Friday’s ad is another one for Budweiser, this one from 1969. Showing a stubbie bottle of Budweiser bookended by a pair of actual Clydesdales bookends. My daughter would love those. As to whether “reading” the label makes the beer better and helps you “appreciate” it more, I’m not terribly convinced.
Today’s beer video is a cute little film showing the 10 Biggest Beer Drinking Countries, produced by All Time 10s. I’m not sure where their exact data comes from, but it’s the usual suspects that make the list.
Thursday’s ad is for Budweiser, from 1958. It’s seedy, steamy setting of seduction. A sultry, well-made up, siren lies on a shag carpet, cigarette in hand, its smoke wafting into the air. Using an LP (remember those, kiddies?) for a pillow, she glances up to see a bottle of beer being poured into a glass for her. She’s apparently hallucinating, too, as a jazz band can be seen floating in the air just above the radio/stereo system behind her head. Does that mean she’s had quite enough to drink already, despite being poured another? Frankly, I think she looks a bit too much like Agnes Moorehead from her later years, circa “Endora” from Bewitched.
The 2014 semifinalist nominations for the James Beard Awards were announced yesterday, and the good news is there are quite a few beer professionals among the nominees for “Outstanding Wine, Spirits, or Beer Professional.” If you’re not familiar with the prestigious food awards, here’s how the James Beard Foundation describe their annual awards. “Covering all aspects of the industry — from chefs and restaurateurs to cookbook authors and food journalists to restaurant designers and architects and more — the Beard Awards are the highest honor for food and beverage professionals working in North America.” Until very recently, the awards were almost exclusively food and wine-centric, but more recently “beverage professionals” has slowly been expanding to include craft beer and spirits, too. It’s been nice to see the prejudice against beer in the food, cooking and restaurant world finally beginning to slide away. Too slowly, perhaps, but still … it’s about time and nice to see.
The list released yesterday is the semifinalists. On March 19, a smaller list of finalists will be announced from among the semifinalists and the award winners will be announced over two days in early May. In the category “Outstanding Wine, Spirits, or Beer Professional,” seven of the twenty semifinalists work in the beer world. Hopefully, they’ll all make the cut next month.
Congratulations to all the semifinalists. It’s a great list, all deserving, though I’m especially pleased to see Tom Peters, who I just traveled to Belgium with last week, along with Don Feinberg and Wendy Littlefield, who I had dinner with in Ghent last week, make the list.
Wednesday’s ad is another one for Rheingold Beer, again from 1958, featuring Miss Rheingold from that year, Madelyn Darrow. In this one she decked out in a Western outfit, just arriving somewhere after a long journey by stagecoach. At least there are a couple of cases of beer on the roof, though they’ll probably need to be cooled down for a while after a long ride through the west.
Today’s beer video is a fun little PSA created by Dogfish Head. It’s called Now that’s a lot of hops! and stars Dogfish Head founder Sam Calagione and actor Ken Marino showing why you shouldn’t drink and drive.
Tuesday’s ad is for Rheingold Beer, this one from 1958, featuring Miss Rheingold from that year, Madelyn Darrow. Wearing a very wide skirt, she’s salting the first batch of popcorn. Her paramour is making a second batch over the fireplace. At least she has a beer at the end of her skirt, unlike so many of these ads.
For our 85th Session, our host is Douglas Smiley from Baltimore Bistros & Beers. For his topic, he’s chosen Why Do You Drink?, asking you to give the reasons why you drink, that is why beer is good, as far as you’re concerned.
There are plenty of people out there who wish that alcohol consumption ceased to take place and would be happy for prohibition to rear it’s ugly head once again. Others, while not looking to ban alcohol altogether, are quick to judge those of us who drink more than what they would consider a proper amount. As I get older, I’ve lost the urge to defend my life decisions, but there was a time when judgment about the liquids I chose to put in my mouth made me feel self-conscious.
And that’s where my idea for this month’s Session topic came from. It’s easy to find article after article on the internet telling us that alcohol is bad. As beer bloggers it’s safe to say we all disagree. Let’s take the opportunity as a group to tell people why we do drink and how it improves our life for the better. I know the default answer a lot of us fall back on is “it’s nice to sit back with a good beer after a stressful day of work”, and while that’s true, I’m looking for answers that aren’t so obvious to people who aren’t fans of our hobby. Beer is bigger than a liquid “chill pill” or we wouldn’t have gone about setting up a blog and dedicating so much of our time discussing it. So, what is it that compels you to drink and what would your life be missing if beer was no longer an option for you?
So Why Do You Drink? Do you know? Is there one reason? Or several? You may want to open a beer to help you answer this one. I find that helps. And let us know, on Friday March 7.
Today’s beer video is a fun little science video from the YouTube series The Sci Show. This one is entitled Why Does Beer Make You Pee? and goes well beyond the obvious “because it’s mostly water.”
Monday’s ad is another one for Goebel Beer, this one from 1949. This ad shows a scene at a mill by a stream, with (I think) a painted glass of beer in the foreground.
