Well, something that really annoys me is being quoted out of context. Since your mis-interpretation of what I said and how I said it directly impacts the validity of your assertion that I was 'telling you what to do', it would appear that this ain't Burger King, and neither of us are getting it our way.
But many people aren't "discussing" ... they are doing things like claiming their home brew is better than DFH... or that DFH beer is "bad"... or that the show is "formulaic" and therefore not worth watching. These are all qualitative assessments of tangential aspects of the actual discussion that should be going on.
I couldn't give a crap about Sam C's ego... I'm not even a big DFH fan. What I AM a big fan of, as should everyone on this board should be, is that all of a sudden MAINSTREAM AMERICA is being exposed to craft beer in a big way. A major cable channel has put their significant weight and expertise towards a subject and industry we all love... yeah, there's a formula. It would be like me telling you that you're being 'formulaic' because "you just heated, mashed, boiled, and pitched yeast... just like you did on EVERY other brew you've ever done... sheesh". It's called doing what works, and this format resonates with viewers. The thing is, even if the form bothers you, the substance of the show should be appreciated by all of us... I'm not saying you have to watch it. I'm not even saying you have to like it all that much. I just can't believe that this thing we do, that we have to constantly try to explain, justify, put into layman's terms, etc, for the people in our lives... this thing is finally on a mainstream cable channel. It's getting some validation, and it's only going to mean more homebrewers... how is that possibly a bad thing? Why are people nitpicking and assuming Sam's a jerk or a clown, that his beer sucks... that they could make better beer... that they lied on camera just to score points in an industry that's ALREADY treating them very well.
This discussion is, for many people in it, merely about finding the worst in it and ignoring the rest. I suppose someone could make the same assertion about me and not be totally incorrect, given the amount of effort I'm putting into trying to get people to see that they're acting unreasonably.
I love the show... I think it's amazing that this is on TV. Out of the 14 or so DFH beers I've tried, I only like about 4 of them for regular consumption... I enjoyed tasting them all though. They were ALL very well-made beers, but they definitely cater to off-centered tastes, as they say. I think it's a truly American story of someone going where there passions lead them, and doing what they love doing and being successful at it.
Do I think the format's cheesy? Sure... but it works for the general populace. Do I think DFH is the best brewery in the world? No, not even in my top 5. Do I think Sam's a goofball? Of course he is, you'd have to be to maintain your sanity in that industry... the other choice is to join the "5 percent".
I apologize if I've offended, but this would be a far more productive discussion if everyone took 5 seconds just to reflect how awesome it is that this show even exists, like it or not.
Yes, using the "quote feature" ... you should look into it.
*sigh*
No, that's not what I was saying... I was merely trying to argue that there's a certain sense in which all of us shoudl be glad this is one the air, and be "fans", even if the format is annoying to us or we don't particularly like DFH beers. I'm an Administrator at the Internet's largest invertebrate keeper's forum, and there is a similar situation right now with a show called "Bugging Out" ... it's an internet dealer named Ken who's dealing with a similar "crisis of the week". All of us are behind the show and voting for it to continue, even though many of us really don't care for it... why? Because not in a hundred years did anyone in that hobby think that a show about it would end up on mainstream TV. I've spent the last decade trying to explain to people how tarantulas aren't going to kill them, no all snakes aren't venomous, why spiders aren't going to lay eggs in their ears at night, and how on earth these "life threatening creatures" can be kept safely at home... well, here's a show that introduces many of these concepts in the "easily palatable formula" that the viewing public is used to.
I guess that's where I'm coming from... there are 100 ways this show could be done. Yes, they could give tons of super-geeky minutiae that would be interesting to US, but would probably mean a weekly viewership of 10,000... as opposed to this format which draws in significantly more. We should all be happy this is getting produced AT ALL... whether or not we actually LIKE the show should be almost secondary. We should all appreciate the fact that this show is even on.
Shouldn't we?
Again, apologies at any offense. In my defense, I was only KINDA telling you what to do.