On Saturday Oktoberfest – the world’s biggest Volksfest (carnival), began! This means Munich is filled with people wearing Lederhosen and Dirndl (traditional Bavarian clothing) who may have had one too many beers.

I’m not really a beer lover, the only time I drink beer is actually at Oktoberfest, where I order a Radler (beer and lemonade mixed). The beer at Oktoberfest is specially brewed from six breweries (Augustiner, Hacker Pschorr, Hofbräu, Löwenbräu, Paulaner und Spaten) and is especially made stronger just for Oktoberfest. Normal beer contains around 4 – 4.5% of alcohol. Oktoberfest beer is 2% stronger and contains around 6% alcohol. The beer is transported into Oktoberfest using a traditional horse and carriage.

Not only is the beer stronger, but you also get your beer in a Maß. This is a Bierkrug (beer mug) that can hold 1 liter. So each time you order, you are ordering 1 litre of beer. These two reasons are probably the main reasons as to why there are so many drunk people at Oktoberfest. The beer at Oktoberfest this year costs €10.40. The price for beer usually increases year after year.

Radler und Bier. Own photo

But what happens to the drunk people who take it too far?
There is actually a word in German for people who become unconscious due to alcohol. This word is Alkoholleiche (click here to read a post about this untranslatable word). As you walk around Oktoberfest on the grassy areas you will see a lot of people who have passed out. Luckily, for this reason, there are a few organisations that help drunk and/or injured people. They make sure that the Alkoholleichen get home safely.

Have you ever been to Oktoberfest and tried their beer? Or is there a mini Oktoberfest where you live? Let me know in the comments below!

If you want to read a bit more about Oktoberfest, here are two other posts: Lederhosen and Dirndl, and the History and General Info.

Me two years ago at Oktoberfest! Own photo.

Thanks for reading,

Larissa