AP Photo/Pat Wellenbach
DCL
I love Oktoberfest and I actually got to go to a real Oktoberfest in Munich a few years back. I mean what's not to love, big tasty beers, lederhosen, and Polka, a seriously good time and another seasonal reason to celebrate. But if Germany isn't in the budget this year, why not throw a greener Oktoberfest party at home? Tell all your friends that you'll supply the beer if they promise to show up in their German best.
1. Buy local and organic beers for the party. I love Samuel Smith's Organic Ale or Lager. It's a full-bodied lager with lots of malt and hop character. Try Wolaver's Will Steven's Seasonal Pumpkin Ale or their White Beer with orange peel and coriander. Wolaver was one of the nation?s first breweries to switch its boiler fuel source from diesel to B20, and as a result, are reducing CO2 emissions by 120,000 pounds per year.
2. Serve vegetarian bratwurst on local buns. Twenty times more land is needed to feed a meat-eater than to feed a pure vegetarian. A typical pig factory farm generates as much raw waste as a city of 12,000 people. The same study also found that livestock account for more than half of U.S. water consumption and cause 16 percent of the world's annual production of methane, a dangerous greenhouse gas.
3. Hit the thrift store to find your German duds. You don't need to buy a whole new outfit. Remember the three r's of environmentalism reduce, reuse, and recycle.
4. Use a camping tarp to make your German beer tent. If it's warm enough head outside and party with nature.
5. Even better than organic beer, buy a local beer keg and drink from reusable cups rather than plastic cups.
