Beer factor

A quick précis: Oktoberfest is an annual 16-day festival held in Munich every year, starting late September. The festival is synonymous with beer (called Oktoberfestbiers) served at the event in Munich since 1818. The event is special to pop cultural forces and attracts a lot of young adults. The amazing quantity of alcohol at the event sees thousands of Beer Corpses every year. It is a term invented for young people who pass out after excessive drinking. This year the festival is celebrating its 175th anniversary.

Beer, yes. But the other things people flock for to the festival are Pig leg with Sauerkraut (red cabbage), Apple Spatzle (tiny egg and flour dumpling), Weisswurst with Brezel (white sausage with Pretzel) and Sweet Mustard Schnitzel (traditional German cutlet) with cabbage salad. “These are some of the things that I am preparing for the Deutschefest too.” When people the world over are eager to catch up on Oktoberfest, De Boer has caught a plane to India. Why? “I see it every year. So for me, being in Mumbai is a different experience. I like the attitude of the people. They are curious to know more. The markets and ingredients here are delightful.” Although Oktoberfest in Mumbai is not even remotely like what it is in Germany, De Boer is happy to do his bit.

At the ITC Maratha, Chef Nikhil Merchant has created quite a spread of German delicacies. The hotel gets a lot of German guests who are only too happy to see Oktoberfest being celebrated here. One such person

Albrecht Becker likes the tap beer and the Apple-potato au gratin the best. “It’s my first visit to Mumbai and I am surprised by the number of people celebrating the festival, however small-scale it may be. In fact, here they add their own touch to it and to tell you the truth, I am amused as well as impressed by it.” Other German delicacies include Spit roasted chicken, German sausages, Asparagus Baden-Baden, Asparagus spears, Rote Rubensalat (pickled beetroot salad), Sauerkraut soup with German bread rolls, Sauerbraten (marinated pot roast in a sweet sour sauce) and Schokoladenpudding (Steamed chocolate pudding) and Apple strudel.

For most Indians who aren’t guzzling lager in Munich right now, celebrations mean drinking tap beer till they drop. So whether it is Sports Bar, Toto’s, Ghetto,

Geoffrey’s, Pause or Café Mondegar, beer and sausage combos are selling like hot cakes. Manager Huxley Pimenta of Café Mondegar says, “We always sell barrels of beer. During Oktoberfest time, we sell some more.”

However, original Oktoberfest frequenter Yogi Shah of backpacker.co.in feels that in our city, celebrations are merely a watered-down version. “Once you have been to the Mecca of beer festivals all the others pale in comparison. Oktoberfest is all about beer gardens and enjoying your beer and food outdoors. Now, where in Mumbai can one replicate all that? Besides, we do not have the secret anti-hangover formula that the Germans have.”