Aiii, It's Hopzilla!

Last week, A few friends and I ventured to the Extreme Beerfest in Boston. Despite having a stupid and uncreative name for what should be a celebration in creativity, the Extreme Beerfest is a expo where breweries get to parade their most recent experiments.

What is a beer experiment? To explain this, I need to first explain what it isnt. Most beer is the light, refreshing kind that isn't bad on a hot day. If comparing it to food, this type of beer is the chips and salsa that any Mexican restaurant serves before dinner. It is fine, you know what to expect, and will hold till your real food arrives. Then there is the craft beers. They are refreshing, enjoy developing specific styles while packing in some great flavor. This type would compare to poblano pork Sopes with crema fresca. It has some serious flavor and a clear tie to it's heritage. Lastly, there are the experiments. These beers bend, break, and demolish styles while punching you in the face and kicking you in the junk with flavor. Going back the mexcian food analogy, it is like charred Habanero pepper marmalade spread on a buttery, corn and chorizo scone. Sounds great, right? Yes, but with limits.

The Beerfest (I have left out Extreme cause it irritates me so) was like three hours of stuffing that habanero marmalade and chorizo goodness down my gullet. The idea sounds magical, but the problem with the event was that after a few samples, I could no longer make any balanced opinions because my taste buds were rebelling. I even went back towards the end of the event and re-tried one of my more favorite beers (a double IPA from Ithica) and I could not taste any of the qualities that I had loved.

I am sure that you, my dear reader, is saying to yourself, "Well, no shit!". But I think this brings up a good point. Besides just tooling around in the brew shack, what is the point of these beers? If you can't go to the pub, order a pint and truly enjoy it, then why experiment?

I believe that we are at an interesting point in beer's history. American breweries are being inventive with everything from ingredients to methods of brewing because they are not bound by traditions like the German's Reinheitsgebot. They also have a crowd of people, like myself, that want more quality beer on the market and are willing to experiment and develop their tastes. This environment spawns the experimental beer, but in order for these new beers to work, I believe we need to be willing to experiment with new ways of enjoying these new beers.

Wine has been experimented with for centuries. We have red, rose, white, desert, sherry and thousands of variations with in each class. You do not pour yourself a big glass of sherry. Like wise, why is it that pubs that serve these monsters try to offer you a pint or even a half pint of some of these beers. I wonder if there is too much testosterone among beer drinkers? People love to chat about how they just tried some overly hopped beer. Who cares? Whoopdidoo! You were able to slug down a pint of a double imperial smoked poter. Cool, but did you enjoy it? Could you notice the malt complexities or the hoppy finish towards the bottom of the glass? I doubt it cause these beers by their sheer design, will eventually overpower your tongue.

I believe that we, as beer consumers, need to stop treating these monsters like beer and treat them like what they really are. They are the sippers. The little glass'd beer that kicks you in the junk (or junkette) every time you bring the glass to you lips. And if you are worried about strolling up to the bar and coming back with a teeeny-tiny glass of beer. FAGAETABOUTIT! You don't think those guys that sip a small glass of fine scotch whiskey are pussies, so why are you when you do the same with some serious beer?

Oh and one of my favorite beers from the fest? Dogfish Head's Festina Peche, a peach flavored champagne-like wit ale! Perfect for summer, now only if summer were here now!

p.s. - I would like to dedicate my first post, posted on President's day, to Jimmy Carter. Thanks for the Homebrew, President Carter!