Women Are Better Beer Tasters

Women, physiologically, have more refined senses of taste and smell than do men. This makes them perfectly adapted to the task of testing the quality and consistency of beer.

I'm officially jealous.

The Wall Street Journal published this fascinating article about the growth of women in the quality control departments at major breweries such as MillerCoors and Anheuser-Busch.

At first, I was jealous. I wanted to quit my job and run off and join the beer circus. Then I remembered that these tasters were working for MillerCoors - and that their tasting sessions were all about trying to ensure that this can of cold-filtered silver bullet Coors Light tastes exactly the same as that can of cold-filtered Coors Light.

They don't get to taste the wonderous variety of craft beers from such places as Sierra Nevada, Dogfish Head, Sam Adams, and the like.

Sigh, I can dream.

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No Glass Ceiling for the Best Job in the Whole World

Beer TV - Discovery Channel announces a new show "Brewed"

This fall, beer enthusiasts can enjoy a weekly dose of the culture, history and variety of their favorite topic.

The Discovery Channel, the same folks who bring us such brilliant TV as "Mythbusters" and "Deadliest Catch", will air "Brewed", an exploration into the world beer.

Sam Calagione, the maverick brewer who owns the Dogfish Head Brewery (bows down - "We're not worthy. We're not worthy.") in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, has been tapped as the host.

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Dogfish Head: The TV Show

Discovery Channel's New Beer Show

Beer at Starbucks?

The world is upside down. As a reaction to slumping sales in a down economy, Starbucks is trying something new - upscale beer and wine.

A pilot store in Seattle, Washington will sell premium beer and local wine (cash and carry, not serving on premises) to see if the coffee giant can keep it's hold on the upscale java market.


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Craft Beer Sales Rise

Last year, the Beer Institute reported that overall beer consumption was down by about 2 percent. So far this year, it's down even more.

Many young men are foregoing drinking in bars and instead taking their beer and going home.

This is good news for the craft beer industry, as those young men are choosing to drink better beers at home.

The one bright spot in the domestic beer market is craft beer produced by small independent microbreweries — names like Boston Brewing, Sierra Nevada and The Pike Brewing Co.

Craft beers are just a tiny piece of the overall beer market, but at a time when overall consumption has fallen, craft beer sales have risen. Sales were up about 7 percent last year — and appear to be doing as well or better this year.

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Now, if all those young men started brewing their own beer...

The Economics of Beer

Did you know?

Fifty-four percent of all American adults drink beer.

Montana has the highest rate beer consumption per capita in the country - nearly 43 gallons per person per year. Whoa.

Bud light is the number one selling beer in the industry with a 19.3% market share, practically double that of Heineken, Corona Extra, Busch and Keystone Light combined.


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Beer Sales Slump

The economy and high unemployment numbers are causing the unthinkable... a decline in beer sales. Long considered one of the most stable markets in the economy, beer sales are down 3-4 percent.

New customers, 21-30 year old males have been hit hard by the recession and unemployment, and as a result, aren't drinking as much beer. Harder hit are farmers who are facing barley surpluses as a result.

The bright spot is an uptick in sales for higher priced, high quality craft beers like Sam Adams, Sierra Nevada, etc. Also, enjoying a resurgence are economy beers like Pabst Blue Ribbon.

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Home Brewer Seal T-Shirt

"The Brewer's Seal" is a great-looking t-shirt for the serious home brewer, classy and subtle. Tell the world how serious you are about beer.

Text on the shirt reads:
"Home Brewer Extraordinaire. I make hand crafted premium ales and lagers. Brewed with care and skill, my beer tastes awesome and is vastly superior to the watered-down corporate swill you drink."


Get the Brewer's Seal shirt exclusively at BrewerShirts.com > > >