DRINK WITH THE WENCH PRESENTS:
The Beer Blogger Interview Series
Curious what goes on in the minds of your favorite beer bloggers? Well, The Beer Wench is and she has embarked upon a mission to interview as many beer bloggers that she can — from all over the world. Are you a beer blogger? Do you want to share your story? Send me an email!
INTRODUCING: PETE BRISSENDEN
AUTHOR OF: THE BEERFLY
Beer Blogger Interview
Full name: Peter Brissenden
Twitter handle: @petebrissenden
Name of blog: the beerfly
Current location: Faversham, Kent, UK
Background “Snapshot”
1. Where did you grow up?
In Faversham in Kent
2. What sports if any did you play growing up, through college and beyond?
I played rugby until quite recently- hooker and flanker were my positions. Other than that I still enjoy the odd game of squash, mountain biking and powerkites/landboarding
3. How old were you when you had your first beer?
I probably would have been about 14 or so.
4. If you can recall, what is the story of your first beer? Where did you have it? What style and brand was it?
When I was 15 or so my best mate’s family and my family would all go on holiday together down in the westcountry and hire a big farmhouse for a week. There was a pub in the village we stayed in that was willing to pour jugs of beer and turn a blind eye to our age if we were quiet and sat out in the back bar. It would probably have been ordinary brown cooking bitter of about 3.8%, I can’t remember the particular brewer though.
5. Where, if applicable, did you go to college? What did you study? What additional activities, organizations, sports did you partake in during college?
After an aborted attempt to study English Language and literature I studied Biological Anthropology at the University of Kent at Canterbury. Although I didn’t play sport in any of the Uni teams I met up once a week with mates for a squash tournament.
I was also a founding member of Kent University Real Ale and Cider Society (KURACS) and the Kent University Kite Society.
Craft Beer Epiphany
Every craft beer enthusiast has at least one pinnacle craft beer experience that completely changes ones perspective on beer. I refer to this mind-blowing moment as a “craft beer epiphany.”
1. What was your first craft beer epiphany? Recall as many details about it as you can:
The first craft beer epiphany I had was probably working at an award winning real ale pub locally aged 18. I had always drunk traditional English style beers but got a massive immersion in different breweries’ beers and complete cellar training. In a kinda cool way the brewery I now brew for was the culprit in my epiphany. A beer called ‘Skrimshander IPA’ really packed a hop punch unlike anything I had had in other locally produced beer.
2. Have you have additional craft beer epiphanies since the first? Detail as many of them as you wish:
I think the few big ones were probably BrewDog’s Hardcore IPA, a U.S. style DIPA and Dreifontein’s lambic beers opened my eyes to sour beers!
Beer Blog Background
1. How long have you been writing your beer blog?
5 months writing the current blog. I wrote a food blog for about a year previously.
2. What inspired you to start writing your blog?
My love for beer of all kinds obviously! Also I had to do something with a years worth of English degree tuition!
3. Why did you chose the name of your blog?
Due to a cool quote I found in an old Encyclopedia – The Beer Fly – Drosophila Melanogaster is attracted to fermenting of fruit and grains. It is commonly found in breweries, wineries and pubs alike (The Waverley Encyclopedia, 1952)
4. What are you personal goals for your blog? What do you hope to achieve with it?
No real goals, I just hope people find it an interesting read.
5. What is one of the coolest things that happened to you as a result of being a beer blogger?
The Sheffield #twissup was pretty awesome! (read about it here: PENCIL & SPOON, here: REAL ALE REVIEWS, and here BEER REVIEWS)
6. What are you top 3 favorite beer blogs/beer websites?
Ooh difficult, I don’t want to upset the status quo by mentioning some and not others! I’m going to be politic and say, follow me on twitter and see who I talk to on there. That will give you a good idea.
Beer Talk
1. What are your top 3 favorite beer styles?
IPA, Stout, Sours
2. What are your top 3 favorite breweries?
Again, a tough one. Right now probably Dark Star, Thornbridge and Cantillion
3. If you could work with or for any one brewery, which one would it be and why?
I’d love to work for Thornbridge. Their scientific but slightly off the wall approach really appeals to me.
4. Are you a homebrewer? If yes, what is the most unique and interesting beer recipes you’ve brewed as a homebrewer?
I’m keen homebrewer, my two really esoteric beer recipes are for a bretted, barrel aged imperial oatmeal stout, the other being a whisky cask aged sour cherry ale which was a labour of love. It went into an Islay whisky cask with 35cl of cherry brandy and 3.5kgs of sour morello cherries, I then aged it for 9 months. It is awesome, but there are only 35 bottles in existence!
5. Do you have any beer certifications (BJCP, Cicerone, Siebel, American Brewers Guild)?? If so, what are they?
None!
6. What is your favorite beer and food pairing?
Either Imperial stout and dark chocolate or a nice hoppy English style IPA with extra mature cheddar cheese and a pickled onion.
The Personal Side
1. What is your current day job?
Brewer at the Hopdaemon brewery
2. If you could change your career at this very moment, without any restrictions on what you could do, what would you want to do and why?
I’d love to be running my own brewery.
3. Are you married? Children?
No, not married, no children. I do have a lovely girlfriend called Heather who puts up with me rabbiting on about beer, brewing and being dragged round beer festivals.
4. Outside of beer and writing, what are some of your other hobbies?
I’m really into music, I play guitar and sing. I also am a complete audio geek so rifling through stacks of old vinyl and impulse buying stupidly expensive amps/headphones/speakers on the internet whilst intoxicated.
Off The Beaten Path
1. If you were a style of beer, what style would be an why?
Probably a traditional English session bitter- mellow, easy to get on with but just a little bitter.
2. You were caught smuggling beer illegally, which has now been made punishable by death. Right before you are sent to the executioner, you are offered one last beer. What beer would you chose and why?
Goose Island Bourbon County Stout, it would take me aaaaages to sip my way through a whole bottle! Maybe long enough to plan my escape!
3. If I contracted you to brew a beer (or design a beer recipe) called “The Beer Wench” — what style would you chose and what, if any, extra ingredients would you add?
It would have to be a traditional German Helles. It could then be served by a true beer wench in a stein.
4. If you could be a superhero, what would you want your superpowers to be?
I’d be Beer Man. I could turn water into any beer of my choice. I’d also have supreme alcohol tolerance and an indefatigable palate so no beer at beer festivals would go untasted.
5. What is one of the craziest things you have ever done and lived to tell the story?
Many stories to tell, many of them illegal. However, getting my ear ripped nearly all the way off then having it glued back on in hospital is pretty out there.
6. What are your thoughts on bacon?
Best served between two slices of buttered granary bread with a fried egg and black pudding.
SPECIAL THANKS TO PETE FOR AN AWESOME INTERVIEW!
CHEERS!