Beer
When I was in High School, I didn’t drink. Save the occasional sampling at a family party or late at night with friends, I didn’t have the stomach for alcohol. Even when I made it to college, drinking wasn’t a part of my everyday life. It wasn’t until I was about 20 that I started drinking on a semi-regular basis.
I started with beer; it is universal and accessible when in college. I did not care for it. That hoppy taste just didn’t sit well with me. I, like many new drinkers, just couldn’t understand why people drank this crap all the time. I feel the same way about coffee, gross.
So when I was in college, I leaned more toward vodka and whiskey, any mixed drink suited me more. Over the years though, I have come to appreciate the process and styling of beer. My father is a beer guy, so much so that I took him to get a pint of beer tattooed on his arm! He has taught me that not all beer is the same, and that there are indeed subtle differences in the flavors that each style of beer exhibits. These flavors are achieved through changes in the hops and barley that are added to the beer during the cooking process.
Fast forward to today, I consider myself a beer novice still, but I understand more, like what makes a pilsner different from a lager or a porter. I have opened my eyes to micro-brewing and seek out strange and interesting batches of beer from all sorts of origins. I go to beer tastings and festivals when I can. I have fallen in deep love and respect for Boulevard Beer Company, the local star of breweries.
So with that being said, I think I am ready to make the move into home brewing. My dad has been home brewing for several years, but has yet to transition from extract to full grain brewing. I hope that with my help we will be able to create something fun and exciting that we can share with friends and family sometime soon.
I am very much looking forward to the process of making a Cahill original beer. I think it will help me to appreciate even more what it means to order a beer.
