Don't Drink The Milk Podcast: The Curious History Of Things

 Don't Drink The Milk is one of those podcasts that sparkles because of unpredictability, its contorted nature, and the brash intelligence of its host.

The show's subtitle: The curious history of things offers listeners a non-diary taster of the show's meandering narrative flow. 

Here is the show's elevator pitch: "For DW's new English-language podcast Don't Drink the Milk, host Rachel Stewart will be traveling through Europe to get to the bottom of everyday terms, things, and phrases."

Who or what is DW? I wanted to know as well. Deutsche Welle ("German Wave"), commonly shortened to DW (pronounced [deːˈveː]), is a German public, state-owned international broadcaster funded by the German federal tax budget. The service is available in 32 languages. DW's satellite television service consists of channels in German, English, Spanish, Hindi, Persian, and Arabic.

DW offers regularly updated articles on its news website and runs its own center for international media development, DW Akademie. The broadcaster's stated goals are to produce reliable news coverage, provide access to the German language, and promote understanding between peoples. It is also a provider of live streaming world news which can be, like all DW programs, viewed and listened via its website, YouTube, Satellite, Re-broadcasting and various Apps and digital media players. 

DW has been broadcasting since 1953. It is headquartered in Bonn, where its radio programs are produced. However, television broadcasts are produced almost entirely in Berlin.

With that mystery solved, let's review the content, style, and host of  Don't Drink The Milk. First, the content is about many everyday things that we think we know well but have an unexpected origin story.

Don't Drink the Milk explores just that. For example, how did drinking milk spread in certain parts of the world in the first place? How did we invent the postal code system? And what do all these things tell us about people and their cultures? In answering these questions, the podcast playfully links historical incidents and curiosities to current debates. 

 As host Rachel Stewart says on the show: "Don't Drink The Milk is  historical intrigue, a bit of culture sprinkling of controversy traveling around Europe."

One of my favorite episodes is the October 23rd show called "The Missionary Position: Preaching, power and getting pregnant."

Here's Stewart's opening comments: "The Missionary Position  Weird name for a sex position, right? Well, the story behind it is just as strange - involving the Church, the full moon (or was it campfires?), and some mixed messages. But what can unraveling the mysterious backstory of this most rudimentary of sex positions tell us about sex, shame and evangelizing around the world - even today?"

How can you not listen after that introduction? During the tightly edited 37-minute episode, host Stewart takes on a wild journey about the missionary position, with discussions about the Catholic Church and centuries of proselytizing in Africa, the U.S. conservative Christian movement and its impact on homophobia in Africa. It's a wild ride that ends in true irony because the missionary position is not named because Christian missionaries taught pagan converts that position because it is the best position for conception.

In the September 10th episode, we learn that the implementation of ZIP codes in many countries has greater implications than postal delivery. Rev up your conspiracy brain on this one! Stewart says, "Psst, your ZIP code is telling all your secrets. In fact, so much is hidden in that short string of digits at the end of your address – we're talking pride, discrimination and marketing gold. Starting with a bulging wartime mail sack and ending with a cup of tea down an Irish country road – this is the winding journey of the postal code."

The show began in October 2023 and is in its second season. While the show may be a sophomore, the host, Rachel Stewart, is decidedly a seasoned pro.

She is best known as the longtime host of DW's successful Meet the Germans video series. Stewart sees podcasting as the ideal tool for sharing knowledge: "Podcasting is such a rich, intimate medium for storytelling. There’s so much scope for bringing historical topics to life. The stories we follow reveal surprising connections between countries, cultures, and eras. It’s a reminder that, even for everyday things we often take for granted, there’s usually more to it than meets the eye."

As the unconventional host of this podcast, Stewart is a perfect fit. She's a terrific narrator with a rambling sense of humor, and a lover of narrative surprise and counterintuitive conclusions.

Check out Don't Drink The Milk and expect the unexpected. Despite what America First U.S. politicians claim, we can learn a lot from other nations and continents like Europe. In this podcast, we learn that we don't know what we don't know.