In Australia, the consumption of beer is a cultural practice that doesn’t look to be dissipating anytime soon (or ever for that matter). Despite the government’s tendency to put exorbitant taxes on our alcoholic pastime in very unAustralian ways, as a nation, we continue to stay true to our love of beer. And why wouldn’t we when it complements other cultural practices—sports, barbeques and notions of mateship—so very, very well.
Unfortunately, there are more than a few unpleasant sides to having a passion for beer. Drinking too little after a hard day’s work can lead to sleepiness, drinking too much can result in messier consequences, while the dreaded hangover is potentially lurking around the corner of every beer-induced slumber. But there is one thing that is associated with beer that sits firmly in the undebatable negatives column: the associated smells.
Whether it’s beer breath to sober folk, stale beverages or the unfortunate odour of public toilets endowed with the aftermath of beer-fuelled revelry, it’s all a bit on the nose. You may have read this story on the PopSci front page that talks about the rather genius use of the bacterial solution, Elbomex, at Oktoberfest to replace the putrid beer-related smells with a faint soil odour. As far as I’m concerned that’s a fair trade.
Apparently the cigarette smoke of Oktoberfest’s gone by helped to mask the aforementioned beer-related odours that surround the festival. As we Aussies live in a country that frowns upon public indoor smoking, it seems to me that this Oktoberfest solution could emigrate from Europe and make its way Down Under.
As someone whose nose is rather sensitive to the more offensive smells of life, I would certainly be more hesitant in attending beer-fuelled events like Oktoberfest that may have stomach-turning odours. That is, unless they applied such a nose-friendly solution.
What do the rest of you think?
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