Comments on: Tools For Proper Beer Analyzation http://drinkwiththewench.com/?p=3954 Drinking through the world, one beer at a time. Wed, 17 Nov 2010 00:59:43 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 By: Stephen Beaumont http://drinkwiththewench.com/?p=3954&cpage=1#comment-4049 Stephen Beaumont Wed, 24 Mar 2010 11:48:31 +0000 http://drinkwiththewench.com/?p=3954#comment-4049 Before I first started writing beer reviews -- back in the stone age before any of the resources you reference existed -- I was concerned more with learning how to taste in general than I was with how to taste beer, which I think is something people sometimes pass over these days. Few of we North Americans are raised to really taste our food, and as such do not grow up equipped with the tools for flavour analysis. Hence, first we need to learn to taste everything, and only then should we focus on analyzing beer. Later, when I started actually writing about beer, I decided logically (to me) to use words and phrases people could relate to things they already knew, like berry fruit, for example, or the scent of a walk in the autumn woods (still a favourite, from an early description of a local best bitter). For the mass consumer writing I do, I still believe that's the best road to travel. As for beer styles, well, beyond certain elemental ones -- American pale ale, Bohemian pilsner, dry stout, etc. -- most have been rendered pretty much meaningless, IMO. I mean, "American-Belgo style dark ale"? What the hell is that when it's at home? And don't get me started on quadrupel! What all the above means beyond an early morning rant, I'm not sure. Bottom line: I believe that anything which encourages people to think about what they drink and eat is positive; anything that promotes mindless consumption, or uncritical imbibing -- meaning drinking a beer because it's a beer rather than because it's a good beer -- is a bad thing. Before I first started writing beer reviews — back in the stone age before any of the resources you reference existed — I was concerned more with learning how to taste in general than I was with how to taste beer, which I think is something people sometimes pass over these days. Few of we North Americans are raised to really taste our food, and as such do not grow up equipped with the tools for flavour analysis. Hence, first we need to learn to taste everything, and only then should we focus on analyzing beer.

Later, when I started actually writing about beer, I decided logically (to me) to use words and phrases people could relate to things they already knew, like berry fruit, for example, or the scent of a walk in the autumn woods (still a favourite, from an early description of a local best bitter). For the mass consumer writing I do, I still believe that’s the best road to travel.

As for beer styles, well, beyond certain elemental ones — American pale ale, Bohemian pilsner, dry stout, etc. — most have been rendered pretty much meaningless, IMO. I mean, “American-Belgo style dark ale”? What the hell is that when it’s at home? And don’t get me started on quadrupel!

What all the above means beyond an early morning rant, I’m not sure. Bottom line: I believe that anything which encourages people to think about what they drink and eat is positive; anything that promotes mindless consumption, or uncritical imbibing — meaning drinking a beer because it’s a beer rather than because it’s a good beer — is a bad thing.

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