Tasting Sessions
I love leading tasting sessions, but do people actually want to know about cryo hops and malt varieties?
At school, the very act of standing in front of the class to give a talk was enough to make me faint. I wasn’t a shy child as such, I just didn’t like that much undivided attention on me—it turned out that despite playing multiple instruments and being a bit of a show off, I had, and still get, major stage fright. I remember standing on the school stage with some of my closest friends to play bass in our joke band and being so utterly overwhelmed by the crowd of literally tens of fellow pupils, the guitarist just turned my amp right down mid song and walked me to the side of the stage slightly behind the curtain. So much for my career as a nu-metal postergirl.
I was always told that preparation was the difference between giving a great talk and absolutely chumping it, but in my experience the only thing that has helped me to overcome the violent shakes and excessive sweating is having years of nerdy research behind me that just so happens to be on the topic I’m talking about. Confidence in my abilities and knowledge is the only thing left when I’m talking in front of people, the rest of my soul seems to leave my body for the entire duration, and that confidence has taken years to build.
Unlikely as it is, I really enjoy running beer tasting sessions. I love the playfulness of getting attendees to try something new and to describe what they taste and smell and understand what it is that they are tasting, and why. Being able to let my nerdy side loose appeals to the side of me that might have been a teacher, using pages and pages of book learning to build a picture of what exactly makes a beer taste the way it does, and enjoying the looks of understanding when my cohort realise there is more to beer than their usual two options on the bar—lager or Guinness.
I worry sometimes I go too far. Does the average drinker care about cryo hops? Are my enthusiastic sermons about malt turning people off? I think about what I want from a beer tasting—to learn about who made it, and how, and why—and I hope that other people want to know the same thing. But honestly, am I mostly talking gibberish to a room full of people who would rather just drink and enjoy?
It’s my opinion that all things are more enjoyable if you know a little about them. For example, I’ve gotten really into the Euros these past couple of weeks because I’ve bothered this time around to listen to the commentators and learn about the rules and idiosyncrasies of the game. I did the same for cycling, and the same with wine. I love to learn, it’s my favourite hobby besides thinking about things (honestly, sitting and thinking about something knotty really is one of my favourite activities ever) and I guess I hope that in my tasting sessions I transfer a bit of that passion for knowledge. I know that beer is, at it’s soul, a simple drink for everyone to enjoy. But when it comes to the details, that’s when it all lights up for me, and I wonder how many people really are interested in the processes and ingredients but were just too afraid to ask—because it’s “just beer”. I truly think there’s a wall between the beer world and the average drinker, built by lack of info but conversely, by a vast, impenetrable-seeming pile of details. That’s why I like running tasting sessions. It feels in that moment like I’m knocking that wall down.
Other Stuff
I came across a traveldoc series by American clothing company Huckberry focusing on food, culture, sports, and local skills. I think you’ll like it.
Rachel Hendry on wine and optimism, champagne and status
Pellicle’s first published work of fiction, by Matthew Curtis
My Stuff
I wrote about tomatoes earlier in the week
My story about The Swan With Two Necks is being published in two weeks
I’ve re-joined the Guild of Beer Writers
I’m working on a print zine for Pellicle
If you’re a Substack user, make sure you download the app, the notes section on it is actually great
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