The Willinger brewery in the German village of Hesse recently found itself in a bind: Unable to complete its usual beer deliveries to hotels and restaurants, the brewery quickly ran out of space to brew fresh beer. But now that the country is reopening, the brewery had to make room. So instead of throwing it away, the brewery fulfilled the dream of every German villager: It gave away the beer for free.
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Villagers in Germany Treated to 2,600 Liters of Free Beer
According to Al Jazeera, Willinger decided to offload its extra supply of light and dark beer to the public before German businesses are officially allowed to reopen to the public. In total, the villagers of Hesse were treated to 2,600 liters of beer, which is the equivalent to more than 7,300 12-ounce beers, or around 5,500 pints.
The owner of the brewery, Franz Mast, said that the generous move was also a practical one: He simply needed room in the tanks for fresh beer that he’d soon be supplying to bars and restaurants in Hesse. Reopening is good news for German brewers across the country. Many faced a serious drop in sales that, according to the Deutsche Brauer Bund beer association, could have resulted in a total collapse of the beer brewing industry.
Initially, he only planned to give away around 540 liters of beer, but the villagers snatched all of it up immediately, so he offered the rest of his supply to the thirsty public. They must have been eager for some public displays of beer-related reflection. After all, the cancellation of Oktoberfest was a blow to the national psyche.
The villagers were appropriately appreciative, apparently standing in line outside the brewery in masks with buckets and boxes waiting to fill up on free beer. Mast also told Al Jazeera that he wanted to thank people for supporting the brewery and hoped that once he’s able to reopen, the folks who benefited from his free beer will recommend the brewery to friends. 