The Traveling Beer - Choosing the Right Alcoholic Beverage When Traveling Abroad

My love for beer is eternal. Yes, it's no joke. Whether I'm relaxing inside my house or going out with my friends for a night out, I always make it a point to order a nice, cold glass of beer. While I can easily buy a can of Budweiser or a nice bottle of Jack Daniels from a local convenience store, it's a whole different story when I'm traveling to another country. Of course, I can still get my favorite drinks from the supermarket, but when I think about it, I might as well try the best that international liquor has to offer.

Germany - Well, let's start with Europe. It's always been my favorite continent, since Germany's there. Germany boasts of certain beers that were made centuries ago. Besides, German beers have quite a unique taste in them. It's probably because breweries follow a very strict rule about the ingredients used for brewing. Some of the best German beers I enjoy so far are Bitburger and Warsteiner. However, Bitburger is the only one that's gotten me hooked on German Beer.

Bitburger has three unique variations, which is called beer mixes. My choice would have to "Bit Sun", which has low on calories.

And who can forget about Oktoberfest? I always make it a point to visit Germany during this occasion. Asides from beer, I also love buying beer shirt a day and Oktoberfest is the perfect time to buy them cheap! It's a drink-till-you drop marathon for me and my friends (along with a few friendly Germans, of course!

Japan - I've been to Japan three times already and it's a Wonderland for beer aficionados. Yes, I've already tasted sake, but you're dead wrong if you think that Japan doesn't have it's own brand of beer. Asahi Beer is one of the most popular beer brands in the Land of the Rising Sun. There's Suntory Beer as well as Hop Aka; these are just a few of the many beer brands available there. One particular Asahi beer, which is the Asahi Funwari, costs around 140 yen. With an alcohol content of 2-3%, it's something I don't mind drinking when walking around Tokyo.

By the way, Asahi breweries is in no way affiliated with a particular appliance manufacturer of the same name. I thought I'd just go ahead and give the disclaimer.

Brazil - You'd be surprised to know that Brazil has its own blend of beer too. The most popular is Eisenbahn Lust, a peculiar beer that I've tasted a few months ago. The Eisenbahn Lust is the first beer to be produced in Brazil using the "champenoise"method. This is exactly how my Brazilian friends told me when we were out choosing what beer to drink. Since I had no idea what the champenoise method is, I made some research on the good old Internets.

Apparently, the champenoise method is a fancy term for sparkling wine production. A simple injection of carbon dioxide into the brew will produce bubbles, but unlike soda and most soft drinks, the bubbles are bigger, which in turn, dissipates quickly within the glass. When I actually tried drinking the Eisenbahn Lust, it was indeed good. Other popular beer brands in Brazil includes the Colorado Indica and the Wals Quadruppel.

It really just goes to show that wherever you are, you can always expect to enjoy a cold glass of good beer when you really need it.

About the Author: Jessica Greenberg is an avid blogger from San Diego, California. When she’s having her days-off, she usually stays at home drinking her favorite beer while updating Wordbaristas.com, a blog that she keeps together with her friends.