Thirty Days of Thanks - Day 11

“Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy,” is a quote attributed to Benjamin Franklin (if you’re not familiar with it, maybe you’ve seen the version in which “beer” is replaced with “wine”?).  As silly as it might sound, today I’m thankful for beer.  Now, I’m not thankful in your college frat boy sense – far from it!  I’m thankful for the craft, what is does to bring people together, and, in some small way, how it promotes relaxation. 

Under the pressure of the cares and sorrows of our mortal condition, men [and women] have at all times, and in all countries, called in some physical aid to their moral consolations - wine, beer, opium, brandy, or tobacco.

Edmund Burke

Beer, much like wine, has many amazing characteristics.  There are hoppier, more bitter varieties, darker, maltier brews, lighter beers and heavier ones, beers one would drink for refreshment in the summer heat and those perfect for cold winter nightss.  As I get more into the beverage, I’m more and more amazed by the variety that exists.  I’m so amazed, in fact, that home brewing is going to be my 2013 project.  If all goes well and I (eventually) master the process, I’m hoping a cicerone certification will be a next step.  Cicerone sounds so much cooler than sommelier, doesn’t it?

Since next year will my home brewing year, this year has been my year to do “research.”  I’m thankful that both Trader Joe’s and Binny’s sell mixed 6 packs, since I can only drink so much beer and there is only so much room in my refrigerator.  The only downside to this, if one can consider it a negative, is that I’ve become a bit of a beer snob.  Well, some would call me a snob, others would simply agree that I have high standards.  It’s even worked itself into my dating criteria – if someone orders a Miller Lite in a bar with a good beer selection, he does not get a second date!

People who drink light 'beer' don't like the taste of beer; they just like to pee a lot.

Capital Brewery, Middleton, WI

Even with the amazing variety that exists out there, perhaps my favorite thing about beer is the way it brings people together.  In a pub with a good variety there’s something exceptional for everyone.  Friends can get together for a pint, camaraderie, and relaxation, and strangers can sit down next to one another and come away friends.  I’m looking forward to meeting some interesting people once I take some brewing classes early next year!

Finally, while I certainly don’t advocate drinking to excess, and do make it a point to keep my wits about me, I found one last poem to share:

Fill with mingled cream and amber

I will drain that glass again.

Such hilarious visions clamber

Through the chambers of my brain - 

Quaintest thoughts - queerest fancies,

Come to life and fade away:

What care I how time advances?

I am drinking ale today.

                                       -Edgar Allen Poe, July 1948