What did you give up for Lent? Cookies? Coffee? Your iPod? Your pack-a-day habit? Your daily Mickey D’s run? Or did you go a more traditional route and give up meat altogether? Whatever you chose, after you read this, you’re probably going to kick yourself.
J. Wilson, a newspaper editor and beer blogger living in Iowa, has vowed to consume only beer and water during his interpretation of a liquid fast for Lent this year. You may have heard about him on Jimmy Fallon’s “Late Night” show.
Before you cry sacrilege, though, you should know that Wilson’s taking his fast very seriously and isn’t trying to make fun of the tradition. He claims he’s taken the idea from holy men—German monks, to be precise—and that the practice of consuming beer and water for Lent goes back 300 years.
With the help of a local brewer, Wilson concocted a recipe for a high-carbohydrate, high-calorie doppelbock that would suit his energy needs. He consumes four pints of the stuff per day. Getting drunk isn’t on the menu. He’s got his pastor keeping him honest.
At first blush, this seems like one of the best ideas ever. Instead of giving up your favorite brew for Lent, why not give up everything else and subsist only on that? It’s almost reminiscent of those “chocolate diets” floating around the internet. After a few days, though, you know heaven’s bound to turn into hell. I wonder if Wilson will take a break from beer altogether after Easter? I think I would. In all its forms, including marshmallow.
Tags: man drinks beer for lent, beer only fast, j. wilson, j. wilson drinks beer for lent, j. wilson beer fast, beer for lent, beer fast, beer blogger lent fast, doppelbock, unusual fasts, lent, iowa, iowa man beer lent
