Today’s Year of Beer painting is of organic Ur-Pils from Brauerie Pinkus Mueller in Münster, Germany, which happens to be the world’s first all organic brewery. I made a special trip into the tasting room in Münster when I was on bicycle tour across Europe. I felt completely at home there. The bicycle rack was full of bikes. Bicycle traffic in Münster city center is intense. It was a nice prelude to what cycling in Holland would be like as that was the next country on our tour. The beer was perfect and remarkable due to its 100% organic quality. I brew with organic two row, but I have to settle for non-organic hops and specialty grains as they are difficult to find here in Alaska. There is hardly anything finer than drinking a refreshing pilsner after riding your bike 50 kilometers. We should have stayed the night in Münster, but awkwardly headed off in the afternoon to a small town of Altenberge. It started pouring rain about 5 PM right when it was about to start getting dark. We were at this small map kiosk trying to avoid getting hit by a car while studying the map for lodging/camping. We were hoping for a B&B at this point due to the bad weather. The lady driving the car asked what we are looking for, and as we explained in a combination of broken German and English, she told us that there are no low cost lodging options in Altenberge, but invited us to spend the night at her home, adding that she would not be cooking us a hot meal. Following her on bike in her car in the rain was an adventure, but we didn’t lose sight of it, and arrived at her house to meet her husband. Our hosts were amazing, spoke English well, and made us feel right at home. A delicious German cheese and meat plate and three pints of Bitburger later, the hosts were filling me in on breweries I should catch on my way to Holland. What a bit of unexpected hospitality in the midst of a storm, and on our last night in Germany! To adventures in life and organic breweries alike! To Pinkus, a beer filled with good memories and good ingredients!

You can purchase this painting, or a limited-edition print at my Etsy Shop .