I recently got some more feedback from
a reader who mentioned, “I feel like I would appreciate the review
more if I was drinking the beer while I was reading it.” On the one
hand, I am glad that my reviews provoke one's thirst for beer,
however I cannot, in good conscience, recommend that my readers to
this. Why, you ask? Put simply, drinking beer is an activity based
largely in personal preference. My fear is that while drinking a beer
and reading a review about it, one's personal opinion will be skewed
too heavily by my words (if I can presume to be so influential) and
they will not be able to form their own view of that particular beer.
What then should prospective (or
current) beer drinkers do in order to form their own opinion of a
beer such that they gain a great deal of satisfaction form drinking
beer? My response to that will be, admittedly, slightly biased by the
very fact that I am writing this blog but I truly believe people need
beer education in order to be able to begin to think about what beer
actually is and how, quite specifically, it tastes. In putting my
opinions on beer out on the internet, I assure I am not trying to
convince everyone that mine is the only opinion that matters.
Therefore I urge you to read my beer reviews and other ramblings,
then adapt what you have learned to how you want your beer experience
to be.
To develop this point a little more,
allow me to give you a little bit of context. Human taste is a very
psychological construction and is thus susceptible to the power of
suggestion. While there are some basic tastes that I think everyone's
palate and then brain can sense in beer, such as hop bitterness,
malty sweetness, and alcoholic taste, the more subtle tastes are
often filled in based on one's personal experiences in the realm of
food and drink. An example: many people (see left) claim to taste figs in
imperial stouts and Belgian strong dark ales. I can't remember the
last time I ate a fig so naturally, I cannot identify with this
flavor. Rather, I describe this “dark fruit flavor” as grapes or
dates. This is significant because many times people try to
over-analyze the taste of their beer; they have heard so much
propaganda or read so much literature about beer that they convince
themselves that [such and such] flavor is surely present or they
should be smelling [this and that] in their beer. I would remind
people that drinking beer is supposed to be enjoyable and relaxing,
not an analytical exercise; if you choose to discuss what you are
tasting (which I endorse), do so on the basis of how you feel in the
moment and not what you think you are supposed to taste.
On that note, go kick back and relax
with your favorite beer and don't let anyone tell you how it should
taste!
