Organized by Dave Higgins and his comrades from Wachusett brewing, this was the festival’s second year. Busy staff members in bright orange shirts worked to set everything up. A ring of tables held brews of all shapes and sizes, some in bottles, some in kegs, and some in innovative delivery systems (including one that was made by a former cabinet maker and housed in a rubbermaid garbage can)…

There were two prizes to be had – a people’s choice award (people could vote using blue marbles that they received at the festival’s entrance – and a “best in show” chosen by the guest judges.

Gardner Homebrew Fest (2011)

For us, the judging was arranged in flights – so there were 4-6 beers in a heat, and one was selected to move onto the final round. There were probably about 25-ish beers to try, so we had a good job ahead of us to pick our favorites.

We had some really innovative and interesting beers, and all of it was high quality! I’d like to call out a few that were memorable: A Tripel made with black cherries, a coconut IPA, an impressive, I-can’t-believe-its-a-homebrew Belgian Ale, a raspberry cider, a smoked red ale, a Chocolate Raspberry Porter and the best Watermelon ale I’ve ever had.

The judge’s “best in show” ended up being the Belgian Ale with the Watermelon and Chocolate Raspberry as close runners-up. The crowd favorites were the black cherry belgian (1st) and the raspberry cider (2nd).

I got a chance to talk to some of the brewers, and got encouraged and inspired by their creativity. What a great way to remind myself that there are tons of great things going on in the backyards, kitchens and cellars of ordinary folks (if you can call these brewers ordinary, that is!). A cheers to all the brewers who participated. I might have to drop by a few more of these fests in the future. You’ve inspired me!

The Hop Press proudly supports American Craft Beer Week (May 16-22)

What can you do?
*Sign the Beer Drinker’s Declaration of Independence
*Attend an event near you!

“Ten thousand tickets will be available, with nine hundred “winners” mixed randomly among them. These tickets will be sold at the Portsmouth Brewery for $2 apiece starting six weeks prior to Kate Day, until they run out. All of the revenue generated by the sale of these scratch tickets will be donated to a non-profit of our choice. Sale of scratch tickets will be limited to ten per person per day.”

This change is probably with good reason – a few years ago people from several states away drove in the pre-dawn hours to stand outside in cold and sleet for the chance at getting a calendar page that would earn them the right to purchase a bottle. After moving away from Portsmouth, I thought I could never justify taking a day off from work just to do that – and I’m kind of a wimp when it comes to late winter cold. So I decided to be happy if I accidently came across it on tap in one of their un-announced secret releases, and to hang onto my ’09 bottle for a special occasion.

Then, a friend told me about the changes this year, and I got my hopes back up again. The best part (aside from the $20,000 that would go to charity if all the tickets sell) is that, once you have a winning ticket, you can come in and buy the bottle of Kate at your convenience within 30 days of Kate day. Which means no lines, no taking a day off from work, and no frustration. I’m quite excited about this – I wish everyone who tries the best of luck!

Craft beer, on a whole, is a bit more expensive than macro beer, but also tends to have, on average, a higher Alcohol by Volume (ABV) per bottle or can as well. So, if you do the math, is it economically better to buy macro beer at volume to achieve the same amount of intoxication, or to drink fewer, higher ABV beers?

This may seem like a ridiculous question to ask – most craft beer drinkers that I know don’t drink only to get intoxicated, and most are not drinking craft beer for any kind of drunken economic advantage. But i realized that I’ve never actually checked it out for myself… so I decided to follow through a little experiment to see what I’d actually come up with – just in case I ever had to make the argument someday.

So let’s take an “average” of 5 macro light lagers:

• Keystone Light – 4.2 % ABV
• Coors Light – 5% ABV
• Bud Light – 4.2 % ABV
• MGD 64 – 3% ABV
• Natural Ice – 5.9% ABV

These average out to be 4.5% ABV

I’m also going to take five similar craft beers – let’s say a few popular IPAs.

• Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA – 6% ABV
• Sierra Nevada Torpedo IPA – 7.2% ABV
• Green Flash West Coast IPA – 7.3% ABV
• Stone IPA – 6.9% ABV
• 21st Amendment Brew Free or Die IPA – 7%

These average out to be 6.9% ABV

And as a third group – a set of five “imperial” or high ABV beers:

• Russian River – Pliny the Younger – 11% ABV
• Stone – Russian Imperial Stout – 10.5% ABV
• Dogfish Head – 120 Minute IPA – 18% ABV
• Brew Dog – Tokyo – 12% ABV
• Sierra Nevada – Bigfoot – 9.6% ABV

These average out to 12.2% ABV

So in review, we have:

• Macro average: 4.46%
• Craft IPA average: 6.9%
• “Imperial” craft beer average: 12.2%

Now, I know that “imperial” beers can vary wildly between 8-10% and anywhere to 55% ABV, but I tried to pick a few well-known representative samples, and I feel I can say with some certainty that once something is in the 12% range it would be considered by me to be a higher-alcohol beer.

For the sake of argument, I am also going to even out a few things. First, I know that not all of these beers are available by six packs, for example, but I am going to make a few assumptions. *Price information is provided by BevMo.

For the “macro” beers, I am going to use a 12 pack of 12 oz cans as a starting point. which costs $10.99 and contains a total of 144 oz of beer.

So 144oz times 4.5% = 6.48 oz of “alcohol” in the 12-pack
$10.99 = 6.48 oz so that’s about $1.70 per ounce of alcohol.

For the “craft IPA” beers I am going to use a 6 pack of 12 oz bottles as a starting point, which costs $11.49 (average of the five costs above)

So 72 oz times 6.9% = 4.97 oz of “alcohol” in the 6-pack
$11.45 = 4.97 oz so that’s about $1.77 per ounce of alcohol Corrected: $2.30
(Thanks for noticing this!)

For the “imperial” beers I am going to start with a 22oz bottle, which costs about $10.00 (conservative estimate – imperials vary WILDLY on price)
So that’s 22 oz times 12.22% = 2.68 oz of “alcohol” in the bottle
$10.00 = 2.68 oz that’s about $3.70 per ounce of alcohol

So firstly, the idea that drinking extremely high ABV beers are somehow a cheaper way toget drunk is false. It doesn’t matter what size bottles you buy, the cost per oz of alcohol is clearly in the favor of the cheaper macro brews – who have gotten that price point based on volume. In the first example above, there isn’t a huge price differential in craft and micro (7 cents?) so I also decided to look further. Though there’s a difference (especially with my math corrected) I did decide to turn around and still think about the realities of volume as well.

So let’s take the same three scenarios and play with the numbers some more and let’s talk about volumes.

How much of each beer type would it take to get to the same amt of alcohol?

If I had to pick a target “drunk level” for this problem it would probably be about 5 oz of alcohol (this is totally arbitrary, but stick with me here…)

In the “macro” category, I’d have to drink 9 and a quater “macro” beers to get the 5 oz of alcohol. That’s a total of 111 oz of fluid. And, if you divide it out, 9.25 beers is a little bit less than the total purchase price of $10.99 – it turns out I have to drink $8.47 worth of my investment to get to this level.

In the “craft” category, I’d have to drink about a 6 pack to get 5 oz of alcohol. That’s a little better for my bladder at only 72 oz of fluid, though, after drinking the 6 pack I’ve now used up my $11.45 purchase.

In the “imperial” category, I’d have to drink a little shy of 2 full bomber bottles – a total of 44 oz of fluid. I would have to spend $20.00 to do this. Less trips to the bathroom, but more expensive by far.

Now, looking back for a moment, clearly a pattern emerges. The most “eifficient” way to get intoxicated seems to be by sticking to cheap macro beers with low ABVs. Why is this ironic, you ask?

In the state of Mississippi, there is a law in place that states that no beer above 5% ABV can be sold. Proponents of this ban argue that bringing in higher ABV beers could lead to binge-drinking or more problems with intoxication. I’d say that anyone looking for that “quick drunk” fix is probably more likely to pick more-water-than-beer and cheap-as-possible swill (which is the only beer available to them currently) than a high-test beer due to its added expense and more complex flavors. Even in a “free” market scenario (allowing all types of beer to be sold) if someone’s intentions are to get smashed on beer, then the choice (economically speaking) is obvious. Truly, this law’s only effect is to prevent craft beer enthusiasts from doing what we’re all proud to do with beer – to enjoy it responsibly.

Want to learn more about this law and what’s being done about it? Check out “Raise Your Pints,” a grassroots organization attempting to fight the archaic craft beer law that’s stifling the tastes of those who appreciate what craft beer is meant for – and know that high-gravity beers are meant to be savored, not slammed. Their mission is “to promote and enhance craft beer culture in Mississippi by working to lift the ban on high-gravity beer; clarify the status of homebrewing as a legal, fun, and wholesome hobby; promote Mississippi’s beer, brewpub, and brewing industries and small businesses; and work to broaden the appreciation of craft beer for all Mississippians.”

Perhaps you’ve heard yourself thinking this very thought. Perhaps the thought continues. “If only beer writers/distributers/bar owners would focus on the session (6% ABV or under) or “regular” beers – there would be more great beers out there to drink instead of just an arms race of extremes.” Or perhaps it goes something like, “Brewers should only brew great session brews and stop trying to cater to the extreme tastes, etc. of the craft beer enthusiast/rater.”

This refrain has been echoed by brewers, too.

“Consumers’ and retailers’ lust for the latest and greatest undermines established brands and trivializes the category as a whole, sacrificing quality on the altar of novelty. One could argue that this is the direction the music industry, which is in deep trouble, has been going for years.” -Peter Egleston, from this article on The Full Pint

So, I pose several questions for you to examine:

What is the cause of this situation? Sure, there will likely be an ever-growing variety of beer to choose from, but there does seem to be a focus on one-offs, rarities, extreme beers with strong flavors, bizzare or high ABV. Some have even posed that it is that because of the writers that write about these beers.

“By doing little more than parroting the marketing-speak of advertising companies, Dan believes American beer writers are largely to blame for an industry and drinking public that’s more taken with gimmickry than artistry.” -Valley Advocate story interviewing Dan Shelton (Shelton Bros.)

All of this buzz got me thinking about my own habits, and the habits of consumers in general. When I go out to look for beer to review, like many the first thing I do is to scan the shelves for what I have not yet tried. And, in a limited market like Maine, I leap on what I can get. Sometimes, these are great regular releases, and sometimes I make a mixed six pack with the latest local seasonals. But, more often than not, a new shiny bottle of someone’s “imperial” this or “double” that catches my eye. It is human nature to seek out the rare, the new and the novel and I am certainly no exception. Marketers and product producers count on this type of behavior – and it’s no more common in beer than it is in clothing, video games or other optional (non-commodity) purchases. The argument, then, is whether or not these brews are less artfully crafted than their session counterparts and get by on their novelty alone.

So, then, are all of us craft beer consumers (regardless of whether they blog, rate or review or not) responsible for a drift towards the more extreme and rare? Of course they are! It is by nature that these are what is attractive – there is a certain thrill to finding a “treasure” at your local beer store. I really do think it’s inevitable that this will always be the case – you can’t make the same product these days and just keep going on and on forever without change. If anything, our attention spans are shorter and shorter every generation – the pace of information has kept up with our desires. And the craft beer industry produces enough variety that no one person could ever try it all – which is part of the allure, draw and challenge of being a craft beer reviewer. The difference, perhaps, between some of the people who see this perspective and myself is that I do have faith that the palates of the consumers writing about or reviewing beer can tell the difference between novelty for the sake of novelty and the artistry and creativity brought about by craft brewers.

But back to the original thought….Is the dominance of high ABV, rare, and “extreme” things a negative influence on the beer industry? or will it all shake out in the end?

“Someone commented to me that the beer culture there was going through a “teenage” phase, where the obsession was with big, badass, high-octane beers, and he was personally looking forward to a time when people began to rediscover all good beer, regardless of its ABV. Personally, I look forward to the day when the BA’s top twenty-five list contains more than two dozen Imperial this and thats and represents a broader spectrum of great beers. I think that day is coming.” -Peter Egleston interviewed on The Full Pint

I think honestly there’s a healthy dose of both going on here. If we consider the extreme brews to be gourmet food, and the session beers to be comfort food, we can see a space for both to exist. Comfort food is simple, delicious and when made well, can be the perfect meal that’s just exactly what you needed. It also takes some skill to get it just right. But will the existence of a new high-priced gourmet restaurant next to the diner that makes the best grilled cheese sandwich you’ve ever consumed really have that much of an overall effect? I, for one, would hope that consumers should be smart enough to know where to go to get their desires met – whether that is at the counter of the diner down the street or at a private booth in the place with at 2-week wait for reservations.

As some of you know, there is a lot going on in my life. I have, essentially, five different jobs which is about to become six. I work a lot but I love what I do so I don’t mind at all. And as long as I’m not falling asleep at the wheel, then I’m happy to keep being busy all the time.

But then there are times where being busy really sucks. Like, the week leading up to Thanksgiving, for example. I wrote a post last week with the help of some great Hop Press’rs about beers to bring to Thanksgiving, but didn’t find the time to get to my favorite beverage purveyors before hitting the road for Connecticut to visit relatives. Thinking that I could find my carefully-thought out suggestions or find something like them in Connecticut when I arrived, I paid it no mind. I left early in the morning and stopped at the Stop and Shop around the corner from my Aunt’s house to get my last-minute beer purchases. When I found the beer aisle, I was very surprised to see a large, ugly, thick brown tarp covering the beer section. In peeling and faded vinyl letters it said, “NO BEER SALES SUNDAY OR AFTER 9PM.”

I looked down at my watch and noticed it was 11:30 am. On a Thursday. I thought, “Maybe I was trying to buy beer too early in the day and I’ll have to wait around until noon. That would kind of suck.”

I then asked a supermarket employee who responded gruffly. “No beer sales today. Blue laws. Can’t sell any beer at night. Or on Sundays,” I pondered this for a minute, reminding myself that it was the middle of the day on a Thursday until he said, “or holidays.”

Now, to back up for a moment, growing up in New York, I was familiar with the so called “Blue Laws” that restrict activities for religious or historical reasons. Originating (ironically) in Connecticut, these laws – especially concerning alcohol – took hold during prohibition across the country, but many have been completely repealed because of unconstitutionality. In my home state of New York, I remember not being able to buy beer before noon on Sundays, with the reasoning being that you should “be in church” on a Sunday morning instead of buying beer or drinking, so they restricted sales. As odd as that one is, I guess I can see the logic there. And is there really that much demand for anything on Sunday mornings? Most of the time I don’t get up until noon anyway!

But Connecticut, it seems, goes farther. The sales at night are supposedly to reduce drunk driving. Though that is a worthy goal, let us think about that for a moment. If you’re buying beer to consume at home (as most people are when they’re buying beer at a grocery store) then you’re not driving anywhere after consuming the alcohol, right? So personally, I’m not sure how the beer ban at night is helping the overall situation, but I welcome any state statistics if you can dig them up (I haven’t had any luck yet).

The part about this that was the most ridiculous, however, was the idea that selling alcohol on holidays is somehow wrong. I think this may come from the Puritan-esque misconception that all alcohol is 1) just for intoxication and/or 2) bad, morally wrong, or at the least a negative influence. Forget all of the benefits of pairing a glass of wine with dinner or dessert, or being able to actually enjoy good beer with turkey and all the trimmings. This confronts a fundamentally antiquated idea, and personally, I think it no longer fits in our American culture.

Blue Laws like these only serve to stifle the innovative, healthy and enjoyable things that alcohol can bring to a nice dinner, evening with friends, or otherwise. It also degrades some customs – such as bringing a bottle of wine to the host or hostess of a dinner party if the party falls on a state-sanctioned holiday.

While much of the blame for my beer-poor Thanksgiving does rest on my own shoulders for not planning ahead, imagine if craft beer enthusiasts, or even amateurs, read all of the wonderful ideas and wanted to try some pairing of their own? Well in Connecticut, at least, they’ve been cut off at the knees.

I asked a few of my Hop Press brethren to chime in about what they would bring to their family’s Thanksgiving celebration, and a little justification about why. I hope you enjoy our selections, and I invite you to share your own in the comments!

Mario Rubio

1. Shipyard Smashed Pumpkin – Shipyard is festive in flavor and color. The amber base goes well with the all-at-once style of a Thanksgiving dinner. Also, what’s a Thanksgiving dinner without a rolling buzz.

2. Saison Dupont – Dupont also goes well with a variety of foods but adds a bit more bright flavors and effervescence which help scrub and cleanse the palate.

3. Anchor Steam – Anchor Steam is a lager and the lighter body might suit some to accompany the belly busting meal. The hoppiness is bright and present but not overpowering, providing a balance to the meal.

Ilan Klages-Mundt

1. Ayinger Oktoberfest Marzen – Every year before the big meal, the air would be chilly, yet refreshing. As I didn’t want to eat anything before dinner, an Oktoberfest really hit the spot with its light, biscuit characters, almost like an appetizer before stuffing myself later.

2.3 Fonteinen Doesjel – I consider wine a nice drink with thanksgiving dinner, for its flavorful in small volumes. The perfect beer to takes its place is a strong lambic, or gueze. 3 Fonteinen Doesjel is a great brew, giving me satisfaction in flavor as well as accentuating the staple cranberries at many tables.

3. Anchor Old Foghorn Barleywine – After dinner, Anchor’s barleywine goes extraordinarily well with pumpkin pie. The pie has the spice while the beer has the toffee and caramel notes that balance ever so well together.

Ken Weaver

1. Drie Fonteinen Oude Geuze – For me, the epitome of nuanced, reasonably acidic gueuze. So much going on – lemons, funk, light oakiness, effervescent carbonation – and perfect as an aperitif.

2.Dupont Avril – A “table beer” from the brewers of Saison Dupont. 3.5% alcohol, lively green olive and herbal notes. This is a lighter-bodied saison that still leaves plenty of room for the main course.

3. New Glarus Wisconsin Belgian Red – I’m sort of an unabashed fan of most New Glarus offerings, and the fruitiness and mild tartness of Dan Carey’s fruit beers (see also: Raspberry Tart, Apple Ale, etc.) can serve the role of a liquid equivalent to cranberry sauce. At 4% alcohol with some residual sweetness, it also pairs well with a variety of dessert courses without overwhelming one’s palate.

Steve Koenemann

1. Victory Prima Pils – Like others, the pre-beer can’t make me too full or spoil my palate for one of my favorite meals of the entire year. This year I had picked up some Victory Prima Pils to start us off. Light enough to not be filling with only enough hops to make it interesting and not overwhelm…

2.Farnum Hill – Extra Dry Cider – For the meal… I am going to go a bit out of the box on this one. I have a couple of bottles of this… very dry and clean on the palate.

3. The post-beer is somewhat up in the air at the moment… only because I can’t decide which of a couple I might go with. It will likely be a “game day” decision as the football games after the main meal will take center stage versus the dessert. The choices will either be one of the Sierra Nevada 30th brews (I favor the Barleywine) or a Sierra Nevada Bigfoot… the combo of the meal and the ABV in either of these should ensure that I am peacefully snoring by halftime.

Carla Companion

1. Brooklyn Brewing Co. – Brooklyn Lager – After reading the other’s contributions I found that I liked the idea of a “pre-meal beer” so I have amended my list to include one. This has a nice clean finish and doesn’t weigh you down before a heavy meal ahed.

2.Allagash Curieux – This one has just enough complexity of flavor and spice to go well with a lot of the dishes on the table. And it’s a bit “out there” so it makes for good conversation.

3.Windmer Brothers – BRRRbonThis sweet, dark brew with a touch of bourbon (from barrel-aging) will be a great pairing with pumpkin pie – bringing some depth and richness to the spiciness. I wouldn’t pair it with Pecan pie, though, might just be far too sweet and take it over the edge.

Mark Dredge

1. Chimay Grande Reserve is a great beer for turkey – spice to match the extras on the plate with the meat and enough strength to not be killed by it.

2.Fuller’s ESB is another great choice. Full bodied, rich, fruity – nice.

3.Goose Island Sofie would be another. Dry and fruity, a little spicy and tart, easy drinking. Lighter than the other two choices I’ve put forward which might help with the huge pile of food on the table!

(Special thanks for weighing in even though the UK doesn’t celebrate Thanksgiving!)

Lisa Morrison

1. For appetizers and cheese plate before the meal: Upright Brewing’s Four or Cascade Brewing’s Apricot Ale (more widely available).

2. For the turkey and all the trimmings: Chimay Grand Reserve.

3. For dessert: Great Divide Yeti (such a favorite, our dog is named Yeti).

4. After dinner sipping: Mother of All Storms by Pelican Pub and Brewery. Just released. Oh. My. God. It’s soooo good!

Happy Thanksgiving from the Hop Press – safe travels!

So, I entered a contest sponsored by Beer Tap TV (www.beertaptv.com) that required a 30 second video describing why youshould be able to taste the End of History at the Beer Bloggers conference. At 2am, I put some makeup on, sat in front of my computer and made a joke about moose, and referenced some Monty Python. I entered, then started a three day quest to get anyone and everyone who knew me to vote in the contest. After exhausting campaigning, I was ahead of the other two entrants – (both women, interestingly) – but overnight the day before I left, Tamre from Girls Pint Out had me thoroughly whipped. I gave up and smiled when asked about it. It was fun, and it was fun just to have a chance and to see the outpouring of support from people who know me only online. And if I got just one person to laugh at the Monty Python jokes, that was enough.

After talking to the guys at Beer Tap TV at the conference itself, they were nice enough to offer me a taste after the filming of their show was over – if there was any left. Flattered and excited, I waited for the moment to come.  I watched the look on the faces of The Beer Wench, the Beer Tap TV guys and Tamre as they took their sips of the brew.

Pure pain, distain and, well, burning. I couldn’t hear too much else of their analysis, but by the time my opportunity to drink it came around, I was expecting paint thinner.

But, what I got was entirely different.

Imagine, if you will, a strong, strong IPA with lots of malt. So, something like a Dogfish Head 90 minute IPA or a Stone Ruination. Then, subtract a little hops but leave that extreme beer flavor… and follow it with a healthy serving of moonshine. When swirled in the glass, the legs were ridiculous – it acted like whiskey. Basically this beer started out as a beer, and you could still taste that is what it was, but ended as a too-warm-to-enjoy liquor. It finished with a burn, for sure, but it’s a beer through and through. And that’s the answer to the question that I’ve had on my mind since I heard about Brew Dog’s insane ventures… is it still a beer?

My only regret in this situation is that the beer wasn’t colder (Though I wouldn’t have wanted to see it put on ice or else there’d be quite a soggy stoat sitting on the table) but it was probably one of the most interesting things I’ve ever consumed.

A special thanks to Beer Tap TV and the organizers of The Beer Bloggers Conference for the fun opportunity.

I’d like to share with you my thoughts on a mini-controversy that arose during the Beer Bloggers Conference about women and beer. An invited panel was to discuss how to make women more welcomed into the craft beer world (as the segment of female craft beer drinkers rises) but brought up some touchy subjects that were offensive to some – mostly whether or not there were specific, non-sexist things that one should do to attract women to their blogs. I thought long and hard about what my take on the subject really was, and had long discussions with several bloggers at the event to try to clear my head about this. And I think this is what it boils down to for me: Personally, I don’t believe that women who drink beer need a separate place or radically different treatment in order to become embraced as an integral part of the beer community. Instead, I think it takes a little awareness of our own messages that we’re sending through what we bloggers write and how we design our blogs.

If you have a craft-beer focused website, and you are already targeting a certain demographic (i.e., men only or women only) and it is your goal to hit only that audience (think of the Spike TV or Lifetime channels) – then I am not really addressing this post to you. I also don’t think there’s anything necessarily wrong with that approach – it has its place, though you could always reach more if not limited to only one demographic. Knowing and targeting a specific audience and going after it is one strategy to grow your blog, but there are others that are more inclusive of the entire craft beer lover’s spectrum.

However, I think most of the bloggers in the room at the Beer Bloggers Conference were in a situation in which their site happens to have an audience that is skewed towards men, but they *do* want to reach a larger segment of the craft beer drinkers online which includes women (which I think was the original intent of the topic). If that’s the case then it should be something that’s in bloggers minds they develop strategies for reaching broader audiences. The panel attempted to give us their “to dos and don’ts” but several of us found some of them to be oversimplified, based on existing stereotypes or encouraged bloggers to make it the fist focus of everything that the site is about.

Without commenting on the specific examples discussed in the panel, I want to step back to say that there are things you can do, but they don’t have to consume your life trying to get inside of the heads of female beer drinkers. These are, hopefully, simple and un-sexist (but I welcome your feedback on them).

1. Don’t support the objectification of women on your site if you want women to read your site.

Here’s how I look at it. It isn’t about making the content more accessible but I would say, for lack of a better turn of phrase, make your site “less repelling.” Inevitably, women will come to your site if they’re looking for craft beer content – there is certainly a growing interest, and it is ultimately the content of your site that will bring people to it in the first place. The trick is, how do you keep from turning new visitors off from your content once they get there? If a woman came to a site looking for beer reviews, and then see something that looks like Maxim’s advertisements and has lots of big-breasted women pouring beer (instead of drinking beer) everywhere then they will know that the site is “not for them.” It is usually as obvious as that. That doesn’t mean your site has to be adorned with puppies and wallpaper, but maybe it just has to be given a “respect makeover” to demonstrate your support of your entire audience. [See Ashley's great post on rejecting the objectification of women.]

As a site note, images are not the only culprit. Sexism can be in the language you use as well (not that your blog has to be squeaky clean – we all have our own voices) but to avoid perpetuating negative stereotypes is always good practice for engaging broader audiences. So, it’s fundamentally just being conscious about what might drive readers away and trying not to perpetuate those misleading stereotypes.

2. If you do guest posts, don’t choose only men (or people just like you).

I want you to notice how I wrote that. What I mean (and this is about race, location, etc. in addition to gender) is – don’t limit yourself to picking people who are just like you. Diversity of opinion, experience, age, location, gender will only add more interesting perspective to the collection of voices on the web. However, I think it’s going too far to suggest a dedicated “affirmative action” type stance on this where you invite a woman in on a periodic basis for her “female” perspective, because it is difficult to speak for your entire gender (as we witnessed Saturday) and makes many people uncomfortable to know that was the main/only reason they were invited to participate. If I get asked to do a guest post or be interviewed, I want it to be because you like what I have to say, not because I can tell you what women would think.

Now, on a broader level, I think that there are still a lot of misunderstandings about women, and overgeneralization, especially about their preferences as craft beer drinkers, blog writers and readers. Frankly, little has been studied or analyzed about some of these trends, and breweries who think they have “marketing to women” figured out (see what Coors is trying). are usually grasping at straws. But I will say this. The craft beer industry HAS done a lot to breakdown the “women pour beer for men” image, but we have a long way to go before its normal for everyone to think of craft beer folks as just people. But if we look at “I am a craft beer drinker” or even “I am a craft brewer” videos we can see progress. Even Beer Wars features women who love beer prominently. There is a breakdown of that perception coming, but we have to work a little to embrace that goal as a community.

If you want to support women, allow them to be people.

Thanks. I welcome any comments on this as I want to keep the discussion going.

To read a review of most of the pairings I sampled, you can check out my regular Beer Review blog (www.thebeerbabe.com) but here I will share the highlights, and some observations about the event.

From NHPTV Passport – a Craft Beer & Culinary World Tour

Strawberry Banke is a beautiful place, and what better place to have people stroll around and go from tent to tent, sampling delicious cuisine. Held later in the year this year, there were significantly fewer bugs (I remember getting quite a few mosquito bites last year) and was a warm fall evening. This year’s event included a VIP event beforehand – last year VIPs got in an hour early but sampled the same food/beer as non-VIPs. This year, Smuttynose went all out to provide vintage/aged Smuttynose beers to sample, and had some additional delicious bits to accompany them, served on the back deck and gardens of “Mombo” restaurant.

I have to admit that my first taste of a 2007 Barleywine was heaven – I was very pleased at its mellow warmth and its intoxicating sweetness. After that it only got better – with the 2008 Smuttynose Baltic Porter and Smuttonator (dopplebock) topping my list. The pouring was in a small back room that was half outside, with a garden to wander around in. I think they could have improved flow by bringing the pouring stations to outside, but there were probably logistical reasons why this wasn’t a possibility. If you could get through the bottleneck of the lines (which weren’t too bad) then you could easily sample all the brews – if you wanted to. The high ABVs gave me pause and I decided not to try all of them – but I did try all the appetizers. My favorite was duck on a crispy fried wonton, followed closely by venison tartar with goat cheese (just melted in your mouth). After meeting a few cool people during this VIP event, we were “released” into the grounds of Strawberry Banke.

From NHPTV Passport – a Craft Beer & Culinary World Tour

The Banke was arranged as last year – with spread out tasting places around the grounds. A notable absence, however, were the multitude of period actors that usually grace the ground – these were a whimsical and pleasant presence last year and I was sad to see them gone. The cooper – who actually provided a barrel for aging a Moat Mountain beer – was around and talking about his craft, but the “pub owner” that gave the history of NH breweries was not.

The premise of last year’s Passport event was to feature the best of NH and some southern Maine breweries and I was impressed with the local flare – Moat Mountain, Tuckermans, the Portsmouth Brewery – but there were (still) some conspicuous absences. And the weirdest in the lineup? There was a sole ceviche paired with a great wheat beer… from Colorado. Newly distributing to NH, the Boulder Brewing company somehow snuck its Sweaty Betty into the mix. I’m not sure how I feel about that. Sure we could have the “ultimate pairings” from any number of breweries – but I’m a little bit sad to take the focus away at all from local brews. And there are plenty more to choose from. What about Martha’s Exchange? White Birch Brewing? Maybe Red Hook could have brought something special outside of their regular line… I’m a little worried that eventually the shift may go too far away from local – and that’s something that could ruin what makes this event special.

What was a nice addition was the “Meet the Brewers” section in which several brewers got to answer questions about their philosophies on beer. I listened for a while to Peter Eggleston talking about how he was inspired by homebrewers like Charlie Papazain, and how beer can be a great vehicle for dialogue. I couldn’t agree more.

All and all it was a terrific event – a delightful showcase of the best the culinary world had to offer. RiRa’s restaurant provided the food for my favorite pairing – an apple curry eggroll paired with Allagash Curieux. I definitely forgot how much I like the Curieux… but paired with apples and curry it just had a perfect fall feeling to it. Another great one was the Smuttynose Farmhouse Ale paired with a fried oyster – it was breaded w/cornmeal and still tasted briny and fresh – not over-friend and tasting like everything else in the fryer. Very nice.

From NHPTV Passport – a Craft Beer & Culinary World Tour

As the evening wore down I tried some absolutely delicious things and stopped to consider the evening. I got stopped several times by people that I knew or who knew me (thanks for saying hi, Todd!). The grounds were beautiful and it was an unseasonably warm night. A bonfire was another pleasant addition to end the evening. In all, I’d recommend this event to anyone – and I applaud Strawberry Banke/NHPTV for giving it another attempt this year. I hope that events such as this can be staples in the local beer/restaurant culture – it gives us a chance to discover quite a lot.

LIBA Craft Beer Tweetup

For those not using twitter, it may be hard to imagine what on earth beer lovers would use twitter for. After all, who wants to hear a bunch of people talking about what they’re drinking – oh, wait – we do. Its the virtual equivalent of meeting people in line at a beer festival, or sitting down at the bar. I can ask them what they’re drinking, their opinion, or just sit and listen to what everyone seems to be talking about.

I connect on twitter to a lot of people – craft beer enthusiasts, beer bloggers, and brewers themselves. Everyone wants to hear what the newest buzz is – and twitter is a great snapshot into a moment of global time. Similar to asking for a recommendation as to what to drink from friends, twitter is full of opinion-givers, recommenders, and generally inquisitive folks. Not using twitter? Try it out. It’s a lot of fun to be on the edge of what’s going on in the beer world.

At the #beerup, I got to meet a few people I’ve known online for some time (including Josh from Lost in the Beer Aisle) and reunited with a few that I run into from time to time. The most fun, though, was meeting new people – including someone opening a brewery soon in Massachusetts (awesome to get the “scoop” on that!). While I admit I am not the most socially forward person in the world – this was fun. A room full of geeks drinking beer, talking beer, and generally sharing waht’s new with them. I would definitely attend another one. Maybe not being able to go to GABF worked out in my favor after all.

(a nice slideshow of pics from the event is available on Josh’s site here:
http://www.lostinthebeeraisle.com/2010/09/boston-craft-beer-tweetup-fall-2010.html