even
recognized National Beer Day in 2017.
I think beer should have a holiday...
beer’s been around for 6,000 years,
since Sumerians drank beer
through a straw, followed by
Babylonians making 20 beers,
Egyptians, Greeks, Romans made it —
even the Catholic Church brewed
beer once (which makes sense,
since Saints sometimes became saints
after fasting for weeks to have visions,
while only consuming alcohol).
Germanic groups also joined in,
making my favorite beers, so
it’s cool that the 1516 Beer Purity Law —
actually, the German Reinheitsgebot —
said beer was only made with water,
hops, barley, wheat, and yeast.
I even sit here at my local brewery
with my local Imperial hefeweizen,
under their sign declaring
“water, malt, hops, yeast”
for their essential beer quintefecta...
So, yeah, although it is new, this
holiday exists because Americans
were so inept in the ‘20s that they
forbid the selling of beer or liquor...
which is my cue to fondly reflect
on my hometown, with tunnels
under the Green Mill bar
to allow their speakeasy —
and possibly the mafia —
access during prohibition
to avoid the law, which still
makes me smile to this day.
So, why not celebrate on this day,
a day now known because two friends
spread the word on social media.
Just get a good beer in your hands
and join the celebration.
