The Once and Future Brew Master: A Brief History of Me and Beer

I have a confession to make: I actually don't know that much about beer. Hmm... did that just destroy my credibility? I hope not.

If you were to ask me "hey Sarah, what is your favorite beer?" I would just be like "uhh... Blue Moon?" and walk away feeling like a loser. This is shameful, I know. But for some reason, I am just not the most educated person when it comes to beer. Of course I like to drink beer and I think it tastes good. But one of the main reasons I'm starting to brew my own beer at home is so that I can learn more about it and distinguish different tastes. What is the difference between a stout, a lager, an ale? No clue. But I'm about to find out!

To give you some context, let's review the history of me & beer over the past few years and what I've learned:

1. English Pubs. I turned 21 the summer before my senior year of college. This was convenient because in the fall semester of my senior year I went to study abroad at Oxford University in England. Even though the drinking age was 18 in the UK, it helped that I was of legal age in the USA so that I could drink with my American peers and professors over there without any qualms. Lesson learned: we naturally spent a good amount of time in pubs while at Oxford, and it was here that I first learned to really appreciate the social aspect of a pint of beer over conversation with friends.

At the Eagle and Child in Oxford, circa 2007. Stalking CS Lewis.

2. The Hofbräuhaus. After the semester at Oxford was over, my friend and I toured around Germany and Austria before heading back home. One of the highlights was stopping by the famous Hofbräuhaus in Munich to enjoy some beer and pretzels! We were only in Munich for a short period of time before heading to Salzburg, so we squeezed in this visit at like 11:00am during a weekday... Nevertheless, the place was hoppin' and I felt very cool being there. Lesson learned: there is a lot of history behind brewing beer.

awful picture, but pretty historical moment in Munich, circa 2007

3. Beer Madness. In the spring semester of my senior year, I applied to be a judge in the Washington Post's second annual Beer Madness Tournament. All that the application required was an email containing a one sentence description of yourself as to why you would be a good judge SHOCKINGLY ENOUGH, I was chosen for this little gem:

"Previously dry college senior turns 21, leaves the country for one semester to study abroad and discovers the joys of drinking beer in English pubs!"

I was THE youngest, barely-legal-judge there. It was a lot of fun! We tasted 32 different beers and through a March Madness like bracket, chose the best one: Hook & Ladder Backdraft Brown. I can honestly say that I have no recollection as to what this even tasted like. Lesson learned: compared to the other judges, I know very little about beer. But I did get this fantastic picture of me double-fistin' it:

At the Washington Post's Beer Madness in 2008. This picture is so ridiculous.

4. Rotterdam, Cologne & Reykjavik. Every time I go to Europe, my interest in beer and the history of brewing is rekindled. Everything is just so much older over in Europe, including the recipes for beer! In Cologne, I first discovered Kölsch, the amazingly delightful beer with a strong history connected to that region of Germany. I drank Dutch beer in Rotterdam and I drank Icelandic beer in Reykjavik. Lessons learned: different regions of the world produce vastly different kinds of beer with their own little histories to them.