So people ask me that after reading the post below (PROST! Germany lost the beer war, And China won). All sorts of researchers are studying this phenomenon, and they’re coming up with a laundry list of reasons, some more plausible than others. In between the lines, those on the medical and social services side gleefully emphasize the benefits of reduced beer consumption, while those on the industry side fret over their very livelihoods.

The one thing I want to add to this discussion is my personal experience: Germans can no longer drink three bottles of their favorite brewski for lunch, as they did back in the day when I had summer jobs in construction there … on scaffolding eight stories up. Shit happened, and Big Gov finally cracked down. Now, no one drinks at work. And in construction: strengstens verboten!

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