I
brew beer.
I brew beer so my kitchen smells like wort. The steeping blend of grains and hops produces an aroma almost as intoxicating as the inevitable alcoholic result. I think my neighbors are onto me; they always seem to find reasons to drop by on brewing days. If the kitchen is the heart of the home, the brew kitchen must be the soul.
I brew beer to study history. The oldest known written recipe is for beer. Brewing has been proposed as the motivation for civilization. I certainly feel more civilized when brewing beer. Once known as a chore done by women, men and women alike now relish the pleasant brewing tasks that soothe the mind and ease the spirit. There was once even a time when drinking beer was safer than drinking water. I’ll bet it was more fun, too.
I brew beer to dabble in the sciences of math, chemistry, and zymurgy. Each detail affects the outcome. Each logical step is critical to the flavors, smells, color, and texture of the beer. Strategic combinations of ingredients dictate the styles of beer which fall under the headings of “ales” and “lagers.”
I brew beer to break the rules. While German culture celebrates the exactitude of beer brewing with Reinheitsgebot, other cultures such as Belgian – and certainly American – enjoy the freedom to venture into new, creative frontiers. I love to add things like rye, wheat, fruit, pumpkins, root vegetables, spices, and even corn and rice, to my beer. If you can think of anything else that might be good in beer… let me know!
I brew beer with my friends. The collaborate effort that goes into concocting a batch of homebrew naturally leads to happy memories, inside jokes, and sometimes, communal baths – if you’ve ever lost the seal on your faucet-mounted carboy sprayer, you know what I mean. And the resulting keg of beer earns me the adulation of even more friends, family, neighbors, and random strangers.
I brew beer. But most importantly, I drink the beer I brew.