Is this hobby killing us?

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triethylborane said:
Very appropriate if that pool is full of bud light.
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HB would be a Hopfbrau :)


On a serious note though, I'm more concerned with drinking and the fact that the diabetes run in my family. Alcohol is hard on the liver and pancreas, both of which are in cahoots with the diabetes. Moderation is key, but I definitely over do it from time to time and that worries me. Other than that, I think if you never drink more than 2 or 3 pints at a time, you're probably fine if you keep yourself from becoming a fatass. I ride a bike everyday for transportation, so that helps me a little...
 
By saying you drink only 1-2 pints a day you're indicating that you NEVER get drunk, ever.

That has to be BS for most of us. I don't believe it. Getting drunk is the single reason most of us got into this, whether we say it or not. Not one gets in for the art or the opportunity to pair with food.
 
normonster said:
By saying you drink only 1-2 pints a day you're indicating that you NEVER get drunk, ever.

That has to be BS for most of us. I don't believe it. Getting drunk is the single reason most of us got into this, whether we say it or not. Not one gets in for the art or the opportunity to pair with food.
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Most definitely wrong. I got into it for the fun. I do get drunk sometimes but that surely is not the reason I homebrew. I like being able to make a style of beer that is sometimes difficult to find locally. It is also fun to create something.

Getting hammered was never part of my decision to start brewing!!!!!
 
kh54s10 said:

Most definitely wrong. I got into it for the fun. I do get drunk sometimes but that surely is not the reason I homebrew. I like being able to make a style of beer that is sometimes difficult to find locally. It is also fun to create something.

Getting hammered was never part of my decision to start brewing!!!!!
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You do know that there are non-alcohol beer recipes available don't you? Myself, I drink beer for flavor and a mild buzz :tank:
 
Contrary to some popular opinions and misperceptions, there are a few of us around who didn't get into this hobby to feed compulsive disorders or kill ourselves in the process with imperial "this-or-thats", hop bombs, or trendy competition winners.
If killing myself was the point, there are far faster and more efficient ways to do so. I won't go there, Ozzy Osbourne's already done that. :)

For me, needing to get buzzed is purely secondary to learning how to create something enjoyable, maybe even better or less expensive than what's available in the commercial market. Creative homebrewing used to be some dimly-understood, arcane process I'd never really taken seriously. It took someone else to kickstart a late-blooming, latent learning effort that I hope continues on for a while longer. Sometimes creative genius comes from simple need, but no one really needs beer - but without it, life would be pretty boring and less enjoyable.
 
One of the best motivations is to share a good beer.
Appreciation is great validation for a successful effort - heck, even disgust and complaints are useful, but good feedback is even better.
I've made fusel bomb wine and acrid, sour beers simply because I didn't know any better. Those mistakes were a big part of the learning process and a foundation for better beer. That, and thanks to a lot of people willing to share, Lefou is a better-informed, smarter guy than he was a couple years ago.
 
normonster said:
By saying you drink only 1-2 pints a day you're indicating that you NEVER get drunk, ever.

That has to be BS for most of us. I don't believe it. Getting drunk is the single reason most of us got into this, whether we say it or not. Not one gets in for the art or the opportunity to pair with food.
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I absolutely hate being drunk. I love that 2-3 beers-in buzz but for me it's all downhill from there. Does that stop me from continuing to drink...HELL NO...I adore the taste of beer.

Beer + My Taste Buds = A Match Made in Heaven!! :rockin:
 
Meh. I brew 3.5 - 5.5% beers and drink in moderation. Sometimes one beer or no beer at all. Sometimes two or three. I bike a lot during the summer, x-country ski and walk an hour a day in winter. I'm a lean mean sexy machine and I like my beer.
 
I typically drink a 6 pack a day and I would likely drink more, but I limit myself by only refrigerating 6 bottles at a time. Is that excessive? Probably. Do I enjoy it? Absolutely! I'm sure I would wake up a little easier and not have to work so hard to stay in shape, but over all I'm healthy. Last summer I hiked the 2,200+ mile Appalachian Trail in 111 days and would have reached my goal of 99 days but I became more interested in finding breweries in trail towns (and there were a LOT) than shaving off 12 days! :D Anyway, if carrots don't get us, there's a long list of things waiting to pounce!
 
normonster said:
That has to be BS for most of us. I don't believe it. Getting drunk is the single reason most of us got into this, whether we say it or not. Not one gets in for the art or the opportunity to pair with food.
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kh54s10 said:

Most definitely wrong. I got into it for the fun. I do get drunk sometimes but that surely is not the reason I homebrew. I like being able to make a style of beer that is sometimes difficult to find locally. It is also fun to create something.

Getting hammered was never part of my decision to start brewing!!!!!
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Brownalemikie said:
You do know that there are non-alcohol beer recipes available don't you? Myself, I drink beer for flavor and a mild buzz :tank:
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Did you read the post that I made the reply to??

I don't need or want a non-alcohol beer.

As I said getting hammered was not an idea that I had when I decided to get into brewing. Not to say that I don't get hammered from time to time. Also, I almost always drink a couple and get a mild buzz.
 
Only one glass of beer per day, you say? Ok, then I get to choose the glass size.

beer.jpg
 
kh54s10 said:
Did you read the post that I made the reply to??

I don't need or want a non-alcohol beer.

As I said getting hammered was not an idea that I had when I decided to get into brewing. Not to say that I don't get hammered from time to time. Also, I almost always drink a couple and get a mild buzz.
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As Billy Bob said in the movie "Sling Blade".....alright then uh-huh :mug:
 
normonster said:
By saying you drink only 1-2 pints a day you're indicating that you NEVER get drunk, ever.

That has to be BS for most of us. I don't believe it. Getting drunk is the single reason most of us got into this, whether we say it or not. Not one gets in for the art or the opportunity to pair with food.
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That is complete nonsense. I make beer because it is fun and I enjoy being able to create my own recipes and see what comes from it all. Just the same way I enjoy cooking. It can be a rewarding creative process.

If all I wanted to do is get drunk I could just go to the store and buy beer or hard liquor and not spend a few hours making it, then weeks waiting for it to be ready to drink. Do I have a problem with getting buzzed or drunk sometimes, of course not. But that is certainly not the reason I brew.
 
What's killing me right now is the fact that I just kegged my Funky Rye and it's still green and needs more conditioning.

And what's killing me is Darth Lager is in the fermenter and I'm still probably 10 days away from having a taste.
 
What's killing me is I'm not thirty years younger, building can pyramids with my friends. Yeah, I used to do that and had a good time watching bored friends drink flaming shots of Turkish raki, too.
My tolerance for alcohol is fairly high but my 52 year-old head has a two drink limit nowadays. C'est la vie.
 
Gonefishing said:
6.5% may not yet have died, but it is 100% that they will.
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I'm not willing to go that far. >99.9999999999%, yes. And it probably depends on your definition of "death".

I think there's a tiny but not quite zero chance that an Elon Musk type or someone younger but currently alive will go for a moon shot project, and either work out how to prevent aging, or upload themselves* to a cloud computer system or something even more bizarre. They've got a hundred years or so to get it done.

Of course, uploading your "self" to computer means not being able to have a beer. That may well be your definition of "death".

Also, I'm ignoring the heat death of the universe for this. And it looks like a big rip ain't going to happen.

*for some value of "self".
 
normonster said:
By saying you drink only 1-2 pints a day you're indicating that you NEVER get drunk, ever.

That has to be BS for most of us. I don't believe it. Getting drunk is the single reason most of us got into this, whether we say it or not. Not one gets in for the art or the opportunity to pair with food.
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If you're homebrewing for the sole purpose of getting hammered, you might have a problem.

I brew my own beer because I like the blend of art and science in the process, and I'm able to make beers that aren't commercially available.
 
dyqik said:
Of course, uploading your "self" to computer means not being able to have a beer. That may well be your definition of "death".
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"I know this steak doesn't exist. I know that when I put it in my mouth, the Matrix is telling my brain that it is juicy and delicious. After nine years, you know what I realize? Ignorance is bliss"

Hopefully the Matrix will have a subroutine for a decent chocolate stout.

To get back on topic, when I turned 40 I went and had a checkup/physical. I mentioned my home brewing hobby to my doctor and asked him about it's implications. He somewhat reluctantly told me that research shows that moderate drinkers have a lower risk of mortality than teetotalers. 2 beer a day for men and 1 for women counts as moderate for these purposes .
 
I had a stress test done recently. My wife mentioned to the technicians my craft/home brew drinking "hobby"...more then 2/day! Neither were concerned. They said smoking is the heart killer, which my wife did for 25yrs and quit. So Neener Neener on her!!
 
I usually only have a beer with dinner and when I had to start buying size 34 pants, I chose to give up seconds instead of giving up beer. Three years now and it seems to be holding steady...

I brew way more than I can drink, but I have never had a problem finding a home for the extra.
 
TBC said:
Slowly
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Good. I'm not in a hurry, anyway. :)

But seriously, if the intention is preserve the health, there is a very, very long list of things to cut of our diet before our homebrewed beer.

Coke (and all other soft drinks)
Bacon
Refined sugar
Refined flour
Anything made with corn (99% of corn are GMO)
Any industrial food (if is packed and stay good to eat for more than a week, is bad for you)
Anything colored artificially
Anything packed in plastic (google endocrine disruption)
Non organic vegetables

And the list go, and go, and go....

May be after couple hundreds items we will reach "Homebrewed Beer".

Relax, enjoy the day, have a beer. :mug:
 
No offense to any Doctors around here, but I really don't put much faith in whatever they might say at a check up. It seems like sometimes they'll let their personal opinions get in the way of something that hasn't necessarily been proven. The whole, "2 a day for men, 1 for women" is such a broad statement, as well.

The last time I took docs seriously was when they said, "Do you smoke?" I said, "cigars every once in a while" and I got a lecture about how bad it is for me, I need to quit, and yadda yadda yadda. I clarified, "Cigars, not cigarettes", and I got more lecture. Ooookay.
 
I am 49 years old and have been drinking steadily (sometimes to excess) since my teens. While doing that, I also have an extremely healthy nutritional plan where I eat no processed foods. I don't eat the crap that comes in boxes from the supermarket shelf. I exercise regularly but not excessively, as in I just run 3 to 5 miles, twice a week. I went for my physical earlier this year and the doc came in and said that I have the blood chemistry of a 25 year old. He started asking me about my lifestyle and when he asked if I drink, I told him "Every day". He seemed very concerned about that and asked if I thought maybe I should change that. I said "You just told me I have the blood chemistry of a 25 year old, why would I change what I am doing?". He said "Well, I guess I cant argue that". I think that drinking is only one aspect of an overall dietary impact on health. IN reality, the chemistry set that comes in most of the foods that we eat every day is likely more damaging to our bodies than the alcohol in a few beers a day. Furthermore, all the other crap that is in the foods we eat is likely more damaging than the fat and the calories in it. People get so focused on the calories and the fat in the food they eat, that they completely dismiss that the foods are loaded with chemicals that were not meant to be in our bodies. Why are we unhealthy? It's not because of the high calorie foods we eat. It's all the un-natural crap that's in those high calorie, processed foods.
 
Sitting on the couch watching sports and drinking beer with snacks will kill you.
I'm 60, drink about 2 pints per day, once in a while 3, and I go to the gym 4 days each week. I have a 2 acre yard so yardwork involves walking up to 20 miles per weekend, and my wife and I are avid rock collectors so a 3 day weekend collecting worthless chunks of rock may involve 25 miles of walking with sledge hammer, pick axe and buckets. I've kept my weight steady for the past 14 years with no diet changes, and no abstaining from alcohol. Having ADHD helps a lot, sitting around relaxing kills me.
But I do notice that if I drink 5 or 6 pints on a weekend night I'm sluggish and irritable so I keep consumption moderate on weekends now too. You just have to find the balance that works for you
 
Everything worth doing involves some risk. Driving, eating snacks, riding your bike, going for a hike, cooking, going to a concert. Woe to the man (or woman) who avoids the things that make him (or her) happy out of fear. As Thoreau said, "I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived."
 
normonster said:
By saying you drink only 1-2 pints a day you're indicating that you NEVER get drunk, ever.

That has to be BS for most of us. I don't believe it. Getting drunk is the single reason most of us got into this, whether we say it or not. Not one gets in for the art or the opportunity to pair with food.
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Disagree. If I wanted to get drunk as efficiently as possible, I'd buy Popov Vodka or Allen's Coffee Brandy by the handle. For me brewing's about having a homemade product I can take pride in and share with my friends. It's a creative hobby. My wife knits. I brew.

Edit: and I'm not saying I never get drunk. I do, sometimes. But getting drunk is a side-effect of having a good time with my friends, not the cause for it.
 
Dying isn't the worst thing in the world.

Losing your legs to diabetes would suck.
Suffering from gout for the rest of your life would suck.
Having to be on dialysis for decades because you ****ed your kidneys would suck.
Needing a liver transplant and then having to take a dozen pills a day and visit a doctor monthly would suck.
Getting fat would suck.
Getting into a car/motorcycle wreck would suck.

The question isn't if beer is killing is, the question is:
Does the increase in happiness from good beer outweigh the potential risk of a debilitating illness or consequence?​

I believe the answer to my question to be: Yes there is a net increase in overall happiness from beer, and only the extremely risk averse would be happier drinking water.
 
HarborTownBrewing said:
The last time I took docs seriously was when they said, "Do you smoke?" I said, "cigars every once in a while" and I got a lecture about how bad it is for me, I need to quit, and yadda yadda yadda. I clarified, "Cigars, not cigarettes", and I got more lecture. Ooookay.
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I'll bite my tongue a bit. Do you think cigars are not bad for you?
 
Iseneye said:
I'll bite my tongue a bit. Do you think cigars are not bad for you?
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I smoke cigars, I drink beer, I eat donuts and sweets like they're going out of style. Do I think those things are "not bad for..." me? No.

I also run, bike, play volleyball, hike, and other various activities. Do I think those things are "not bad for..." me? No. I've become injured from each of those activities which has, in some cases, significantly impacted my life going forward.

I'm not trying to reach 100 years of age. I'm trying to stay as fit as possible enjoy my life as much as I can, retire as early as possible, and fulfill personal goals as long as I'm around.
 
My strategy involves not drinking on workdays and pacing myself on days I drink. When I drink I want to feel something, but I can't drink like that every day. I save it for weekends, and even then I work to make them last a while.
 
Yes, send me all your beer immediately and I will dispose of it properly.
 

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