Follow Sean Inman to the best in craft beer
Suggested websites to visit to further your beer education.
Now that I Am rocking an iPad I have a new found zeal for finding new craft beer apps and one of them that I encountered on the Craftbeer.com website was a little one called Today’s Beer which is a really well photographed example of how to show off a beer bottle and the beer inside. You get a 360 degree view and all the details on the beer.
It will inspire your beer photography and get you thirsty for craft beer. Every day.
The topic for March comes to us from Baltimore Bistros and Beer. And here is the topic…..
“There are plenty of people out there who wish that alcohol consumption ceased to take place and would be happy for prohibition to rear it’s ugly head once again. Others, while not looking to ban alcohol altogether, are quick to judge those of us who drink more than what they would consider a proper amount. As I get older, I’ve lost the urge to defend my life decisions, but there was a time when judgment about the liquids I chose to put in my mouth made me feel self-conscious.
And that’s where my idea for this month’s Session topic came from. It’s easy to find article after article on the internet telling us that alcohol is bad. As beer bloggers it’s safe to say we all disagree. Let’s take the opportunity as a group to tell people why we do drink and how it improves our life for the better. I know the default answer a lot of us fall back on is “it’s nice to sit back with a good beer after a stressful day of work”, and while that’s true, I’m looking for answers that aren’t so obvious to people who aren’t fans of our hobby. Beer is bigger than a liquid “chill pill” or we wouldn’t have gone about setting up a blog and dedicating so much of our time discussing it. So, what is it that compels you to drink and what would your life be missing if beer was no longer an option for you?”
Why does anyone choose a <blank> and then pushes ever deeper while others simply enjoy the <blank>.
You could fill in the Mad Lib with anything from needlepoint to collecting Hummel figurines. But I believe that there is a primal urge in all of us to investigate, to learn all we want to about a subject. It’s just that it is devilishly hard to pinpoint just one reason why one thing grabs us by the lapels while another leaves us cold. Though I can say with near 100% certainty the two things that put me into position to later become a beer blogger.
If I was to analyze myself, living near Portland, Oregon with parents who visited wineries frequently and restaurants even more was certainly a behavior that I was modeling even though I substituted beer for wine in a minor act of rebellion. So by sheer fact of DNA and GPS, I was going to have a proclivity for at least knowing more about craft beer than the average.
Secondly, I was laid off in 2009 just as blogging was becoming available to the masses and not just to niche early adopters. So, I had not only time to drink and to write but a place to put that writing other than a dream journal and as the peanut butter said to the chocolate, the rest is history.
But the more interesting why is, why have I stuck with it for 5 years? There are plenty of reasons to have stopped. I cannot drink to excess without being awakened with a throbbing temple that will not fade and there is a wee bit of family history in the over indulging category, to put it mildly. It sure doesn’t pay anything so that motivation is gone. The novelty has worn off, I am now not a weirdo with a beer blog in Los Angeles. I am one of many, as other weirdos have joined in and are doing great and we have even formed a group with “Summit” meetings and hashtags.
And if forced to go into the Witness Protection Program, I could probably give up writing a beer blog (though I would still want to read them). But I can’t even picture a time when my ‘fridge doesn’t have craft beer inside. What else would fill the gap? Herbal tea? I am of course assuming that is was not imbibing beer that I would also be restricted from having cocktails or wine. I simply can’t drink that much coffee which is the other hand crafted type of drink out there. I would have to replace craft beer with some food like artisan jerky. But none would hold the allure of a 4pack of the latest SoCal IPA.
So you could make a case that I like the thrill of the new, that I am a contrarian who cuts against the grain (pun intended) or that I need to express myself in introverted ways. But again those are not craft beer centric. That could be me buying actual physical books in a time of e-readers. And those reasons are more negative than positive.
What positive jolt do I get from having a bottle opener in one hand and a full bottle in the other? (And yes, I know that was the initial question. I am working my way slowly to the answer.) I like the tangential things like gathering at a bar or brewery, I like talking about beer issues or discussing the merits or demerits of a particular beer but mostly, I enjoy the taste. Much like having a good cup of coffee after a week of office cold swill or having an In ‘n’ Out burger instead of a flattened McDonald’s “thing”.
A note of Nelson Sauvin brings my palate alive. I love the taste of a funky saison. A crisp pilsner on a warm day is refreshing. It just tastes good. And that’s why I buy and buy more and more craft beer. To get that burst of neurons firing in my brain. And as long as brewers keep firing up their brew kettles then I will be there waiting.
We are awash in IPA’s here in SoCal, but something we could use more of is cask ale. You see one off’s and anniversary casks but nothing near approaching the level that Britain has.
Into that breach comes:
Cask Ale LA which was started by Aaron Champion. Originally from Toronto, he came to LA back in 2013 and like many others who have emigrated here wanted to have the same beers he had back home. Now he tracks “down the delicious real ales that he was accustomed to back in Ontario.” So you don’t have to.
Check out Aarons’ blog when you are next on the interwebs.
As befits a blog with the moniker of Literature & Libation, the Session this month has either a lit bent or is bent because of the author being lit. Either way, I had a hard time coming up with something so please forgive any weirdness in interpreting the assignment.
“We, as beer bloggers, tend to get caught up in this beer appreciation thing, forever chasing an invisible dragon of taste, doing our best to catalog our experiences on the page or in a database. We get obsessed with the idea of quantifying our experience – either so we can remember specifics ad infinitum or use the data as a point of comparison for other beers – and often forget that beer is just as much art and entertainment as it is critic-worthy foodstuff.
So for my turn hosting The Session, I ask all of you to review a beer. Any beer. Of your choosing even! There’s a catch though, just one eentsy, tiny rule that you have to adhere to: you cannot review the beer.
I know it sounds like the yeast finally got to my brain, but hear me out: I mean that you can’t write about SRM color, or mouthfeel, or head retention. Absolutely no discussion of malt backbones or hop profiles allowed. Lacing and aroma descriptions are right out. Don’t even think about rating the beer out of ten possible points.
But, to balance that, you can literally do anything else you want. I mean it. Go beernuts. Uncap your muse and let the beer guide your creativity.”
Occlude no envelope. Ordinary fall. Migraine yes. Frequent available verses of random ideas times eleven. Banish ethereal even remotely sir. Isotope string. Lord ask genteel underlings nothing if they accept sarcasm. So universal can kids seem. Before yawning. Lance agonizing gashes under necktie in time as sentenced. Beneath reams eternal with individual notes graceful. Inside node. Proud elevated tantrums are luminescent unless made angry, Can altitude lift insects from orbs riding neon invisible arrays.
Hello island going huge. Another bread vehicle. Back ultimate target. Men of some type leer yearly. Vote entire row yours. Citizens intemperate tough rogue usable sans yelling. Acrobat nods sleepily. Sociable hacks are repentant people. Wow it tortures help. Allons-y. Get rooting elves another tool. Leave arcs softly towards infinite normality growing. Ban international testing tricks eventually reversing needless elementary sieve sliding.
Individuals. Will inevitably stoke humor. Icon token. Worry about something. Nevermore orbit Titan. Jury uselessness sans tort. Absolutely. Society exists aura stands on neutral antipodes legally. Oftentimes feral felines error religously in not growling.
It seems like the more I try to catch up, the more I fall behind. It is certainly that way with beers but now beer reading and beer education is becoming that way too! Then I heard about this website….
All you have to do is click HERE to find an archive of generally British articles on brewing from the impact of Michael Jackson to brewery history and book reviews. A great resource for learning that I will be using this year, now that I know about it.
The L.A. Beer Bloggers are hitting the ground running in 2014 with an event featuring a triumvirate of sources. From the web, will be The Full Pint, from the bar is 38 Degrees and from the brewery is Ohana. BE THERE…..to get three different perspectives on the world of craft beer here in Los Angeles
The Session #83 – Against the Grain from the Bake and Brew
Well I want to hear what you think about the following:
How much is our taste or opinion of a craft beer affected by what friends and the craft beer community at large thinks? What beer do you love that no one else seems to get? Or what beer do you say “no thanks” to that everyone can’t get enough of?
I can find myself wondering sometimes when I’ve had an extremely popular beer, but haven’t been all that “wowed”…is it me? Am I missing something here? Was there too much hype? Could there be such a thing as taste inflation? If we really want to dive further into this, is it really only “good” if a large portion of the craft beer community says it is or is our own opinion and taste enough?
I do not hesitate to voice my opinion on a beer. And it doesn’t matter if the rest of the crowd is absolutely digging the beer. But as much as I try to enjoy a beer with a truly open mind and palate, there are times when the expectations (real or imagined) weigh me down. And it unleashes my inner curmudgeon both for and against.
On the benefit of the doubt side, pilsners and lagers because they are ignored or slandered get a much higher regard when I review them for RateBeer or on my blog. Part of this is due to seeing 500 too many stupidly low reviews of the style while a so-so IPA or Imperial Stout gets a pass (or bonus points). It’s a flawed reaction on my part but I feel pressure to right the wrong or balance the books as it were. My justification of standing up for the little guy puts my heart in the right place but I fear that too much of my action is caused just to be contradictory. (A trait that I have in many other aspects of my life as well.)
On the hype side is my reaction to Pliny the Younger from Russian River. I have had a small amount of one year’s version and it was good but being in the presence of a large and cooing crowd did color my reaction. And again it was to the contrary. For the amount of time that I waited, for the crowd that I had to wade through, it was not the Hosanna that I had expected. Though everyone else around didn’t seem to care.
Of the two poles, “taste inflation” is bad but I think will eventually course correct due to the fact that today’s hot topic is tomorrow’s old news. The arrival of Citra from Kern River Brewing did tamp down the ardor for PtY as did the new hip IPA, Heady Topper from the Alchemist. And the lack of supply also puts the beer out of the spotlight for extended periods. Not to mention that Russian River has a stable of great IPA’s.
“Taste Deflation” is more pernicious. And there seems to be no way to reverse the deflation. Amber ales were all the rage as micro-brews swept the nation but now you don’t see too many on tap. Unless they are hopped up or imperialized. And poor pils gets lumped in with “Industrial” beers. Even the venerable Firestone Walker promotes it’s Pivo Pils by talking more about the hops. In an effort to not be seen as “the enemies beer style”.
But this is where anyone with a cantankerous streak and a love for all beer styles can come in handy. They can pierce the bubble of the latest epic IPA by simply asking how is this better than the thousand other IPA’s out there? They can promote Vienna lagers or Gratzers or other “invisible” styles to anyone who will listen. It isn’t about winning debates. It is about bringing more than one opinion to the table. Because that will bring more than one style of beer to the table.
The craft beer industry needs people who are more black sheep style and won’t run with the herd after every last craze. This will keep the industry honest and will eventually make ratings more in line with where they should be and where they will be most helpful. As opposed to now where some breweries and beer styles seem to have protected nation status when it comes to reviews.
So all those who are contrary, cranky, sarcastic or snarky. Keep on going against the grain.
After a two year hiatus, I am once again scheduled to appear (as myself) at the 2014 Beer Blogger Conference.
Not the Dublin one (though that would be nice) but at the much closer to my home base of Los Angeles American version in San Diego. I had a grand time at the 1st conference in Boulder and the 2nd in Portland and I certainly wished I could have gone to the Boston and Indianapolis ones. On a side note, I wish Asheville would host or Chicago.
The link above give you reasons why you should attend. A) for $95 you would be hard pressed to find a conference that has that low of an admission fee and B) It gets you out of your chair and face to face with people with familiar and new faces. For those who don’t go out, faces are on people when you talk to them in close proximity.
Beer Bloggers, meet Ensenada Brewing Co. Food Bloggers meet Colonia Taco Lounge.
Join us on Saturday, November 16, 2013 from 12 P.M. to 3:00 P.M. as we welcome Ensenada Brewing Co. Cerveza Artesanal (craft beer) from Ensenada, Baja California – Mexico. Rep from this brewery will be present 3 of their beers and discuss the rise of craft beer in Mexico.
Red Agave IPA – 6.8% ABV
Smoked Piloncillo Porter – 6.0% ABV
Horchata Obscura – 6.0% ABV
What better way to combine the exquisite selection of Ensenada Brews, than pairing them with tacos? Not just any ordinary tacos, but the savory eats of renowed Angelino chef Ricardo Diaz. The mastermind behind Cooks Tortas, Guisados, Bizarra Capital and now the newly opened Colonia Taco Lounge. Chef Ricardo Diaz recognizes the importance of pairing his menu with artisan craft beer and employs a selection of taps that range between local beer, as well as imports at both Bizarra and Colonia.
What: LABB Summit No. 8 featuring Colonia Taco Lounge and Ensenada Brewing Co.
When: November 16, 2013 – 12PM to 3PM
Where: Colonia Taco Lounge: 1234 Valley Blvd., La Puente, CA 91739
“Women and Beer: Scary Beer Feminists or a Healthy Growing Demographic?”
Tasting Nitch has come up with a great topic for healthy debate in this month’s session:
In a nutshell, “As the saintly Mr. M. Jackson created ‘beer culture’ by focusing on the people behind brewing, let us too take one blog post to contemplate the cultural shift that gender is taking in the beer world.”
The first two words that I thought of when I read the topic, “carrots and sticks.” It is a quaint way to start an economic or political conversation on how to change the behavior of a group of people. But I think it is valid here as well.
Because it is obvious that women and minorities are under represented in craft brewing in both the brewing and drinking parts of the equation. So, how do we go about shifting the balance?
Bear in mind, this is coming from a male perspective, so you may want to weigh more heavily the female voices who respond to this session. But I think change begins with more women in the brewing community. The world of craft beer is predicated on choice but in the case of what women want, that choice may be constrained because some styles are not brewed in enough quantity by people who can truly empathize with that under served market.
I don’t believe that men and women are drastically different in taste perceptions but I think we do pick up different aromas and flavors. Then how do you deliver to that market? And no knock on male brewers, but they simply may not be able to bridge that particular divide with their recipes. Whereas, someone of the other gender may be able to.
With that thesis in mind, how do we get more women brewing? I don’t think a still fairly young industry needs the “Stick”, but some “carrots” would make sense. I think brewers guilds on the state and national level should be allied with the Pink Boots Society to create a superfund that pays a portion of the salary of female brewers hired by breweries. To induce breweries into hiring more women, as not only brewers but as cellarpeople, QC and in scientific positions too.
Then once that happens, it us up to all of us in the craft beer fan community to at the very least sample what comes out of those taps. If we continue to drink a duo-culture of IPA’s and Imperial Stouts, then we will narrow our options by sheer force of economics.
Then bloggers like us need to write about the beer and the brewers behind them to create some momentum going forward so that more women will see brewing as a viable career path.
I hope that the ratios of men to women in this industry get closer so that more and different beer can hit the market. Without that first step of getting more women mashing in, the last two (easier and more fun) steps will just be so much spinning of wheels because if the female brewed beer can’t be found, then people will become frustrated and stop looking for it.
Or you could just follow this depressing link.