Sober Culture

By

Eva Biringer

•

•

Volume 04, Roots & Reach •
,
Shutterstock

What does one drink, when one doesn’t drink?  Isabella Steiner opts for an oat milk latte. On the sun-kissed, hipster corner of Berlin known as Paul-Lincke-Ufer, a line for almond croissants forms from a crowd that looks more house party than home office. Steiner takes her spot, her poodle-mix by her side. Steiner and her business partner, Katja Kauf, manage Nüchtern Berlin, a platform for “Sober Culture — Made in Germany.” It appears to tap into something even deeper than the global wellness trend. “The selection of non-alcoholic alternatives [in Germany] rose sharply in 2020,” says 32-year-old Steiner. “This year they…

Membership Required

You must be a member to access this content.

View Membership Levels

Already a member? Log in here
Avatar photo

Eva Biringer, born in southern Germany, studied art history and theater studies. She writes about food, travel, and feminism for publications like Zeit, Zeit Online, Welt, Feinschmecker, and many more. She currently lives in Berlin.

Similar Posts

Bucket of Blaufränkisch grapes under a pair of pruning shears
· · ·

Blaufränkisch Bares Its Soul

ByChristoph Raffelt

My first true Blaufränkisch moment came in 2013, at a now-shuttered restaurant in Hamburg. Thirty-six bottles from a swath of Austria’s appellations stood open for tasting, from classics like Prieler’s Goldberg 1995 to Marienthal from Ernst Triebaumer to Ried Point from Kolwentz. Those wines impressed me, as they had in the past, even as they failed to inspire me.  This time, however, other wines had joined the lineup. The Spitzerberg of Muhr-van der Niepoort (today Weingut Dorli Muhr) , for example; the 2010 Reserve Pfarrgarten from Wachter-Wiesler; and the 2002 Lutzmannsburg Alte Reben from Moric. Suddenly, I was electrified. The wine in the glass was entirely unlike anything I…...

Membership Required

You must be a member to access this content.

View Membership Levels

Already a member? Log in here
Metal statue looking onto Germany's Franken vineyards surrounded by forest.
· ·

Franken — Germany’s Most Underrated Region

ByValerie Kathawala

We’ll come right out and say it: Franken (Franconia) is Germany’s most underrated region. If you still think of it as the source of wan wines poured from squat flagons and drunk mostly at home, we’re here to let you in on a secret: there has never been a more exciting time for this corner of northern Bavaria, where wine, not beer, rules the day.  The region sits just below the 50th parallel and at the cool, eastern edge of Germany’s wine core. It’s a perilous position for viticulture. As decades of frost-crimped and extreme-heat-affected vintages attest, its starkly continental…...

Membership Required

You must be a member to access this content.

View Membership Levels

Already a member? Log in here
Photograph of black and white biodynamic wine bottles to symbolize the racist legacy of the man, Rudolf Steiner, behind the wines.
· · ·

Opinion: Reconciling the Racism of Rudolf Steiner

ByLauren Johnson-Wünscher

It was biodynamic wine that helped me to find my footing in Europe. Yet, as a Black American woman living in Europe, Rudolf Steiner's interests and views present a complicated and troubling legacy.

Membership Required

You must be a member to access this content.

View Membership Levels

Already a member? Log in here
Eat + TRINK | Wurstsalat as Mood Board
·

Eat + TRINK | Wurstsalat as Mood Board

ByEmily Campeau

I felt lonely on the Internet the day I started researching the origins of Wurstsalat.  I looked in far-flung corners of the web for sausage scholars who might have dedicated time to writing about the rules and methods of this intriguing dish. When I hit a wall, I did what any well-trained millennial would do and typed #wurstsalat into Instagram’s search bar.  The things I saw there were either appetite-inducing or frightening, sometimes both at once. Lying in the cascade of pictures amidst German cowboys, balsamic glaze swirls, wedding celebrations, crinkle-cut fries, and loads of curly parsley was a possible answer: Wurstsalat is…...

Membership Required

You must be a member to access this content.

View Membership Levels

Already a member? Log in here