Brookston Beer Bulletin

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Join Me On A Brannigan & Get Bibesy?

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beer-word
I stumbled onto yet another list of old words, this group on the Matador Network. 20 obsolete English words that should make a comeback includes some pretty cool words, like Scriptitation, which I think I engage in every single day. Scriptitation is “[a] 17th-century word meaning ‘continual writing'” But two in particular caught my eye as beer-related.

Brannigan

Noun – “A drinking bout; a spree or ‘binge’” – Brannigan was originally a North American slang word, but it is now rarely used. “Shall we go for a brannigan on Friday?” can be a more sophisticated way to discuss such activities.

I can’t imagine the root of that, unless of course there was some gut named Brannigan who was well-known for binge drinking.

Bibesy

Noun – “A too earnest desire after drink.” – “Bibesy” may have been completely made up in the 18th century and it’s unclear whether it ever made it into common use, but it could easily be used today: “Wedding guests waited anxiously for the bar to open; bibesy should be expected after such a long, dull service.”

Not sure about that one either, but there were a few other gems, too. “Twitter-light,” for example, once meant “a romantic way to refer to the hours as the sun goes down,” but I suspect would have a completely different meaning. Then there’s something I’m often accused of: Perissology. “Perissology” means the “Use of more words than are necessary; redundancy or superfluity of expression.” I completely disagree and will write a short, 10,000-word rebuttal on why it’s not true.

I’m not sure I’d vote for either of these beer words to make a comeback, but it’s always fun to find them.

Beer In Ads #819: Gourmet Sh

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Friday’s ad is for Miller High Life, from 1955. I know this type of minimalist design was popular then, but it looks like a fake store set used by a high school play, not a national ad campaign. While I was born in the 50s, barely, I didn’t have to live through it, but it seems like a very odd decade. People dressed up to do everything. And the only thing that looks gourmet about tat shop is the name. I do like the tagline though; “Quality is always in good taste.” Too bad the second part of that doesn’t ring as true.

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Happy International Women’s Day

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As you may be aware, today is International Women’s Day, and although I’m up to my eyeballs in work, I do want to pause and celebrate the many, many women in beer. Time was, beer was an all-boys club, and to a certain few it still is, but I couldn’t be happier to see an ever-increasing number of women attending beer events, writing about it and brewing it. There was a time when brewsters made almost all of the beer, but then men grabbed the reigns and kicked women to the curb. I, for one, think beer was all the poorer for that decision, but then it happened centuries before I had any say in the matter.

Because I don’t want to leave anybody out, I’m not going to even try to list all of the wonderful people I’ve met over the years I’ve been writing about beer who just happen to have been born female. To them, today and really on every day, I raise a toast to you.

Although I’m not naming names, here are a few others who have, and some organizations, too, that are also worth singling out. It’s not complete, of course, and I’m confident there are others I’m forgetting, but suffice it to say I mean to include everyone. To all of you, thanks for what you do, and making the world of beer a better place to work, to play and to enjoy life.

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The Pink Boots Society, founded by Teri Fahrendorf, “created to empower women beer professionals to advance their careers in the Beer Industry through Education.” Today there are nearly 900 members for all facets of the beer industry.

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Barley’s Angels, co-founded (I think) by Lisa Morrison in Portland, Oregon. “Barley’s Angels is a growing collection of individual chapters around the world that work with craft beer focused breweries, brewpubs, restaurants, alehouses and other public beer establishments to advance the female consumer craft beer enthusiast, resulting in increased patronage and revenue from women, while encouraging education and interest in beer among this often under-recognized demographic group.” There are currently 25 chapters in 18 states, plus 12 international chapters in five countries.

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Women Enjoying Beer, started by Ginger Johnson. “Women Enjoying Beer develops and serves the female beer enthusiast. We’re the only organization anywhere doing as much, from the consumer vantage point, to benefit the craft/beer industry.”

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Finding Balance In The Next Session

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For our 74th Session, our host is Bryan Roth, who writes This Is Why I’m Drunk. His topic is about finding balance in life, recognizing that however passionate or obsessed any of us are about our beer, life is more than just beer. Or as Bryan says it. “Beer is more than the alcohol that goes into it – it’s the passion, history and community. Beer is also just one of many interests I have in my life, whether it’s exercise, continuing my education or keeping tabs on how social media impacts society. Beer doesn’t define me, even if it may be something I can ramble on about for hours and hours. These are all things I love spending my time on, but what about you?” So here’s his invitation to I’m Having a Party and You’re Invited: “The Session” for April 2013:

April’s topic is “Finding Beer Balance.” It’s a discussion I hope will offer a variety of responses as people consider their interests outside of finding the perfect pint.

Is beer your vice? Is beer your reward? Does beer really have to be either? Do you find lifestyle balance through work, hobbies, family or maybe even “Dry Days” like David Bascombe? There are a variety of ways to find balance.

These questions are simply a jumping-off point. No matter what your answer, I’d love for you to join us in April. Here’s how to participate:

Think of a response to post on your blog. Or just leave a response in the comment section – no blog (or blogging experience) necessary.
Post your response on “Finding Beer Balance” on April 5.
Come back to this post and leave a comment with a link to your response.
It’s that easy.

So on Friday, April 5, take a moment to reflect on the other things in your life that are important to you, and how you balance those with your love of great beer. C’mon grasshopper, give us your zen wisdom; a few koans for the pub. What is the sound of one hand drinking a beer? Let us know with your Session post on the first Friday in April.

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Q&A With Ken Grossman

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This is a fun little video, apparently Sierra Nevada “[t]hrough Facebook and Twitter recently invited anyone who had a question for Ken Grossman to toss it our way. He combed through them and had fun answering a few in this video, and he typed up several others at” their blog, in a post entitled Your Questions for Ken Answered. Enjoy. [Note: For some reasons the graphics with the questions are displaying right now, but hopefully that will be fixed soon, but the answers are still there. For now, you can play Jeopardy.]