beer and global warming

On a recent day trip to Brussels, I paid a visit to the famous Cantillon brewery, the last one in Brussels that still relies on spontaneous fermentation to brew their beer. Though I’m not a beer drinker myself, I have over the years been involuntarily marinated in the opinions of The Best European Beers and when in Belgium…

Spontaneous fermentation was once the standing method before beer production became highly industrialised. As a consequence their beers take years, rather than weeks, to produce. The unique yeasty biome specific to a region would help give different beers their particular flavour and, as far as I can gather, Benedictine monks get all the best yeasts.

While brewing would normally be underway in late October, the unseasonally mild temperatures have meant a delayed start – not only for this year, but many previous years as well. During a month where I’ve never seen global warming discussed so frequently as a fait accompli, we were witness to yet another small consequence. And that consequence was beer (maybe the masses will finally rally?)

Since that warm and balmy heyday of oh, a week ago, winter seems to have recalled who’s boss and temperatures have plummeted to such an extent that Western Europe, as in the entire Western part of Europe, almost succumbed to an entire power blackout on Saturday night. As in total. I’m having trouble getting my head around that one.
Still, at least you’d have been able to see the stars…