Why is it that beer drinkers and wine drinkers are typically depicted in the media as such polar opposites?
Beer drinker...
Attire (men): T-shirt, no shirt, jeans, shorts, baseball cap.
Attire (women): T-shirt (wet), no shirt (!), jean shorts, bikini.
Sport: Baseball, football, bowling, hockey.
Location: Sports bar, stadium, tailgate.
Music: Rock, Country.
Food: Brats, burgers, hot dogs, pizza.
Typical Quote: "Party!", "Git 'er Done!", "GO (insert team name here)!!!"
Wine Drinker...
Attire (men): Ralph Lauren dress shirt, Dockers.
Attire (women): CK blouse, sensible skirt or slacks, pearls.
Sport: Golf, tennis, Kentucky Derby.
Location: Trendy club, yacht, veranda at golf club.
Music: Smooth jazz, classical, light rock.
Food: Brie, whole grain crackers, fancy dishes with unpronouncable foreign names. like Fornacato al Fresco.
Typical quote: "Have you seen my new Beemer?", "Let's do lunch."
How did these images arise? Why are wine drinkers considered to be haughty, rich, sophisticated intellectuals sipping daintily and laughing gaily with friends, while beer drinkers are relegated to fat, drunken slobs with their team's logo painted on their bare chests on the jumbo-tron of some sports stadium in January?
Is it just an American image? I don't think so. You see this stereotype in England and Europe too. How did this happen??? Beer has been around longer. Wine is higher in alcohol content, thus more likely to lead to alcoholism (habitual drunks are often called winos, not beeros). Beer has a wider variety of flavors and subtlties making it a better beverage to pair with foods (don't take my word on that, ask any food or spirits critic). Wine is more expensive (you can afford to buy the best beer, you can't say that about wine). Beer is more consistant, wines can vary significantly from year to year, even barrel to barrel. I can go on and on.
I think part of the problem is that most wine drinkers understand wine. They know that there are good wines and there are great wines. They sip, they taste, they consider the flavor, the color, and the "nose" of the wine. They stop and compare it to other wines they have tasted and share these observations with friends.
Most beer drinkers, on the other hand, are drinking primarily for the cheap buzz. Most drink the same swill they've been drinking since college (or sooner). They drink this stuff because they are bombarded with it in the media. They're vaguely aware that there are some dark beers out there (aka; Guinness), but dark beers are strong, heavy, high in calories, and just plain scary.
The difference here is taste. Wine drinkers taste, beer drinkers... well, drink.
Beer drinkers: WAKE UP! Stop letting the wine snobs rule the beverage world! Next time you're at the liquor store, don't just go straight for the Bud Lite and the Miller Lite. Look around. TRY SOMETHING DIFFERENT! There are microbreweries everywhere and odds are your local liquor store will carry their wares. Don't go nuts with something really exotic (like a stout or an IPA) if it's your first time. Try a lager, pilsner, or even an ale. You'll be peasantly suprised to find out that beer has flavor.
There's a whole new world out there. Drink it up.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
12 comments:
Bud Light has flavor. Good flavor.
I never said Bud Light doesn't have flavor, good or bad. I'm only suggesting you try something else some day, just for fun.
I've tried Pig's Eye, Jacob's Best, Leininkugels, (all there flavor's). Did you know if you go to the Leinie's lodge they give you free beer. I like Beer. Beer is my friend.
Oh I've had Fat Tire Amber Ale,Like the ageless delight of pedaling a bicycle, Fat Tire Amber Ale’s appeal is in its feat of balance: Toasty malt flavors (sorta like biscuits just pulled from the oven) coasting in equilibrium with crisp hoppiness. Delicious stability - in the world of sometimes-precarious beer flavors. this beer just makes you smile.
I'm a card-holding member of the Leinie Lodge. The only one I don't care much for is the Berry Weiss. I think it tastes too much like a wine cooler.
Fat Tire sounds intriguiging. "Like the ageless delight of pedaling a bicycle"??? You're quite the wordsmith. With accolades like that, I'll have to find some and try it. Thanks for the tip!
Right now, I like Shiner Bock from Spoetzl Brewery in Shiner, Texas (Texas last independent brewery). It has more flavor and body than the basic Bud/Miller beers.
Last Christmas, I tried a Samuel Adams Winter Sampler pack. Good for a change, but some were too dark and heavy for my taste.
What is your opinion of Capital Brewery beers of Middleton, Wisconsin? Any favorites?
Ahhh, Capital Brewery, where do I begin?
Just recently added to their annual list, and rightly so, is Island Wheat, made from wheat grown and harvested on Door County's Washington Island. This beer is on my personal top 10 all-time favorite beers list. It's a classic wheat beer that starts off smooth and citrusy, but what really makes it amazing is the aftertaste. Wheat beers typically leave behind a puckery, lemon-like aftertaste. Not this one. Island Wheat disappears down your throat with a soft, malty, thoroughly thirst-quenching finish. More like a lemon drop than a lemon wedge. The first time I tried this beer, I actually said, "Wow!" out loud. The bartender just smiled and said, "Yeah, I know."
Some of Capital's other fantastic beers are Brown Ale (a classic British-style ale), Bavarian Lager (a Munich "Helles" style lager), and Capital 1900 (an American style pilsner that puts Bud and Miller to shame).
If you're not too afraid of slightly heavier and darker beers; their seasonal Winter Skål should be out around now, and their limited release Autumanl Fire might still be found on the shelves. Both will do a full court press on your tastebuds.
Capital Brewery has so many great beers. I should write a blog review on them some day, but I should probably tour their brewery first though. Hmmm... Road trip!!!
Hey try this link: http://www.arcticliquor.com/tire-amber-p-30.html
This will take you micro beer heaven ,try all you want they send it to you.
nice job russ i'm enjoying a summit ale. defitly agry with all your capitol comments. had forgot about autumual fire it's a faverate. bud light has NO FLAVOR!
Papa-Art says; Different beers like varietal wines all give pleasures to the to the consumer.Some please the palate,some don't. All in proper quantities will give you that"buzz". Get buzzed, be happy, and, "Vive la difference".
Papa-Art says;
Did you know that prior to 1978 it was illegal to home-brew beer. Yep, it was that year that Pres. Jimmy Carter signed a bill making home-brewing legal. Way to go Jimmy. Brew on Russ.
Also did you know that the oldest residue and artifacts of beer brewing were found in Sumeria, present day, Iran. Tests show it to be from @ 3500BC. That would be some old beer. But no full containers were found.
I've got a Corona flat top beer can that's STILL FULL! What do you suppose that tastes like?!?! Does anyone know when Corona produced beer in flat top cans?
You will have to try the Lakefront Brewery in Milwaukee (I think it was awarded the best brewery and tour in Milwaukee). We try to go a least once a year out of our numerous trips down there to see our son. It cost $5.00 and a valid ID to take the tour. You get a glass, 4 drink chips and a slip for a free beer at one of the bars listed on the slip. The first thing they have you do is fill your glass with one of their beers displayed on tap. After a beer or two you start the tour which is informational and entertaining. Then half way through they have you stop and fill your glass again and on with the tour. At the end of the tour everyone has to sing the Laverne and Shirley theme song, and then it is back up to the main hall or to the bar outside. Last time we went we had two non beer drinkers with us, we had to stay and use their beer chips up (oh darn). I think I was half loaded when we walked out of there. If you run out of beer chips you can also just buy it to. I think I tried them all except for the Holiday Spice (wasn’t out yet). But my favorite is the Cattail. Then when you leave you have to find one of the bars on the slip for your free beer there (nice to have family down there to help you find them)! Try Lakefront before you even think about trying the Sprecher Brewery. I didn’t really care for anything there except they make good soda pop that is about it.
Post a Comment