Beer Compurgation

For some time I've wanted to write a series of posts titled "The Craft Beer Bubble" that will highlight some of the basic elements of beer drinking culture that my peers forget.  These were prompted in part by somebody, wrongly in my opinion, exhalting that the "Beer Bubble had burst and that Beer is mainstream now." This was aided by this excellent post atThe Snap and the Hiss about drinking culture misunderstandings.  Whilst this was always going to be one of the topics covered in these posts, the events of a certain AGM from last weekend have pushed it to the front of the queue. There is an element of beer drinking that is easily missed or forgotten amongst the interior squabbling about the relevance of Europe's largest consumer group CAMRA. (I won't be covering the events so for those a little behind,  this Boak and Bailey piece  nicely rounds things up.)  People like cask beer.  People  prefer  cask beer. There are a lar

It is 9pm in a city centre bar and I find myself on the defensive. Somehow the conversation has turned to religion and, as if my mother was being directly insulted, I’m prepared to speak frankly if necessary. I have to remember to control myself. One deep breath and I’m rather more relaxed. Everything continues civilly. Perhaps I feel tense as it is only hours after the above beer label started a conversation on the topic. I am, for my sins (pun intended,) a Christian. Specifically I’m actually Catholic, as that is the church I attend on the odd occasions I do go, though I do not identify myself under a singular denomination. My faith doesn’t define me nor dictate many of my actions. It should do - according to non-Christians – but it doesn’t. Christiantity has a basis of privilege in western society being the domin ant religion. I know that I am not marginalised by bigots for my faith and that is a freedom other faiths don’t have. What this privilege creates in th