Oktober knows no borders

October 16, 2008 - 12:17 PM by Harry · 1 Comment
Filed under: Business, coexistence, Food, History and Culture

Taybeh's Oktoberfest Modeled after Bavaria, Germany’s famous brew festival of the same name, which draws millions of participants each fall, the Taybeh Brewery held its own two-day version of Oktoberfest earlier this week. This is the fourth incarnation of the Palestinian village’s festival, sponsored by the industry named after it (the brewery’s founding Khoury family currently, er, occupies city hall over there).

The Taybeh Brewery, which offers Golden, Light, Amber and Dark beers, has a decidedly coexistence-themed flavor: It was founded thanks to peace momentum following the 1993 Oslo accords, it is marketed and bottled internationally, and a portion of the Oktoberfest profits is donated every year to peace-loving Palestinians and Israelis.

Although Taybeh is mostly a Christian village, the brewery premiered a non-alcoholic version at the festival, which should boost sales amongst the Palestinian nationalist crowd, traditionally forbidden to drink fermented liquids by the tenets of Islam. The festival also featured folk arts, musical and dance performances, as well as a tag rugby match between the Ramallah Blue Snakes and Beit Jala Lions.

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