Saturday, September 22, 2012

Why am I doing this? And a Hoyne Beer Review

Why am I doing this? Does beer blogging really matter? My reasons for these introspective questions are not entirely clear. Perhaps it was the poor sleep last night. Being dozy makes me sensitive. Not crying at long distance phone commercials sensitive, but more ponderous about myself. Does this belt make my gut look big?

Why do people blog? People blog for personal gratification. I do enjoy the creative avenues that arise from writing about no set topic. Beer blogging combines my love of craft beer and writing. My bill paying writing is focused on Pharmacist education. I need to get creative after writing lines like this: "The mechanism of action was not given, but another study demonstrated reduced levels of interleukin 4 (IL-4) at similar spirulina doses." To answer your next question, yes, it made me just as sleepy writing it as it made you reading it.

People blog to express opinions. This I do. Beer reviews are all about opinions. Are there people with greater knowledge about beer in Victoria? Sure there are; I have met them. For the most part they agree with my opinions. Often they disagree. Luckily, no one has said that I am full of crap. I'm sure that this day will come. I try and keep my opinions unbiased and provide good rationale. People have told me that they have not bought a beer based on my review, so I must be cautious. Then again, most beer drinkers will drink everything that is released. If a beer sucks, it will not get a repeat purchase.

Bloggers do it to share information about Victoria's craft beer scene. This is what www.beerontherock.com is all about. Almost every brewery in town is social media savvy. Often I am the last to learn about a beer release or tasting event. The long lineup for growler fills at Hoyne Brewing today is proof that beer lovers know what is happening.

Bloggers do it for money and fame. Ya right. Google cancelled my Adsense account right before I was going to get a cheque. I rarely get free beer these days. Fame is not an issue; no one knows who I am. My reader list is rather low. At beer events I rarely mention my blog. Most of the comments on my blog are from spambots attempting to sell me erectile dysfunction pills. I also don't get out much; hence the lack of need for these pills.

So why do I do it? Because no one else is doing it. Victoria has a vibrant craft beer scene and no one is blogging about it. At one point there were four blogs about Victoria's craft beers; now there is only one. I don't know if my writing will actually make an impact on out city's brewers. I doubt my blog will sway the macro drinking masses to try a local beer. Sometimes you have to do things without thanks, reward or personal gain. You do it because it needs to get done. Kinda like cleaning the cat litter box. Not once has my cat every expressed gratitude for the weekly maintenance of her crapper.

If for no other reason, I blog because it gives me an inflated sense of purpose. It also gives me an excuse to drink beer and shoot my mouth off. This are a few of my favourite things to do.

Oh right, beer reviews. The Hoyne Wolf Vine is a fresh hopped pale ale. Cascades and Centennials were picked on Wednesday and brewed on Thursday.

Hoyne Wolf Vine = 7/10

The nose is more India than pale. Big, juicy citrus aromas leap from the glass. Each sip is tingly, spicy, slightly tacky and bright. The malts are withdrawn but still provide a bready backdrop for the heavy citrus hops. Citrus tastes dominate with a mixed of fresh grapefruit rind, blood oranges and candied orange peel. I know these 'C' hops are meant to be floral, but I'm not getting it. That growler does not seem big enough. Well done.

Taste +4
Aftertaste +1
Alcohol Content 0 5.3%
Value +1
Appearance +1 (growlers are great)

4 comments:

Bryan said...

Thankless work, isn't it?
At least the prep work is rewarding.

pudoo20 said...

Thank you for drinking Beers and telling us all what you think of them. I value your opinion . And you are rite I buy all the beers once and see if I like them. If I do I buy again if not it sits on the shelf ..Keep up the good Job ..Thanks

Unknown said...

Thanks Bryan, yup it is thankless, but not without some benefit.

Unknown said...

Thanks George.. Every beer I drink, I do it for you. Sometimes you can tell the quality of a beer, by the amount of dust on the bottle.