The Legacy of Beer

I grew up in San Diego. As a result, I’ve always loved the water and outside adventure. One of my favorite places is the harbor near the airport. I always loved looking at the sailboats moored there. We visited when my daughter was little, and she sat next to me while I shared with her how special this place was. Then my father sat next to us and shared the same sentiment. We were two generations sharing our love of a sacred place with the third as a rite of passage. To this day, my daughter and I still share a moment of appreciation around the water. Beer serves in much the same way.

Beer has been brewed in some iteration for 10,000 years. To say ancient brewers have handed down their legacy is an understatement. The Germans, Belgians, Czechs, British, Americans… we all have had that moment where we experience beer for the first time. It usually tastes awful, and we vow to never drink that stuff again. But somehow, we persist.

Everything changed the day I started drinking beer. I didn’t love it, but I didn’t hate it either. After growing tired of macro lights, I tasted a Sierra Nevada Pale and a Pete’s Wicked Ale, thinking they were real beers. They were, but I wasn’t ready for that much flavor and bitterness.

I finally picked up a Newcastle Brown Ale and fell in love. I didn’t know it right away, but that beer set the hook that would reel me in years later.

Beer has been with us ever since our ancient ancestors came across a pool of bubbling barley. We share it in celebration and in commiseration. We have a responsibility to the brewers and beer drinkers that came before us to honor them by honoring their traditions and by continuing to innovate. Beer is an art. It’s a craft. It’s something no one needs, but everyone wants. Every glass of beer is packed with tradition, history, heritage… in short, humanity.

Our responsibility to the next generation lies in teaching them the story of us and beer. Human beings are the tool makers. We need to teach the next generation how to drink responsibly and how to use beer as a tool to facilitate better relationships and better experiences. We need to teach them how to brew within the lines and then how to blow those lines away. Like a grandfather sharing with his son and granddaughter his love for a sacred place, we need to share our love for a sacred drink. While we need to embrace new innovations, we also need to share the beers that brought us here and that they deserve our attention and respect. We need to teach our younger generations that beer is more than a commodity or a product, but that Good Beer Matters, that it has been a part of our lives for a very long time, and it needs to remain that way.

Your Brother in Beer,

Jeremy