We were seated at a table in the corner of the restaurant and before we even checked the menu Helena ordered us both a large glass of beer.
“Alright, first of all. What is beer?” I asked.
“You’re joking, right? You’ve never had beer before?”
“I’m afraid not, no.”
“Can you even call yourself a man if you haven’t had beer yet?” She laughed out loud, but calmed down when she saw it made me feel uneasy. “Consider yourself lucky for trying genuine German beer and not some American pipiwasser. Beer is a German national bitter alcoholic drink. We sometimes even call it the nectar of gods. Or an aphrodisiac. Or life elixir,” she was just about to continue when she noticed I lost track and just looked at her, puzzled. “I believe you can tell we’re passionate about our beer,” her eyes shone like two polished diamonds when she was talking about beer.
“What if I don’t like it? She seems to love it so much and apparently all humans do aswell. I don’t want to be considered weird. I don’t want to be the odd one out,” I thought to myself.
She could tell I was getting nervous.
“Don’t worry if you don’t like it. Few people do when they first try it,” she smiled and continued; “Like many things in life, you need to get used to it before you truly enjoy it. But once you do get used to it… You can’t get enough.”
Just as she finished her sentence the waiter arrived with two tall glasses of golden-colored liquid with a white foamy crown and placed them in front of us. I was fascinated by thousands of little bubbles lifting from the bottom of the glass to the top and didn’t even bother to try and understand what Helena and the waiter talked about. I trusted her with the food choice and that’s all I really cared about at that point.
We picked up the glasses, slammed them together and then both got our upper lips all wet and white with the beer’s fluffy cream. The taste of the golden beverage was so intense and good I couldn’t help myself but make three sips instead of one.
When I put down the glass I saw Helena staring at me with anticipation.
“So?”
“I… This tastes absolutely amazing! The tingling sensation on my tongue and the bitter aftertaste. It’s amazing!”
“I knew you’d like it! Feeling any buzz yet?” She asked when I lifted the glass again.
“The buzz? What do you mean buzz?”
“You’ll see soon enough,” she giggled. It seemed as though she was smiling the entire time.
“So what did you order for us?”
“Exactly what I had promised you. Potatoes, sour cabbage and a sausage. Cooked in beer and grilled over fire. Trust me, it’s the best thing your tastebuds have ever tasted.”
Not that it was a hard task, but she wasn’t wrong.
The scent of the dish when the waiter brought it was mouthwatering and I couldn’t help but salivate before he even put the plate down. We took another sip of the beer before digging in and it was everything I could have ever wished for.
The grilled sausage together with the sour cabbage in my mouth was much like a symphony that was only further enhanced by the flavor of beer alone. The addition of the romantic atmosphere and good company rounded it up for a close to perfect experience.
We talked more than we ate and drank more still. After the fourth beer my limbs started feeling odd and my perception of the world became a little blurry.
“You know how you mentioned a buzz earlier? Is this it? My… head feels light and kind of funny,” I looked around the room, slightly disoriented and then started laughing uncontrollably.
She looked at me dead in the eyes, serious at first, but then laughed out loud with me.
“Sure is, mister …” I could tell she wanted to call me by my name, but I never gave it to her.* “I believe I will call you Alex! And my god! I was concerned I would be drunk before you!”* She just kept on laughing, and so did I.
“You know what? Alex wants another one of these!” I pointed at the empty beer glass and she immediately signaled the waiter to bring two more beers.
We kept on drinking and talking and before we knew it, we were out on the streets and in front of a night club. She said something the bouncer, paid for two tickets and a couple of seconds later we were inside.
“I can’t remember the last time I went dancing!” She shouted and I could hardly hear her over the loud music.
“Same! And most definitely not like this!”
She smiled at me and I grabbed her by her hips and we danced until we got tired and hit the bar.
Next thing I knew I was lying in my bed back at the hotel with a powerful headache, an upset stomach and mouth so dry it could spontaneously ignite at any moment. The last memory of that night was Helena laughing when we picked up our eighth glass of beer and downed it in one go.
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