The long arm of Catholicism reaches to every craft beer tap on earth
In the 17th century, Paulaner monks in Munich faced 40 days of Lent with zero solid food
Their solution: brew a beer so thick and calorie-dense it could replace bread
They called it Sankt-Vaters-Bier: Holy Father Beer
Then they worried it was too delicious to count as sacrifice
So they shipped a barrel to the Pope for judgment
It spoiled crossing the Alps
The Pope tasted it, declared drinking something so foul was penance enough, and gave his blessing
That beer became the Doppelbock
You can still buy it today
It is called Salvator