Beer & Monks

[RedGuitar]

I've been reading a little bit on this and have been fascinated to learn a bit more on the Trappists and their brewing. I'm also a bit disappointed in the America temperance movement (I have to blame my grandmother in part on this, as she has decided in the last year that alcohol is the bane of all existence). Based on my readings of the Trappists monks, I've decided that my church should start it's own brewery to help with out finances. Conveniently enough, I will volunteer to be the church's brewmaster.

Until that day comes, I was wondering if anybody on here has toured any of the Trappist breweries/monasteries and talked with the holy brewers about the brewing. I'm wondering how the monks see the art of brewing- is it simply seen as a means of supporting their ministries, or is it seen as a spiritual art/act?

 

[bierhaus15]

I forgot where I read it or what trappist brewery it refereed to, but one of the monks in charge of brewing said 'we brew beer so we can afford to be monks' or something like that. Brewing is very much a means of supporting themselves financially. Very few monks actually work in the brewery and fewer monks actually drink the dubbels, triples, and quads they produce.

 

[rjwhite41]

I forgot where I read it or what trappist brewery it refereed to, but one of the monks in charge of brewing said 'we brew beer so we can afford to be monks' or something like that. Brewing is very much a means of supporting themselves financially. Very few monks actually work in the brewery and fewer monks actually drink the dubbels, triples, and quads they produce.

The monestary was Westvleteren and the brewer was Brother Jos. Most drink some of those and they make a weaker beer specifically for the monks. Monks are also in charge of brewing although they have secular helpers. All this info comes from Brew Like a Monk if you are interested in finding out about it and is strictly limited to Belgian Trappist breweries.

 

[JLW]

Subscribed.

 

[noggins]

Man, this kinda thing seems right up my church's alley...Definitely gonna look more into this.

 

[o4_srt]

Man, this kinda thing seems right up my church's alley...Definitely gonna look more into this.

Not my church, but local to me

http://www.thereporteronline.com/articles/2010/11/11/life/doc4cdbe5ac31bce253651085.txt

 

[RedGuitar]

Oh yeah, I'm moving to England and starting my own church now.

 

[BARBQ]

UPDATE:
http://www.necn.com/04/21/11/Man-dr.../landing_arts.html?blockID=508517&feedID=4214

"I want to educate beer people about God and I want to educate God people about beer."

 

[RedGuitar]

That really is interesting to me. Takes a lot of discipline. I've never given up anything for Lent, but I've done a 24 hour fast and that's pretty difficult. I wonder if I could make it 40 days on nothing but bread and water. I know that a lot of people allow themselves to partake on Sundays, but it sounds like this guy doesn't.

 

[Revvy]

This is so fitting...

Beer and bacon.

http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2011/04/27/beer-fast-ends-with-bacon-smoothie/

Beer-only fast ends with bacon smoothie
(CNN) – J. Wilson has survived his 46-day beer-only fast and found some unexpected spiritual insights.

Wilson, who lives outside Des Moines, Iowa, was emulating a Lenten tradition carried out by German monks hundreds of years ago. In keeping with tradition he ate his last solid food on Ash Wednesday and broke his fast on Easter Sunday.

“I made a bacon smoothie and that’s what I broke the fast with,” Wilson said.

He slurped down the smoothie after midnight on the morning of Easter Sunday. He was up late for an interview with the BBC in London for their Easter Sunday broadcast

Wilson undertook the fast with medical advice from his doctor and spiritual advice from his pastor, after he conducted lengthy research into extended fasts.

In his research he found that smoothies were the best way to ease back into food. The plan was to go three days on smoothies before eating any solid foods.

“I planned on focusing on some foods that would help specifically my liver and my kidneys, which I had been beating up on for a couple of weeks –- so foods like cabbage and broccoli and cauliflower,” he said. But it didn’t quite work out that way.

“I had no idea my wife was going to buy my two boys a ham for Easter,” he said. After he made a gravy with the drippings from the ham, he helped himself to two servings of mashed potatoes and gravy and some ham as well.

Wilson is an avid home brewer, blogger, and Christian, and his beer-only quest merged these passions.

For Lent, Christians often give up something to remember the sacrifice they believe Jesus made for them on the cross. Wilson decided to give up all food and drink except beer.

At the beginning of the fast Wilson drank four beers a day during the week and five a day on weekends. Toward the end of the fast, he increased his beer intake to five a day during the week to maintain his strength.

His drink of choice: 12 ounces of Illuminator Doppelbock, a recipe he developed and brewed with the help of Eric Sorensen, the senior brewer at Rock Bottom Brewery in Des Moines, Iowa.

Wilson kept one keg at home and one at the office at the Adams County Free Press newspaper, where he’s the editor. He spread the beers out through out the day and said he only felt tipsy three times over the 46 days.

He checked in with CNN's Carol Costello on the 31st day of the fast, and kept a running blog, the Diary of a Part-time Monk, documenting his quest and offering spiritual insights along the way.

Wilson said the spiritual takeaway was threefold:

– "I just don’t think we give ourselves enough credit to accomplish difficult tasks. I think our bodies are capable of more than we ask of [them]. And certainly in relation to willpower - willpower related to food or willpower of how you’re going to conduct yourself spiritually - I think we can do more.

– "I noticed early on a difference between needs and wants. The first thing I noticed even in that first week, I got to the spot on day three when I wasn’t hungry any more, physically hungry. The aroma of food would kind of zap me and I would desire the cheeseburger that I smell or somebody’s chicken noodle soup across the office. So I didn’t need it but I wanted it. So there’s a difference between needs and desires.

– "The real challenge is it’s one thing to subscribe to beliefs, religion or otherwise, it’s another thing to apply them to your life every moment of your life. Part of that whole monk in the world philosophy I was exploring is can you live like a monk or believe like a monk and still navigate our crazy world? The ongoing challenge is you’ve got these beliefs, now fine. Live it."

From a health standpoint, Wilson seems no worse the wear. He began the fast at 160 pounds and finished up at 135. He saw his doctor Wednesday morning and was told everything looked good for now, pending the results of blood tests.

If you’re wondering if Wilson will ever drink beer again after living on nothing but beer for 46 days, he said he’ll probably take a break from doppelbock, but on Easter Sunday he brewed 10 more gallons of a different recipe.

 

[JetSmooth]

Yeah. He wouldn't shut up about bacon in most of his blog posts. Haha.

I don't eat it very often. But if I were off solid food for a month and a half, I think bacon would be the one thing I'd obsess about.

 

[RedGuitar]

Anybody else wonder what kind of beer he brewed on Easter Sunday?

He does raise some good points about beliefs being tied into daily living. There is a large difference between saying you believe something and demonstrating that belief (I believe it was James who wrote about faith vs works). It's very impressive that he was this disciplined. I'm sure not.