Booze and Culture

02/04/2026

Drinks Insider · Episode

12/16/2025

Thanks, Josh McAuliffe, for the great story about the Booze & Culture course at Penn State — consistently the largest anthropology class in the US. And a shout out to Kate Kenealy for the awesome photos. Cheers!

Penn State College of the Liberal Arts

Kirk French, assistant professor of anthropology and film production/media studies, is wrapping up another fall teaching "ANTH 140: Anthropology of Alcohol," which for nearly a decade has been one of Penn State’s most popular general-education courses.

10/07/2025

08/23/2025

Last days of summer

06/09/2025

Texas Bar is for sale! 183 W. Pine Grove hits the market mañana.

05/03/2025

Booze and Culture in the news!

Humans discovered fermentation thousands of years ago, but ancient brews would have tasted much differently from the beers of today.

04/04/2025

It was great to have Cary Hudson and his daughter, Anna Hudson, guest lecture and perform for my Anthropology of Alcohol class yesterday at the historic State Theatre in downtown State College. They shared their insights and personal experiences about the role alcohol plays in the lives of music scene.

12/06/2024

Today, we watched a powerful video with Jim and Evelyn Piazza, the parents of Timothy Piazza, the 19-year-old Penn State sophomore who tragically died in 2017 after being hazed during a fraternity pledging event.
In the video, The Piazzas recounted the heartbreak of losing their vibrant, kind son and urged students to take a stand against hazing.
Though they couldn’t join us in person this year due to the weather, their message remains clear: Speak up. Challenge harmful traditions. Save lives.
Let’s honor Timothy’s legacy by creating a culture of accountability and compassion.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/ncna767521