On a Mission to Oblivion

They may have the reputation as the beer connoisseurs of Europe, if not the world, but a new study sheds a different light on the drinking habits of the hop-loving Germans.

Contrary to the image of the German beer garden full of locals heartily savoring and comparing the qualities of the brews on tap, it has been reveled that a surprising percentage of Germany's drinkers set out on a mission to get drunk.

The survey, released this week by independent market research company Mintel, shows that almost one in five German adults, or 17 percent, believe the point of drinking is to get plastered. The Germans even put the sport-drinking Brits to shame, according to the figures. Only eight percent of Britons drink to become stupefied, a statistic that could be challenged by a walk down any city center street in the UK on a Friday night.

"Drinking can be more of a low-key social event in Britain than some may have believed," said Michelle Strutton, consumer analyst at Mintel in an interview with news agency AP. "Although Germans may not go drinking as often as the British, when they do drink, many do want to get drunk."

The average German adult drank 255 pints of the liquid throat charmer last year, 35 more pints than his British counterpart, the survey found. Britain has the highest percentage of beer drinkers in Europe, with 61 percent of adults -- including 82 percent of men.

Mintel's survey of 35,000 consumers covered France, Italy, Spain, Germany and Britain.

New markets

Spain, the third-largest consumer, was the fastest-growing market for beer, but Italy was likely to overtake it. Beer consumption in Spain grew by 17 percent since 1998. Fance's consumption was down 13 percent since 1998, though sales of premium beers were holding their own.

In the United States, annual consumption per person in 2002 was around 175 pints, according to industry figures.