Dear beer enthusiasts,
what is Switzerland famous for?
Usually the answer that comes to mind is chocolate, cheese, the Alps... and, for those of you with some ocult business, secret bank accounts (this last one being one with which they're trying to come clean...)
It is also famous for international courts and the notorious neutrality
Nevertheless in today's post I will talk about two less famous things about Switzerland which deserve more attention...
The first one, of course, is beer. As the country shares a big border with Austria and Germany and has a numerous part of its population composed by german speakers, some traditions are similar, and the millenar art of brewing is one of them.
The St. Galler Schützengarten is a product of this tradition, brewed by the Schützengarten brewery, in the southern extreme of Lake Zurich. It is a 5% lager with a potential to compete with most German helles (although when it comes to helles my heart still lays in the German side of the border)
The symbol of the brewery, an aiming musketeer, is what led me to the second theme of today.
The St. Galler Schützengarten is a product of this tradition, brewed by the Schützengarten brewery, in the southern extreme of Lake Zurich. It is a 5% lager with a potential to compete with most German helles (although when it comes to helles my heart still lays in the German side of the border)
The symbol of the brewery, an aiming musketeer, is what led me to the second theme of today.
St. Galler Landbier and the Schützengarten brewery Logo
The Swiss people are also known for being very good Marksmen, every adult male in the country receives military training and is given a rifle to take home and ammunition to learn how to shoot
Every year there are several Schützenfeste - marksmen festivals - around the country, where people compete among each other for the title of "King of the Marksmen" while others celebrate life with beer and typical food
Every year there are several Schützenfeste - marksmen festivals - around the country, where people compete among each other for the title of "King of the Marksmen" while others celebrate life with beer and typical food
It is said that, in one of these festivals, shortly before World War I, the German Kaiser, who had just watched an exhibition by the Swiss militiamen, asked one of the Swiss competitors: "You are 500,000 and you shoot well, but if we attack with 1,000,000 men, what will you do?" The Swiss replied "Shoot twice and go home". If the story is true, I don't know, but Germany never attacked Switzerland...
My personal opinion about people having guns at home in nowadays society, is a completely different question that doesn't fit in this blog.
All I will say here is: For the safety of all around you in a Schützenfest, do not drink and shoot :)
Cheers
No comments:
Post a Comment