Have a look at these 24 Beer Facts you may not know!
1:
Beer has been brewed in Scotland for more than 5,000 years and there are currently more than 150 breweries in Scotland producing around 2,000 regular beers and thousands more seasonal and special event beers.
2:
In 1814 London suffered the Great Beer Flood when around 388,000 gallons of beer poured into the streets around Tottenham Court Road after vats in a brewery ruptured. At least eight people drowned but a judge and jury ruled the beer flood was an Act of God.
3:
The moon has a crater named Beer.
4:
Dale Shepherd, General Manager of The Fox & Hounds, in Houston, Renfrewshire, says, “We are very Real Ale focused – in fact we’re passionate about it. I’m often asked what my favourite is but it would be unfair to have one until you’d tried them all. I’ve had everything from coffee and chocolate stout, Earl Grey flavoured beerand Jamaican Ting (grapefruit) flavoured beer on in The Fox. Real Ale is often overlooked by pubs which is a shame because it’s one of the best markets out there.”
5:
Beer is the world’s oldest and most widely consumed alcoholic drink and the third most popular drink – after water and tea.
6:
President Obama was the first president to ever brew beer on White House grounds. The White House Honey Porter and White House Honey Ale were brewed using honey produced in beehives at the White House.
7:
Beer soup was a common breakfast in medieval Europe.
8:
In medieval Britain more beer was drunk than water as the alcohol made it safer. People in the Czech Republic drink more beer than anywhere else – an average of 143 litres per head – compared to the UK average of 67 litres per head.
9:
There are more breweries per head of population in the UK than anywhere else in the world.
10:
Belhaven Best is Scotland’s best-selling ale. More than 1 in every 3 pints of keg ale in Scotland is a Belhaven Best. The equivalent of 15 million pints of Belhaven Best are sold each year, which equates to over 4,000 pints a day, with a few extra saved up for holidays!
11:
First prize at the Wife Carrying World Championships is the wife’s weight in beer.
12:
Germany built a 5km beer pipeline to the Veltins-Arena, a major football stadium in the city of Gelsenkirchen in 2013, there is a Thor Beer pipeline in Randers, Denmark and the Halve Maan Brewery opened one in Bruges, Belgium, last September.
13:
The 15th of June is National Beer Day!
14:
In ancient Egypt beer was traditionally brewed by women.
15:
In the Czech Republic, there is a beer spa that offers a 20-minute bath in beer brewing ingredients. The treatment supposedly boosts circulation, softens the skin and infuses the body with vitamins.
16:
Craft and premium beers are still proving popular – 36% of Scottish consumers say they would be interested in trying locally-brewed beer, while 32% would be interested in trying limited edition (seasonal) flavours, 25% would be keen to try out fruit-flavoured beers and 12% would be interested in trying a beer flavoured with botanicals (things like chamomile and ginger) (Mintel Beer Report, December 2016).
17:
The average price per pint of Stout in Scotland (£3.58) is -£0.02 less than the Great Britain average, but the average price per pint of Ale in Scotland (£3.73) is +£0.29 more than the GB average. (Source: CGA OPM MAT to 25.02.2017)
18:
Zythology is the study of beer and beer-making, including the role particular ingredients play in the brewing process.
19:
Only 9% of Scottish consumers drink beer daily, compared to 30% who drink beer a few times a week and 23% who drink it once a week. But 60% of us say we drink it as a treat (Mintel Beer Report, December 2016).
20:
Belhaven launched its new Twisted Grapefruit IPA – which has been proving highly popular – earlier this year.
21:
Krombacher has been exclusively brewed in the village of Krombach, Germany, since 1803, in strict accordance with the German Beer Purity Law of 1516. Krombacher was first imported into the UK in 1987 and has achieved consecutive year-on-year double-digit growth for the last five years. The brand grew by 14% last year. The firm launched its naturally cloudy Kellerbier kegs to the UK on trade in February. Made by adding young beer to matured beer during the fermentation process, Kellerbier was traditionally reserved for Master Brewers who sampled it for maturity and quality direct from the cask. It is expected to be a big hit here.
22:
Stout is worth £83.5million
Craft stout volume grows by more than +100% in Scotland versus +22.9% in Great Britain (Source: CGA OPM MAT to 25.02.2017).
23:
In terms of taste, stout/porter (like Guinness) is the most popular tipple among beer drinkers, with 18% of Scottish consumers having drunk it in the last six months, compared to 17% who drank craft beer,16% who drank dark/ruby ale/bitter, and 14% who enjoyed golden/light ale (like IPA). Only 8% of us drank non-alcoholic beer in the last six months and 4% went for the gluten-free options (Mintel Beer Report, December 2016).
24:
While 50% of Scottish consumers would rather drink less beer than switch to a low-alcohol variant if they had to limit their intake, 40% say they limit how much beer they drink in order to manage their weight. In addition, 29% think that stronger beers (8% or more) should be sold in smaller servings (Mintel Beer Report, December 2016).
