Session #53: Beer and redemption

I’m pretty sure host John Holl did not have what follows in mind when he ask us to write about “Beer Redemption” for the 53rd gathering of The Session. But sometimes the hyperlinks in my brain get crossed. I went from thinking about how a beer might redeem itself (not making a connection) to how giving somebody a beer might be an act of redemption to what a joy it can be to put a refreshing beer in somebody’s hand.

The SessionConnection made. I thought of “The Shawshank Redemption.” Not because redemption is in the title, but because of the grin on Andy Dufresne’s face in the scene above, and the joy on his friends’ faces, as they drink “Bohemian-style beer” on the freshly tarred roof.

Red provides the commentary: “We sat and drank with the sun on our shoulders and felt like free men.”

It’s then that we see Andy enjoying the moment, even though he’s not drinking himself.

Back to Red: “You could argue he’d done it to curry favor with the guards. Or, maybe make a few friends among us cons. Me, I think he did it just to feel normal again, if only for a short while.”

******

My apologies for wandering of course this month. You’ll find more focused takes on the topic in The Session roundup at John Holl’s Beer Briefing.

Where in the beer world? 06.30.11

Where in the beer world?

Think you know where in the beer world this photo was taken?

Please leave your answer as a comment.

Mine would be that as long as Mikkeller was going to make 19 single hop beers why not go for 24 and assemble an entire case?

Do mosquitoes keep beer tasting notes?

Here’ the scientific study.

Here’s the key finding:

Water consumption had no effect on human attractiveness to An. gambiae mosquitoes, but beer consumption increased volunteer attractiveness. Body odours of volunteers who consumed beer increased mosquito activation (proportion of mosquitoes engaging in take-off and up-wind flight) and orientation (proportion of mosquitoes flying towards volunteers’ odours). The level of exhaled carbon dioxide and body temperature had no effect on human attractiveness to mosquitoes. Despite individual volunteer variation, beer consumption consistently increased attractiveness to mosquitoes.

No, seriously. Because “these results suggest that beer consumption is a risk factor for malaria and needs to be integrated into public health policies for the design of control measures.”

But moving on to a bit of whimsy. What if mosquitoes have some form of quick communication, à la Twitter? You think one might buzz his or her fellow biting buddies that “the one is the red shirt is balanced toward malt” or the “arms of the one nearest the beer cooler taste of citrus and pine”?

And, from a public health standpoint, wouldn’t it be good to know of mosquitoes prefer hoppy beer drinkers, extreme beer drinkers . . .

Honk if you hate Fat Tire

Where in the beer world?Some people will actually tell you they hate New Belgium Fat Tire Amber Ale. It’s complicated, and I really just want to pass along a few numbers, so I’ll simply says it seems silly to me, but it’s their energy.

Fact is that as New Belgium drives deeper into the East Coast this year it will be Fat Tire drinkers ask for first. (Witness this photo taken in South Carolina before New Belgium entered the state. The owners posted the sign in self defense.)

Some interesting figures emerged last week in the run up to the brewery’s twentieth anniversary on Tuesday. Although overall production increased 13% last year, to 661,000 31-gallon barrels, Fat Tire sales grew only 2%.

According to Impact Databank, Fat Tire accounted for 70% of New Belgium sales in 2008, 67% in 2009 and 60% in 2010. The biggest change last year was the introduction of Ranger IPA. New Belgium sold more than 50,000 barrels in 2010, 8% of production, more Ranger IPA than its well known neighbor, Odell Brewing, made in total.