Prost! That is German for "Cheers," and you will certainly want to learn it if you are attending Oktoberfest, the world's biggest beer party. Oktoberfest began in 1810 in Munich, Germany, to celebrate the wedding of Crown Prince Ludwig (later King Ludwig I) and Princess Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen. The royal couple graciously invited Munich's citizens to their wedding reception, which lasted an impressive 16 days. This inspired the idea to hold a similar festival at the same time every year thereafter. Despite its name, Oktoberfest is held mostly in September, and ends during the first weekend of October. In any case, Oktoberfest is now the world's largest fair, boasting an attendance of over six million people each year. Even more impressive than the number of participants, however, is the amount of beer they consume. In 2018, a record-setting 7.5 million liters of frosty German bier were drunk during what was, at just 16 days, a relatively short Oktoberfest. A special type of beer, known as Oktoberfestbier, is brewed for the fair and served in oversized glass mugs called biersteins. The accompanying traditional dishes include sausage, chicken, cheese noodles, oxtail, and sauerkraut, finely shredded cabbage that has been fermented. There are also plenty of the enormous pretzels for which the festival is known. All of this food and drink is served in huge tents that hold thousands of people. In fact, a single tent can seat over 8,000 guests simultaneously! In 2018, approximately 280,000 sausages, 550,000 roasted chickens, and 124 roasted oxen were served to hungry festivalgoers! With so many people wanting to take part, and so much money to be made, it is no surprise that Oktoberfest is no longer exclusively a German event. Other countries throughout the world have added their own flavors to the Oktoberfest celebration. In Mexico City, the German-Mexican population offers amusement park rides and a craft fair. In Blumenau, Brazil, 18 days of music and dancing help Brazilians pay their respects to all their German ancestors. And in the United States, literally hundreds of Oktoberfest celebrations are held, with the largest being in Cincinnati, Ohio. While Oktoberfest is still a fairly new idea in Taiwan, local German business owners have begun to observe it and, needless to say, the local population has responded enthusiastically. As this most German of traditions continues to go global, who knows where it will wind up being celebrated next?
德文的「Prost」意指「乾杯」，如果想參加全球最盛大的啤酒派對「十月啤酒節」，一定要學會這個字。 十月啤酒節源自1810年的德國慕尼黑，是為了慶祝王儲路德威希王子（後來繼位成為國王路德威希一世）與泰瑞莎公主的婚禮。這對皇室佳偶親切地邀請慕尼黑的市民前往婚禮接待場所共襄盛舉，狂歡時間竟為期16天。德國人因而得到靈感，打算每年都在同一個時期舉辦類似節慶。儘管名稱是「十月啤酒節」，但多於九月開跑，於十月的第一個週末結束。 無論如何，十月啤酒節儼然成為全球規模最大的盛事，每年有超過六百萬人前來朝聖。比人數更令人印象深刻的是飲用的啤酒量。2018年，為期短短16天的十月啤酒節，就創下喝掉750 萬公升德式冰啤酒的紀錄。慶典上供應的是特地為此節慶所釀的「十月啤酒節啤酒」，並以加大尺寸的玻璃德式啤酒杯盛裝。而搭配的傳統小吃包括德式香腸、烤雞、起司麵、燉牛尾以及發酵高麗菜絲所製成的德式酸菜，還有大量供應啤酒節最著名的德國軟式蝴蝶扭結麵包。 啤酒節以搭起大型帳篷的方式，為成千上萬的民眾供應各種餐飲。事實上，光是一頂帳篷就能同時容納超過8,000名的賓客！ 2018年，會場為飢腸轆轆來參加派對的人供應將近28萬條香腸、55萬隻烤雞和124隻烤牛！ 在參與人數如此踴躍、商機無限的情況下，十月啤酒節已不再是專屬於德國的活動了。世界各國依著該國國情而推出自己的十月啤酒節版本。墨西哥市的德裔墨西哥人，會為慶典設置遊樂園與手工藝市集。巴西的布魯美瑙則以18天的音樂熱舞，讓巴西人向德國祖先致敬。美國則有上百場十月啤酒節的慶典，規模最大的場地位於俄亥俄州的辛辛那提。 十月啤酒節對臺灣而言仍是相當新穎的點子，不過當地德國業者已觀察到臺灣人對此節日的熱情迴響。這項德國味濃厚的傳統仍持續延燒全球，誰能料想得到下一個歡慶地點會在哪裡落腳？ | 
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