I hate having to serve my beer to "civilians."

[StunnedMonkey]

You can watch their reaction upon the first taste and just read their minds. Their first thought is, "This tastes like ass to me but I need to say something good," and the second thought they have is, "What's my obligation to finish this sample?"

I was forced into bringing samples (I tried hard to dodge this request) to a small private wine tasting last night (don't #%@!ing ask) and the guys who tried my beer (an English Brown, an IPA, and a Stout) clearly found it disgusting. (Upon pouring the first one, the English Brown, one remarked, "Oh, a Dark Beer." As if "Dark Beer" is a style.) The men all offered strained positive comments which I knew were insincere, and I glared at SWMBO for forcing me to do this. In the end I was kind enough though to wander away long enough for them to pour their samples into the dump bucket.

I do have great respect for one guy's wife who upon taking a sip of the stout, actually winced and said, "Holy #$%^ that's awful!" and pushed it away in disgust. Plus she was hot.

 

[Cheeto]

Some people will never look past the big american marketing,

Be glad that a large part world follows the preachings of BMC and InBev.

If not there would not be enough craft brew for those of us that drink it !

I have a special batch of beer for those people,
it is fizzy amber and really light tasting.

If they call and IPA an "eepaa" than you don't want to offer them anything that is not the Classic American Pilsner.

-Jason

 

[Dwain]

I won't do it. I know a handful of people that went from drinking BMC to a craft brew in one move, but they are the extreme rarity. Usually, if you share your beer, you just get clowned. Buy some Budweiser American Ale and some Coors Light. Mix them 1/2 & 1/2 and right before you leave the house, put it in your unlabled bottles, cap it, get it cold and "share" about 1/2 a glass each. Just rinse the bottles and caps, you don't even have to sanitize them. Then you can regale them with stories about how difficult it is to emulate the exact taste, clarity, etc. of the mass produced beers. Tell them you don't make it often because it cost so much more than you can buy it for yada, yada, yada. Also, you can tell them you drive up the alcohol about 1%-2%. Everyone of the beer experts will tell you they can tell the alcohol is higher. You can still bring your own stash but tell them it's a really hopped dark beer and they wouldn't like it. Most won't push it any further. Whatever you do, don't tell anyone, even SWMBO. Although, since she saw the reaction, she probably won't subject you to further embarrassment. - Dwain

 

[Tonedef131]

Don't worry about it man, I have had your beers and they do not suck. If you want some positive feedback I would be glad to give you some loaded with sincerity.

 

[dzlater]

should told them they were
frost brewed
triple hopped
and cold filtered

 

[StunnedMonkey]

Don't worry about it man, I have had your beers and they do not suck.

Well, one of the ones I took actually might have sucked, but that's not the point. I'd let any homebrewer or craft brew drinker sample my stuff, even my worst stuff. Because even if the sample was a big miss at least they'd have some appreciation of what I was trying to do. But I knew going into this particular situation that I could have taken a Two-Hearted Ale or a Moose Drool and gotten the same sort of reaction.

I didn't have much choice. They guy hosting the wine tasting is the owner of my wife's company, and he's the one that asked her to have me bring the beer. It would have been difficult to decline. It really wouldn't have bothered me if they'd just admit that it wasn't to their tastes, but I really hate that transparent attempt to humor me. But it's not really their fault I suppose. I'd probably do the same if the roles were reversed.

 

[Tonedef131]

Oh well, it's not for everyone. So how were the wines?

 

[david_42]

Homebrew at a wine tasting? WinOs know zip about beer and, generally, not much about wine. Top WinO comment on one of my efforts, "Great pinot." == Blackberry cider.

Pity you were forced to waste your beer.

 

[FireNightFly]

Hmm, I may have to pick up sample cups after hearing this. At least I wont waste a whole beer. Sorry you had to endure a bunch of wine snoots.

 

[stevea1210]

Hmm, I may have to pick up sample cups after hearing this. At least I wont waste a whole beer. Sorry you had to endure a bunch of wine snoots.

Ihave4 sampling glasses from brew fests just for that reason. I don't want to waste a whole beer on a schmuck.

We are having a house warming party today, and I know there are some BMC'ers that I don't want to be near when they try my beer.

I have a low ibu american wheat that will hopefully pacify those types. The other 4 kegs might be too much...

the good news is there will also be several other brewers and some craft beer guys to balance out the others

You can pick your friends, but you can't pick your friends beer tastes.

 

[StunnedMonkey]

Oh well, it's not for everyone. So how were the wines?

There were actually some good ones. The premise for this was that a guy is getting married in November and we were sampling different wines to help the couple choose some for the reception. I like wine OK, but I'm not particularly knowledgeable. The wines that they had brought in were very modestly priced ($10-$20) but were (I thought) far superior to most $15 bottles of wine you'd ever grab on your own at the liquor store. If you'd have told me that most of the wines we tried were $50 bottles, I'd have believed that without hesitation.

The guy who hosted it is a pretty serious collector, with a 2000 bottle wine cellar that was written up a while back on Wine Spectator's site. He's got lots of reasonably priced stuff, but he's also got several cases of First Growth Bordeaux that are each probably worth more than my car. Of course, we didn't get to sample those.

The groom to be didn't ask me to brew a keg for his wedding, by the way. I'm stunned.

 

[Tonedef131]

That actually sounds really nice, I love finding wonderful low priced wines. It's a great day in every mans life when he realizes that high price in wine has no correlation to high quality.

BTW Seven Deadly Zins is the best <$20 wine. Period

 

[MBasile]

I was thinking of bringing a few bottles of brew to the family Christmas gathering, but I'll probably put a sign in front of the bottles that says "Warning: This is not Bud, Miller, or Coors. This is real beer. If you do not like real beer, you may not like this."

And yes, Seven Deadly Zins is a good one, still not my favorite though
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mattbasile/3669066353/

 

[StunnedMonkey]

It's a great day in every mans life when he realizes that high price in wine has no correlation to high quality.

Yeah. The red that was chosen was Mia's Playground Dry Creek Zinfandel 2005. It was actually the 2nd favorite of the bunch, but the bottle price was $6 cheaper than the actual favorite which of course I can't recall. The guy is buying something like 10 cases so it wasn't an insignificant difference. We piggy-backed a case of our own on his order.

The guy with the cellar agrees with you on the price/quality correlation. The stuff he actually drinks is very reasonable priced. He told me last night that he really doesn't care for all that Mouton-Rothschild and Chateau Margaux that he has stashed in there. He buys that as an investment. Must be nice having the jack to buy $10,000 cases of wine as an investment.

 

[Ashz]

I like to share with people who care. I brewed 5 gallons of Hefeweizen, for an old boss of mine who throws a pretty serious octoberfest every year. I told him I would brew for his party, and he had tried my beers before and liked them, but I could tell he was skeptical. He got a keg from Victory as well.

The Hefeweizen I brewed was about 5.6%, and it was still very light and enjoyable, although not in the same category that beers civilians quaff. Any way I brought my rig over to the party. Set it all up and people were looking at me quite oddly what with the CO2 bottle and cornie keg. I told everyone to give it a little while as it was just transported and needed to settle down a bit.

I drew off a pint after about thirty minutes and it was great. Went out front to have a cigar came back and there was a line at the keg. 2 hours later the keg was empty, and the Victory Festbier was still there, hardly touched. Got many a compliment that night. Especially the shocked question of "You mean you brewed this yourself? It actually tastes great!" Uh yeah, I thought about bringing a keg of the stuff that tastes like a$$ but I didn't.

I also threw a big party for the tapping of an RIS that had been aged for 10 months. That party was a doozy. The keg got kicked in about 3 hours. And that stuff was about 9%. I was actually a bit let down when it kicked as I hadn't set any aside.

I always love the reactions from people when you ask them if they would like to try, say a bitter, and they say the only dark beer they like is Guiness.

 

[northernlad]

That actually sounds really nice, I love finding wonderful low priced wines. It's a great day in every mans life when he realizes that high price in wine has no correlation to high quality.

YES........

 

[MBasile]

Yeah. The red that was chosen was Mia's Playground Dry Creek Zinfandel 2005. It was actually the 2nd favorite of the bunch, but the bottle price was $6 cheaper than the actual favorite which of course I can't recall. The guy is buying something like 10 cases so it wasn't an insignificant difference. We piggy-backed a case of our own on his order.

The guy with the cellar agrees with you on the price/quality correlation. The stuff he actually drinks is very reasonable priced. He told me last night that he really doesn't care for all that Mouton-Rothschild and Chateau Margaux that he has stashed in there. He buys that as an investment. Must be nice having the jack to buy $10,000 cases of wine as an investment.

I love the "Serenity Now!" IPA name in your sig!

I like to share with people who care. I brewed 5 gallons of Hefeweizen, for an old boss of mine who throws a pretty serious octoberfest every year. I told him I would brew for his party, and he had tried my beers before and liked them, but I could tell he was skeptical. He got a keg from Victory as well.

The Hefeweizen I brewed was about 5.6%, and it was still very light and enjoyable, although not in the same category that beers civilians quaff. Any way I brought my rig over to the party. Set it all up and people were looking at me quite oddly what with the CO2 bottle and cornie keg. I told everyone to give it a little while as it was just transported and needed to settle down a bit.

I drew off a pint after about thirty minutes and it was great. Went out front to have a cigar came back and there was a line at the keg. 2 hours later the keg was empty, and the Victory Festbier was still there, hardly touched. Got many a compliment that night. Especially the shocked question of "You mean you brewed this yourself? It actually tastes great!" Uh yeah, I thought about bringing a keg of the stuff that tastes like a$$ but I didn't.

I also threw a big party for the tapping of an RIS that had been aged for 10 months. That party was a doozy. The keg got kicked in about 3 hours. And that stuff was about 9%. I was actually a bit let down when it kicked as I hadn't set any aside.

I always love the reactions from people when you ask them if they would like to try, say a bitter, and they say the only dark beer they like is Guiness.

I think thats the difference between bringing home beer to a beer party and bringing beer to a non beer related gathering.

 

[brrman]

The problem with wine tastings/gatherings is that the majority of those attending don't even know much about wine... It's usually a "cool" thing to do on a saturday night - many of them are probably not even huge fans of wine at all, but they think its so modern and metro-goddamned-sexual.

Now, a beer tasting is different. Most people at a beer tasting like beer in general, not just the fizzy crap. If all you like is the fizzy crap, why go to a beer tasting where there are many styles of beer???

So you got the worst of the worst, monkey... No appreciation for the wine, let alone the beer which they were not there for to begin with...

 

[tdavisii]

I would have choke slammed each one of them just for wasting my beer that i slaved for hours then waited for days for it to ferment.....Actually more of us need to make "light" beers for occasions like this. Then when they actually dont wence at our handy work you can introduce them to some better stuff...Just my .02

 

[dataz722]

That actually sounds really nice, I love finding wonderful low priced wines. It's a great day in every mans life when he realizes that high price in wine has no correlation to high quality.

BTW Seven Deadly Zins is the best <$20 wine. Period

I actually have a bottle of that in my rack right now but haven't tried it yet. My favorite <$20 is easily vinos sinlay zestos.

 

[StunnedMonkey]

The problem with wine tastings/gatherings is that the majority of those attending don't even know much about wine...

Of course, no one there (other than the host) claimed to be any sort of wine expert. The whole point was to choose a nice pair of wines that would go over at an event (in this case a wedding reception) filled with other non-wine experts. So it wasn't as if this was a gathering of snooty and pretentious doorknobs.

So you got the worst of the worst, monkey... No appreciation for the wine, let alone the beer which they were not there for to begin with...

And the last point was why I really tried to get out of taking the samples. These people didn't necessarily care about beer, and weren't going there for beer. Not really a prime audience for mediocre homebrew.

I would have choke slammed each one of them just for wasting my beer that i slaved for hours then waited for days for it to ferment....

Well it wasn't a large quantity of beer. A mere bomber of each poured in ~4 oz samples. As far as choke slamming them...it wasn't their fault they got subjected to it. I just hated being forced into the position of offering up my goods to people who I knew wouldn't care for them. It was uncomfortable for them as well as for me.

 

[tdavisii]

My bad....I had just seen a wwe commercial and was a little excited to try out the choke slam

 

[StunnedMonkey]

My bad....I had just seen a wwe commercial and was a little excited to try out the choke slam

Oh, it's OK. They all probably deserved a choke-slam for some other reason anyway.

 

[TwoHeadsBrewing]

With just about every beer I brew, except for the light ones I offer a description first. I'll even mention something like, "Now this is a dark beer, but don't be fooled by the color since it has nothing to do with the taste." For darker beers I try to mention things like roasted grains, caramel malts, coffee, toffee, and chocolate flavors. Sometimes people only taste bitterness and confuse it with hop bitterness, or taste sweetness and confuse it with sugar.

Just like drinking wine, drinking fine beers must be practiced in order to notice the nuance of what you're consuming. Most people hide behind wine "tastings" as a chance to get drunk and act fancy and smug. There are a few who will actually try to pick out the pleasing flavors, and the flaws. Those are the people who you want to give samples to. Chances are they'll be able to give you some great insights into what your beer tastes like to a different type of drinker.

 

[adx]

I never mind giving beer to anyone. I've notice a "success ratio" of about 1 in 5. Sure the other 4 couldn't care less and think it tastes like crap, but that 1 is always a great time.

 

[Laughing_Gnome_Invisible]

I kinda miss being in the UK for the sole reason that if I were there, I would not have to go on a long diatribe trying to explain how my beer (Bitter) is supposed to taste. If I were serving my beer there, I could just give it to them....They would say crap or not crap, and we could all get on with life.

I have to admit, I get tired of trying to explain to people why they will most likely not like what they are about to drink.

 

[uglygoat]

2000 bottles of wine! seems like a serious misallocation of resources. he'll never drink all of those before he dies, you should have helped him out.

 

[Fracturedman]

Yeah, I know a guy who is a self proclaimed wine connoisseur. He asked me to help him pick out some Craft beers at our local huckleberry's so he could host a beer and wine tasting party and I refused. His idea of a craft beer is Blue moon, and the new bud lite wheat beer. His idea of good wine is white zin.

I told him that I would only do it after I taught him about wine and beer and that we hosted it at my house in my bar. I start teaching him next month.

 

[StunnedMonkey]

2000 bottles of wine! seems like a serious misallocation of resources. he'll never drink all of those before he dies, you should have helped him out.

He floats my wife some bottles here and there. She's one of the company partners and that has its perks I guess. A couple of bottles a week seem to find their way here. His cellar accommodates 2000 bottles, but it's only about 70% full. He's working on it though.

Yeah, I know a guy who is a self proclaimed wine connoisseur...his idea of good wine is white zin.

I will say that this guy is nothing like that. He really has taken an interest in wine and tries to educate himself, but he'd never call himself a connoisseur. He recognizes that he has much to learn. He definitely knows nothing about beer though, but he'd freely admit that.

I love the "Serenity Now!" IPA name in your sig!

Ha. I've taken to naming my beers after Seinfeld references, both obvious and obscure. I've got a Man Hands Amber, a Second Spitter IPA, a Low Talker Brown, and It's Moops! Oatmeal Stout. I'm brewing a Red Ale today as yet unnamed. Maybe, "He's Not a Nazi, He's Just Neat Red Ale." Or possibly not.

 

[Fracturedman]

I will say that this guy is nothing like that. He really has taken an interest in wine and tries to educate himself, but he'd never call himself a connoisseur. He recognizes that he has much to learn. He definitely knows nothing about beer though, but he'd freely admit that./QUOTE]

Yeah, the guy I know has no clue. He wants to and I admire his willingness to learn. That is why I am looking for some books and other resources about beer and wine.

I plan on getting a variety of beers from mild to all out badassness and see what he likes. My first Craft beer experience was Flying dogs Gonzo Imperial porter. I almost threw up, my next was an arrogant Bastard and I fell in love. So, you never know what might spark that "wow" moment in someone who doesnt know beer.

 

[Marius]

I have many friends that think every beer is great, so I just give my beers to those guys. They always say it's great.

 

[EvilTOJ]

Whenever I bring homebrew to a party, I always tell people "You won't hurt my feelings if you don't like this. I know not everyone likes real beer. If you drink it and tell me you like it I'll be forcing you to drink more, so you'd better be telling the truth!" It must be a Portland thing because I've always had honest feedback, and most of the time it's positive (to the point where they drink all my goddamn beer and I didn't get any!)


And wine snobs suck.

 

[Edcculus]

You know, I have mixed feelings about this. Like I just stated in another thread, I've grown a great appreciation for beer. Its historical significance, the multitude of styles, flavors, smells that can't be accomplished with any other beverage.

I've gotten to the point that I take my beer with me places no matter what. I encourage people to try it, even just a little sip. I'm not expert brewer, but I do think most of what I produce is on par with almost anything you can buy in the store. If I can get the idea into peoples head that beer can be a lot more than a fizzy yellow drink, I've done my job.

 

[JesseRC]

I dont know man, I'm here in SA Texas and finding friends that share the same taste is hard. I dont care what they drink , but geez it would be nice to share my homebrew with someone who doesnt care for BMC. My brother likes stouts , but that's it.

 

[farmbrewernw]

Most of the people I hang out with these days don't seem to need an explanation of beers, it must be a west coast thing I think more people have been exposed to craft beer over here.

 

[StunnedMonkey]

If I can get the idea into peoples head that beer can be a lot more than a fizzy yellow drink, I've done my job.

I guess my issue is that I don't see it as my job to forcibly educate those who are uninterested. Now I'll talk beer all day with someone who really wants to, but that wasn't the case here. These people didn't give a crap, and that's OK. They weren't interested in hearing some doorknob (me) rambling on about beer styles and why their personal tastes supposedly were unsophisticated. As it ended I was just a dude that brewed undrinkable beverages, as opposed to a condescending a-hole that brewed undrinkable beverages.

 

[Edcculus]

I guess my issue is that I don't see it as my job to forcibly educate those who are uninterested. Now I'll talk beer all day with someone who really wants to, but that wasn't the case here. These people didn't give a crap, and that's OK. They weren't interested in hearing some doorknob (me) rambling on about beer styles and why their personal tastes supposedly were unsophisticated. As it ended I was just a dude that brewed undrinkable beverages, as opposed to a condescending a-hole that brewed undrinkable beverages.

Yea, now that I think about it, I completely understand where you are coming from. Its one thing to bring beer to events with family, friends or work. Most of those people want to hear what I have to say. I'd be pressed not to punch a bunch of wine snobs in the neck. Its not that your beer is bad, its just that they are wine snobs. Not even a 20 year old oak aged slightly soured 11% Barleywine with all of its complexity would turn them.

 

[StunnedMonkey]

Its not that your beer is bad, its just that they are wine snobs.

Well, to clarify again, they actually weren't "wine snobs." This was just a group of couples who happened to be associated with the bride/groom/and/or/host who were tasting various wines to help choose some for the reception. Some were more wine savvy than others, but none were pretentious blowhards or anything. They were decent people. I just didn't relish having to display my wares under those circumstances to an uninterested audience.

And anyway, how do you know my beer isn't bad? It might well taste like something out of Two Girls and One Cup or something.

 

[Boerderij_Kabouter]

IMO, the first and most important part about offering your homebrew to others is to uinderstand that it is most likely not as good as commercial beer. A little reality really helps when putting your beer out there. 80% of people won't give a crap that you slaved to make it, they will just taste bad beer.

I generally preface my beer with, "this beer is a ___. It generally tastes like ____ and is similar to ______ beer you might have heard of. I am getting better, but this isn't the best beer in the world. Here are somethings to taste for and to notice. My feelings will not be hurt if you do not like it. Please don't take more if you don't want it."

I find that a little self deprication goes a long way. If people feel like you are putting them on the spot it will never be fun. Just go easy and let people try it, and understand that your beer is not God's gift to your friends. It is homebrew.

That said, I really never have the dumb beer drinker problem. We kicked 5 kegs of homebrew last night at my annual Oktoberfest party. I think that the realistic setting up of expectations really helps.

 

[Edcculus]

And anyway, how do you know my beer isn't bad? It might well taste like something out of Two Girls and One Cup or something.

ha, well I guess I don't. I wouldn't expect your wife to ask you to serve it to others if it was craptastic though.