Israeli Adventures: Pt. 2, Beer

By this time, Matt and I are about halfway through our trip to Israel. At this point, I very much hope we’ve been able to sample some of the delicious sounding wines we learned about last week in Part 1 of this 3-part series on the food & drink of the region. We flew into Tel Aviv and spent the first weekend in Jerusalem, which is known for its foodie culture, so I’m sure we’ve already had a smashing time.

However, we’ll be spending most of our time outside of the cities, basically in the desert. We’re working on an archeological dig during the weekdays, and you know what sounds ridiculously refreshing to me after brushing away dust in 100+ degree heat?

Water. Lots and lots of water.

But also, beer! One of those exceeding light, crisp, bubbly beers. Or a light IPA that’s full of tropical fruit and hoppy bitterness.

And from the sounds of it, Israel has an amazing up-and-coming craft beer scene!

Hoppy History

This region has quite the elongated history… of pretty much everything. And that goes for beer as well. The first known history of beer in the area is from the sixth century BC! Before this time it seemed as though everyone preferred wine, however with the exile of the Jews to Babylonia, they began turning to beer, and a rabbis started to become established brewers.

From that time through the early 20th century, there’s not a lot of specific history to be had. Perhaps you, reader, are happy about this, as I know I can blather on about histories for too long sometimes, but that is quite a long period for such little historical definition.

However, if I were to hazard a guess, given similar histories across the globe, I’d wager that for most of that time brewing was dominated by monastic or sacramental brewers, with domestic brewing picking up nearing the 19th century.

But skipping right along to the more solid facts and the start of an important beer phase: In 1934 the first commercial brewery opened in Rishon LeZion. Several others opened in the ensuing years, and then in 1952 The National Brewery opened and was officially the largest brewery in the Middle East.

In just 2 years it was shipping out 400,000 barrels, 180,000 of it going to the U.S. alone! The brewery continued to do exceeding well, and in 1985 it was acquired by Tempo Beer Industries. By the early 1990s Tempo and Israel Beer Breweries - the two biggest breweries in the country - owned 70% of the countries beer market!

Tempo is perhaps best know for Goldstar and Maccabee beers. As a 4.9% lager, it conjures similarities to Heineken, Tennents, Budweiser, etc.

Craft Beer Boom

But the story doesn’t stop with a pale, light lager. Because now we get to David and the legend of his Dancing Camel.

(Really, it’s just the story of the craft beer boom, but that makes it sound way cooler, doesn’t it?)

The Dancing Camel Brewing Company opened in 2005 by David Cohen and is said to have kicked off the craft beer boom in Israel; it was the country’s first microbrewery!

Since that time the industry has flourished. There are now about 30 separate microbreweries throughout the country and it’s easy to find beer tours, beer gardens, and beer festivals celebrating the new flavors filtering their way onto the scene.

The industry is not without its hardships though. And that “30” number fluctuates very quickly. Just like almost every other industry, the Coronavirus hit the food and beverage scene in Israel hard. The country went from ~14,000 restaurants and bars pre-corona to just about 9,000.

And besides a global pandemic, Israeli microbreweries have a few other difficult waters they’re forced to navigate.

First, Israelis just drink less beer. Out of the world’s 190 countries, Israel ranks 153 in beer consumption. Culturally, Israelis may have one - or possibly two - beers all night long at a party or outing. That’s not particularly the case in Wisconsin (or the rest of the U.S.) where sitting down with a 6-pack is not uncommon.

Second, taxation and importation are killers. Beer is taxed at an average of 2.3 shekels per liter, which is high in the country in contrast to other industries. And pretty much everything has to be imported. Everything from hops, to grains, to bottles come in from other countries, which adds to the cost of the whole shebang.

A Beer Community

So with the odds stacked against you, why would anyone attempt to open a microbrewery?

Well, besides the fervent love of beer - which cannot be denied - the community that has sprung up in the Israeli craft brew industry is captivating.

In an interview to Israeli21c, Jeremy (Jem) Welfeld described Israel brewing as this:

“Beer is the beverage of friendship,” Welfeld explains. “We mix a blessing inside for brotherhood, friendship and harmony and people can taste it.”

Collaboration brewing is common occurrence, as is collaboration with festivals and fairs. Everyone helps, everyone participates, and it’s all “for the people”.

As I was researching, I came across the Craft Beer Israel blog, and this line of theirs really stood out to me:

“Crafting beer is about so much more than creating an alcoholic beverage. A well-crafted beer often serves as an emblem of its land and its brewer.”

Just from what I’ve read, it sounds like an amazing and uplifting culture the country has crafted around its brewers. And if that sentiment comes through this strongly in writings about it, I can’t imagine what it will feel like to experience it.

Weekly Adventure

Finding an Israeli craft beer in the U.S. is going to be nigh on impossible (sorry folks)! But, I was able to find Goldstar Beer both at Total Wine and at one local liquor store in my area. It is the middle of summer after all, so perhaps a light, crisp Israeli lager is just the ticket.

Cheers,

Molly

References

https://www.craftbeerisrael.com/

https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/ancient-israel-history-beer/

https://www.israel21c.org/the-complete-guide-to-israels-microbrew-industry/

https://www.craftbeerisrael.com/

https://www.touristisrael.com/israeli-beer/25521/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beer_in_Israel

https://israeliblogger.com/history-of-the-israeli-beer/

https://www.jpost.com/magazine/features/veterans-a-brewmasters-persistence