Would you take a dip in beer, all in the name of health and wellbeing? The answer appears to be an overwhelming 'yes,' with this curious European tradition well and truly arriving in the US and spreading rapidly across the country. While 'beer spa' may sound like a euphemism for a keg party around a hot tub, it's a fairly recent wellness trend with its roots in the Czech Republic in the 1980s. It's essentially a spa treatment that involves soaking in a tub that may be filled with beer, or elements of it – in particular, aromatic hops, yeast and barley.
While light on robust scientific research, the practice is said to have wide-ranging health benefits, from exfoliation to alleviating inflammation and other skin conditions. In the US, the traditional 'European bathhouse' vibe has been refined to resemble the kind of establishment that would never ordinarily have beer on its premises, nor many clients who drink it. Think private rooms, hand-crafted wooden tubs, soothing lights and music, and plenty of fluffy bathrobes and towels.
The first US beer spa was actually opened in 2016 in Sisters, Oregon, which in hindsight might have been a few years ahead of its time as it's since shut down. But like a bubbly, frothy phoenix rising, new treatment houses have sprung up across the country, including in Orlando, in Chicago, in Denver and the tap room-spa mashup of in Sykesville, Maryland. While there's certain novelty in the name, beer baths are generally not actually, drinkable beer.