Brookston Beer Bulletin

Jay R. Brooks on Beer

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Next Session Asks “Why Do You Drink?”

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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?

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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.

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Beer In Ads #1104: The World’s Largest Selling Beer In Small Bottles

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Sunday’s ad is for Goebel Beer, from 1948. Sold in “the Bantam bottle,” which I assume was 7 or 8 ounces, I think you’d have to sell a lot more bottles of your beer just to equal what your competitor was selling in the larger 12-oz. bottles. Whatever the case, “The world’s largest selling beer in small bottles” seems like a dubious distinction, and one that doesn’t seem likely to sway consumers. I’d be asking myself “what’s wrong with their beer if they’re advertising is concentrating on the small size of their bottles?”

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Beer In Film #47: Orval — Beer Force One

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Today’s beer video, is a short love letter to Orval, a beer which I drank quite a lot of over the past week in Belgium, including a few glasses at the brewery cafe. The name of the video comes from the music used, which is taken from the soundtrack to the Harrison Ford movie Air Force One, and was written by Jerry Goldsmith.

Beer In Ads #1103: Glasses And Cans

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Saturday’s ad is for Schlitz, from 1959. Showing a couple on a mountain lake, maybe on a boat, they certainly look like like they’re in a remote spot. The brought cans of Schlitz with them, since it’s best not to have glass on a boat, but then they brought glasses to pour the beer into. What’s that all about?

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