lock up a lush in a brewery

[Eartha]

None of us was reading for marks. It was an adventure, and the tutors and professors were largely sympathetic to this attitude: I attended seminars on Dylan and Burroughs, which were no help at all for the degree. What mattered was being thrilled by literature, by great ideas and words, words, words. Turning me loose among all these books was like locking up a lush in a brewery.

What's the meaning of the underlined sentence?

Thank you.

[Soup]

A lush is a person who likes to drink ... a lot; a brewery is where beer is made. Consider also, turning me loose among all these books was like giving a candy-lover the keys to a candy factory.