany and continuing through Zurich, Switzerland. This is a little different from the typical travel guide, most of which organize by country. But it’s not really an issue and it doesn’t detract in any way from the reading. However, some might wonder why so many countries and cities were excluded from the guide. I would surmise that it is because the book is already lengthy enough (324 pages) the way it is and by leaving out some of the countries/cities, the Tuppers can continue to publish more books. This is a good idea, really, because trying to cram all of the beer- oriented cities of Europe into a single book could easily stretch the length to 1000+ pages.
It’s nice to find so much personal advice in one beer book. As the Tuppers travel from place to place, they tell you which bars to visit, often with unconventional directions (e.g.- walk up a hill, look for a railroad track, turn right, head down the street until you see an antique shop, turn left and the bar will be on your right) that are unlike those found in most travel guides. The advice the Tuppers offer is also unique and unlike that of other travels guides. They tell you which beers to seek out, which hotels to stay in, what sites to see, and what food to sample and they explain exactly why they feel the way they do. And to show that safety matters, they also offer advice on ways to avoid common scams. Most cities in Europe are safer than the cities in the United States, but there are still pickpockets and money making scams that travelers need to be made aware of and the Tuppers make sure to keep all tourists in the know.
Europe is a continent rich in history and its beer industry and culture stretch back for multiple millennia. There are great historic sites, amazing natural scenery, memorable cultural festivals, and yes, incredible beer. It’s a continent that ranks highly on the bucket lists of beer lovers everywhere and Drinking in the Culture is a very good guide to experiencing Europe from a beer- historic perspective. Cheers!
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