OnTap Magazine

ALES IN BRUCE COLLINS IN SEARCH OF WORLD OF BEER henever I think of Ethiopia, still the first thing that comes to mind are those 80s television news images of drought and famine: flies sitting on the sad faces of malnourished children and desert landscapes with nothing but a single dead tree in sight. So, on landing at Bole airport in the highland capital of Addis Ababa, I must admit I was surprised to see such a busy, sprawling metropolis of development and modern construction. Ethiopia is a land of contrasts. It holds the title as one of the poorest countries in the world, ravaged by drought and with most of the population relying on subsistence farming and foreign aid. But it also boasts one of the fastest growing economies in the world with GDP growth above 7%. As I landed in the capital, one thing was instantly obvious: Addis is booming – and it seems Ethiopia’s beer culture is booming too. From the moment I boarded the Ethiopian Airlines flight Ethiopia has one of the world’s fastest growing economies and in recent years, mega breweries have been fighting to get a foot in the door. But is there a place for craft in the country’s booming beer market? Bruce Collins sips his way around the capital to find out. to Addis I could not help but notice the presence of beer – from beer advertisements in the in-flight magazine to articles on local malt-growing programmes and a good variety of Ethiopian beers available on board. I opted for the beautifully decorated can of a Habesha Cold Gold. My in-flight dyslexia made me wonder if it was a shout out to the Queen of Sheba but it is actually a traditional word for the Abyssinian people, and according to the brewery the word habesha stands for gratitude and the celebration of togetherness. It defines the shared pride and culture of all Ethiopians and encourages those who dare to be authentic. I enjoyed the backstory and it definitely increased my enjoyment of the beer - a sweet- smelling but surprisingly tasty light lager. On arrival in Addis, evidence of Ethiopia’s love for beer continued to grab my attention. The sheer number of restaurants and bars sporting the ubiquitous yellow beer signage of St George fighting a dragon, the unmistakable evidence of a large multiplayer beer market prevalent in the number of beer branded trucks delivering the golden nectar busily around the city. At my hotel I was informed that the room rate included dinner, bed and breakfast and one free Meta Beer – another pale lager brewed just outside Addis. Now that’s my kind of hotel. One evening after a meal I enquired if I could swap my injera (an acquired taste) for a second beer and the hostess gladly obliged. Injera is the Ethiopian national dish: a slightly sour, bubbly pancake made from teff flour and with a unique spongy texture. I practiced my newly learned six syllable Amharic thank you: ameseginalehu . The hostess blushed and smiled politely as I sipped my second bottle of Meta – certainly easier to swallow than another plate of injera. Ethiopiawastheonlycountry in Africa to avoid colonialism, but the same cannot be said for the beer industry. When the government opened up the brewing industry about five years ago, international brewing companies began to scramble for a piece of the Ethiopian beer market. Today, most of the country’s breweries, despite being started in Ethiopia, are owned by European megabreweries and drinks companies, including Heineken, Castel and Diageo. As with most nations, especially on the African continent, the vast majority of beers produced in Ethiopia fall into the category of light, sessionable, lagers. They tend to be heavy on the adjuncts and W 26 / On Tap / Autumn 2018