Dial the clock back two or three years. I was at the Local Taphouse for my very first Ale Stars - their monthly beer appreciation sessions - at a time when I was still new to the venue and very new to the world of Twitter. The theme for the night must have been strong Belgian ales or something similar, because that's the sort of style I was into at the time. I suspect I will never remember exactly what beer style it was that we were talking about, but that's far from the most important thing about that night.
In this blog's very first post, I talked about one of the most important moments in one's beer-drinking life: the epiphany. The focus of that post was on the drink itself; this time I'd like to delve a little bit more into the social aspect of the beer community.
Anyway, that night was also the first time I met Doc, now famous for bringing out some of Australia's most exciting and interesting beers* under the Doctor's Orders Brewing label. That session was Doc's first as Ale Stars Czar (i.e. master of ceremonies) and at the end of the night we got to talking about various things beer. When things were winding up, he gave me his Twitter handle so I could keep up to date with developments with his then-still-new professional brewing gig. The significance of this event was that I had had a chat with a fellow beer lover, and was subsequently introduced to a wider beer social network that existed in a series of tubes.
Today, discussing beer with like-minded individuals in person and through Internet social media platforms such as Twitter is a daily activity in my life.
I was recently thinking about how people in various professions and interest groups meet and socialise with each other. The dreaded buzz word for this tends to be 'networking' and it happens online, at conferences and festivals, and at other different types of social gatherings. I imagine that, apart from Alcoholics Anonymous, most of the face-to-face situations will involve at least a little bit of alcohol, and there's nothing wrong with that because it's a great social lubricant. I think it's slightly different with beer.
These events held by many industries and communities don't appear to happen within the beer community, and I think it's because they would be inherently redundant. I don't think I've ever seen a beer event market itself as a 'networking' meet-up because it just happens automatically; the thing people have come to talk about are the very liquids they are drinking.
I don't think this is entirely applicable to other types of alcohol, either. Although the community supporting good beer are as about the quality as the wine- or whisky-lovers, I think the socialising, and especially the discussion of the drinks themselves, happens more when you're with the beer-lovers. Perhaps it's because, in terms of the quality stuff, beer is more accessible (you won't hear me say that often!) than wine or whisky in a casual, social setting. For example, you usually won't go for after-work drinks and grab a bottle of Laphroaig to share with your colleagues (if you do this regularly, I hate you), and you may hit up a wine bar with some friends on occasion, when you can afford it, but it's more common to go somewhere where there's good beers on tap. It's not a huge leap to go from drinking the beer to talking about it. "Wow, this beer is great!" your workmate might say. "Yeah, it's made by these guys in Parramatta," you might respond. And the conversation begins.
Maybe this was so obvious, or maybe I've been too engrossed by online interactions, but it has taken me that long to realise this: beer as the ultimate social network. True, it's sad to think of all the beer-loving people I would not have met and all the beers I would not have even known about had Internet social networks never existed. Interactions through Twitter, Facebook, and other similar platforms undoubtedly facilitate the growth of the good beer movement. However, the optimist in me would like to think that I still would have met some beer lovers, and I still would have been introduced to some unique and interesting beers without the help of the Internet, because that's how the beer community works.
You're at a pub that serves some really good beers, and another punter at the bar orders your favourite drop. Maybe you feel a little apprehensive about talking to a complete stranger, but maybe you can't help it. Maybe this is because you love the beer so much or because some of that alcohol has already infiltrated your system and loosened your inhibitions, or a combination of both. So you strike up a conversation. And who knows, maybe she's a brewer, or maybe he'll end up introducing you to styles of beer you've never even heard of, and hey, do you know about the local homebrewers guild? You should come along to a meeting, even if you don't brew. That's how it all starts. While the Internet certainly helps in the growth of the beer community, the very act of drinking a beer you like surrounded by others who think the same way is both enabler and ultimate icebreaker.
Which brings us back full circle to that fateful night at the Local. True, it was the genesis of my foray into the online beer-loving community that I have come to love so much, but if no such Internet social network existed, would simply being there that night with like-minded people still have gotten me so involved in the greater beer community? I'd like to think so.
*That very night he had brought along a bottle of his Lambic Gose, which sadly ran out before I got to try it it. I'm still imagining what a weird and wonderful combination of flavours that beer would have had.
Update: Doc tells me that the Ale Stars topic was Strong Ales, so I was close. Line-up: Emersons Old 95, Coopers Vintage Ale, Three Floyds Oatgoop, Horn Dog Barley Wine. Good times. Doc also brought a bottle of his wheatwine, which I also did not get to try. Dang.
No comments:
Post a Comment