Holiday Roundtable on Thursday

The Knights of the Beer Roundtable meet up again on Thursday evening at Deano's for our first annual Holiday Review. We're not just going to review Christmas beers, but Chanukkah beers (well, at least their Jewish beers), too. Now, we want to be all inclusive, but we're not aware of any Kwanza beers, so if you know of some, let us know so we can try them, as well!!

Now we can pay our bar tab!

lifted from allaboutbeer.com

Drinkers Earn More Money Than Nondrinkers

A study by economists Bethany Peters and Edward Stringham has found that drinkers earn 10 to 14 percent more money at their jobs than nondrinkers. In addition, men who drink socially, visiting a bar at least once a month, bring home an additional seven percent in pay. The study, published by the Journal of Labor Research and Reason Foundation, was titled "Social Drinking Builds Social Capital." Stringham, an economics professor at San Jose State University, said "Social drinkers are out networking, building relationships and adding contacts to their BlackBerries that result in bigger paychecks."

The study found that men who drink earn 10 percent more than abstainers and that women drinkers earn 14 percent more than nondrinkers. Women who frequent bars at least once per month do not show higher earnings than women drinkers who do not visit bars.

Who was Gambrinus?

So the beer trivia post got me looking a little more into the Patron Saint of Beer, Gambrinus, a saint even those of us who are non-Catholic can pray to (and probably have after having a few too many). I lifted this from Wikipedia:

Gambrinus is a legendary king of Flanders, and an unofficial patron saint of beer or beer brewing.

The origin of the character is most widely believed to be John, Duke of Burgundy (1371–1419), who some also believe to be the inventor of hopped malt beer. One of Charlemagne's cupbearers was also called Gambrinus.

In what is possibly the earliest known record of the name, the German poet Burkart Waldis mentioned Gambrinus in the year 1543, explaining that Gambrinus learned the art of brewing from Isis, the ancient Egyptian goddess of motherhood and fertility.

Possible Latin etymologies of the name include cambarus (cellarer) and ganeae birrinus (one who drinks in a tavern). The Gambrinus brewery of Plzeň, Czech Republic explains the name as originating from Jan Primus (John the First), referring to John I, Duke of Brabant.[1]

Although not as likely, Gambrinus might also derive from camba, a word from the Celtic language family that refers to a brewer's pan. Alternatively, Gambrinus may be a corruption of the name Gambrivius.

Gambrinus is often depicted either in kingly garb, dressed as an English knight of the Middle Ages, or (less commonly) as a plump old man.

Because of Gambrinus' significance, numerous European and North American brewers have adopted the character (or his name) in their beer brands. Several notable breweries are named for Gambrinus, including:

Gambrinus Brewery of Plzeň, Czech Republic
Gambrinus of Mulhouse, Alsace, France
The Gambrinus Company of San Antonio, Texas, U.S.A.
Gambrinus Brewing Co. of Oshkosh, Wisconsin
The Gambrinus Brewing Company of Columbus, Ohio, U.S.A.