“Anyway, I hope you get this man. Hit me back, just to chat, truly yours, your biggest fan, this is Stan”
The
best thing about being an irregular pub regular is the relationship you build
up with the staff that work in your favourite establishments. Hanging around
the bar constantly has brought me friends, not just when they are behind the bar, but away
from their work and mine. Some have moved on to ventures new. Some I am lucky
enough to see under circumstances other than exchanging pints. But mostly
it has brought me to new friends that I have found common ground with over a
few pre-match beers.
One
such friend did his time working "hard" behind the bar whilst
spending his free time learning from other breweries how to brew a bloody good
beverage. Some led to the initial runs and collaborations under his initial
gypsy brewery guise. Since then this has led to much bigger and internationally
recognised brewing accolades.
And to think I knew him when he was that guy in the pub with whom I share a passion
for the same football team.
Suddenly he’s a celebrity. Suddenly after-match pints were interrupted by those looking for tips on how to start a brewery themselves or those simply looking for an opportunity to praise a brewer on their beer. Drinks with a friend were stalled against the beer equivalent of autographs and screaming selfies.
Suddenly he’s a celebrity. Suddenly after-match pints were interrupted by those looking for tips on how to start a brewery themselves or those simply looking for an opportunity to praise a brewer on their beer. Drinks with a friend were stalled against the beer equivalent of autographs and screaming selfies.
There
are beer Stans now.
Though
they never asked for the attention it must be incredibly fulfilling to have
your work praised by strangers in the pub. Still, there are continuing elements
that must be draining. Like running a social media account where people feel
the need to unnecessarily tag you in every comment they make regarding your
beer. Or even worse, where people don’t tag the offending brewery, but the
brewer’s personal profile themselves, in order to really garner attention.
“I’m
loving this beer by @BrewTeamDave. Not the @BrewTeam – just @BrewTeamDave. Fuck
the rest of you. And also fuck you Dave if you are having a private night away
from work.”
Social
media presence became a key and necessary part of brewery life, though some
clearly didn’t want it. I can recall a tweet from a brewery three or four
years ago (I'm 95% sure was Partizan Brewing) sardonically stating [something along the lines of:] "Somebody
enjoyed our beer and felt the need to tell us on Twitter... what a
novelty." Such cynicism seemed unnecessary at the time, yet it was the
sign of somebody who had grown tired of the thousands of Untappd check-ins or
standard messages like Enjoying a @partizanbrewing Pale in
such a Hop Hole. They didn't think they'd signed up to the attention element or the fanboys.
I
was thinking about fans of Taylor Swift (Swifties) wondering whether the
behaviour of the die hards was regular. They like every Instagram post our hero
posts; wait on them with baited breath. They follow their every post on social
media with notifications turned on. They are the first to share any new post
with the rest of the world. They want to be recognised as the ones that broke
the news to the others. They make sure they are the first to try the new
material from their hero and the first to review it. And that review is almost
universally positive regardless of the content, even when unpalatable
collaborations with others exist (I’m looking at you Zayn Malik.)
Swifties. Stans. Beer Geeks.
So
it is that I bought a kitten, who after many suggestions gained her beautiful
name to go with her beautiful face. It also happens to be the name of my
favourite UK beer at present. The name was by somebody else’s recommendation
but still… it stuck. It suits her. It suits her when I’m cooing and cuddling
her on the sofa after being out of the house for ten hours. It suits her when
I’m telling her off and carrying her downstairs at 3am after biting her mummy’s
bracelet. It suits her when she climbs the curtains, gets stuck on the rail and
cries for assistance. It is her name. And when I scream it I don’t think of the
beer.
Still
a few have suggested to me that I let the brewery know about her name. Maybe
they’ll love her. Some seem to think I’ll get some kind of gift in return.
Maybe they'll think I'm a frighteningly obsessed Stan. Either way I’ve never
let them know.
I’ve
never let them know because the brewery in question have always used Twitter to
suggest they don't want to use social media to hear people fawn over their beer
or name animals after them. And so I’ve never pushed it.
There
was a response to a tweet of mine last week that made me think they are pushing
that attitude too far. I was a bit put out – briefly.
But
all it did was confirm to me that this was a brewery making beer that many love
and selling it without the hassle. I don’t enjoy the beer any less and am not
going to change my darling’s name. But I do know not to tag them in any future
praise. They aren’t bothered by the social media surrounding their livelihood.
They aren’t celebrities. They just want to do their job and gain their
enjoyment from the work itself.
They
don’t want letters or recordings from Stan..
Sometimes
your idols just want to make their craft.
So
whether it be the next time I hold that cask pint to my lips or that little
kitten falls asleep on my shoulder, I won't let the brewer know. Maybe they
don't want to know every time you drink their beer. Maybe we all stop treating them
like celebrities. Maybe we'll see you in the Premier League next season. Maybe Dido will be
replaced by Elton John and the British Beer Writers Awards.The idols are dead.
Long live the idols.
“You gotta call me
man, I’ll be the biggest fan you’ll ever lose. Sincerely yours, Stan. P.S. we
should be together too.”
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