A lot of what I say on the air is just for fun. Well, ok, I'm lying. SOME of what I say on the air is just for fun, and it rides the line between what I'm about and what I think will get a reaction. I'm not racist, but I do operate off of stereotypes, and I think those lines are fairly blurry. If you really think about it and stop worrying about feeling guilty, you'll come to the same conclusion.
Specifically I'm talking about homebrew, today. We can discuss my shitty views on race another day (though if one group isn't supposed to win, they shouldn't call it a race ...), today I want to address Homebrew. I bad mouth homebrew a lot on the show. Is it for fun? Profit? Just to be a dick? Well, yeah. And so much more.
If you are really honest with yourself and think back to the last homebrew club meeting or NHC. Really try to remember how the beer tasted then. Remove the fact that you or your friends made it, or that you have any ties to the hobby at all. Would you buy that beer? 90% of the time the answer is "No", but a "No" said through a rising column of bile deep in your throat.
Ok, stop being offended and let me explain. Just because something is bad does not mean it is without merit. I like homebrewing, and I do it often. I think the hobby is a good one and it promotes learning about biology and science and all that stuff. Even if the product can be ... less than stellar.
I just tasted two homebrews, sent to me by two homebrewers who listen to the show. One happened to be a clone of my oatmeal stout. Both were good beers, with some flaws. But even with those flaws they were above and beyond most things I have at homebrew gatherings. Why is that? I really want to know. Why do people insist on bringing their contaminated beer to events? They have a club, does their club just not say anything? Do they not know?
Drinking these beers made me realize that there is a lot of beer out there, and regardless if it's good or bad, people are trying hard to make things they don't normally see from a commercial brewery. Whether or not that is a good thing remains to be seen. But next time you hear me go on about how homebrew sucks, I hope you can cut me some slack, and also realize that I'm probably right.
Update:
some people are having a hard time understanding my point. Greg. And I get that - most times I am just shooting from the hip, without an outline or bullet points or even a clue as to what I'm saying. Which is why I picked the name I did for this blog. Most of these posts are just written thoughts. Anyway, I'm not saying homebrewing is bad and you shouldn't do it. I'm saying that there are shitty homebrews going around the world, and we are afraid to say that. The beers I had today were pretty ok, but they were trying to get better, and that is the point - improve. Or not.
Showing posts with label NHC. Show all posts
Showing posts with label NHC. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Club of the Year
If you want to piss off a homebrewer, win an award that they can't, and do it with grace and humility in front of 1500 of their peers.
The Brewing Network won the Club of the Year award at the National Homebrewers Conference last week, and the virtual beer universe has been on fire with the questions. People questioning if we are really a club, if we are really allowed to win the thing, and how unfair it is that we all don't meet regularly under the name "Club Meeting". Hopefully I can answer some of these questions, as they are all (acutally) pretty decent. Maybe.
The BN is getting heat from folks for registering as a homebrew club. Just to be clear, we did NOT register ourselves as a club. I'm not sure who did it, but it was not anyone on "staff". I know you really want to think that this was some creative social media thing to promote our shows and all of that, but we aren't that clever. We just go the standard route of providing rad information in an entertaining (to some) way. Then, word of mouth. But really it all came about from one person entering our name as their club. To me, this points at how many homebrewers simply do not have enough people in their area to create a club. Or maybe the club nearest them is full of douches. Has anyone ever thought of that? Think back to your club meetings - remember that guy who could never really fit in, and that everyone ran away from when he came to meetings with his beer. THAT person is welcomed in our club. And THAT is the person that we want.
This whole thing is becoming about The Brewing Network, and it shouldn't be. We never asked to be a club, nor did we think that we would ever even be in the running for Club of the Year. The fact is there are enough people out there that feel tied to one another through our shows and our forum to want to put our name on their beers. These people ARE a club. We meet every year at NHC, and every Sunday in the chat room, and many folks meet on their own to taste eachothers beers. So we can't meet every month - what about that guy in your club who can never make it to a meeting? Is he still in your club? I bet he is if his dues check clears. We have no officers, no cute club name - but are those requirements to enter homebrews in the NHC?
What really burns me is that some of these questions have been brought up by a friend of the show. Someone in the club that came in second place. Interesting.
We are a club for the people who have no club. The "Island of Misfit Toys" but for beer. A listener who had no club registered TBN, and it grew from there.
It's not about us. It's about them.
This post reflects my thoughts on the subject, and is not the opinion of The Brewing Network, its advertisers, or anything like that. So don't take this post and run it up your forums like it's a statement from the BN. It's just me.
The Brewing Network won the Club of the Year award at the National Homebrewers Conference last week, and the virtual beer universe has been on fire with the questions. People questioning if we are really a club, if we are really allowed to win the thing, and how unfair it is that we all don't meet regularly under the name "Club Meeting". Hopefully I can answer some of these questions, as they are all (acutally) pretty decent. Maybe.
The BN is getting heat from folks for registering as a homebrew club. Just to be clear, we did NOT register ourselves as a club. I'm not sure who did it, but it was not anyone on "staff". I know you really want to think that this was some creative social media thing to promote our shows and all of that, but we aren't that clever. We just go the standard route of providing rad information in an entertaining (to some) way. Then, word of mouth. But really it all came about from one person entering our name as their club. To me, this points at how many homebrewers simply do not have enough people in their area to create a club. Or maybe the club nearest them is full of douches. Has anyone ever thought of that? Think back to your club meetings - remember that guy who could never really fit in, and that everyone ran away from when he came to meetings with his beer. THAT person is welcomed in our club. And THAT is the person that we want.
This whole thing is becoming about The Brewing Network, and it shouldn't be. We never asked to be a club, nor did we think that we would ever even be in the running for Club of the Year. The fact is there are enough people out there that feel tied to one another through our shows and our forum to want to put our name on their beers. These people ARE a club. We meet every year at NHC, and every Sunday in the chat room, and many folks meet on their own to taste eachothers beers. So we can't meet every month - what about that guy in your club who can never make it to a meeting? Is he still in your club? I bet he is if his dues check clears. We have no officers, no cute club name - but are those requirements to enter homebrews in the NHC?
What really burns me is that some of these questions have been brought up by a friend of the show. Someone in the club that came in second place. Interesting.
We are a club for the people who have no club. The "Island of Misfit Toys" but for beer. A listener who had no club registered TBN, and it grew from there.
It's not about us. It's about them.
This post reflects my thoughts on the subject, and is not the opinion of The Brewing Network, its advertisers, or anything like that. So don't take this post and run it up your forums like it's a statement from the BN. It's just me.
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