Most annoying response when you tell someone you're a homebrewer?

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podz said:
10 years ago you couldn't even find a chili pepper in most Finnish supermarkets - there was just no market for them at all. I remember once when I had found some cayenne peppers at a store (damn, that was strange) - I took them home and dried out the seeds. I was planting those for several summers just so I could have some fresh chili peppers. A few years back, Finland got hit by "chili pepper craze" and now everybody and his brother are proclaimed chili pepper experts and participating in competitions to see who can eat the most naga.

It's largely the same situation with IPA in the US - 15 years ago, 99% of US residents never heard of a freaking IPA. Today, everybody and his brother is a proclaimed IPA expert and bringing them to competitions.

These type of overcompensations generally occur when a country has been internationally shamed and shunned due to it's severe lacking in a particular area. Brits got shamed for not having a food culture at all, Finns got shamed for not wanting to consume anything which posessed a stronger flavor than milk, US got shamed for long-term production (and consumption) of ungodly large quantities of the ****tiest beer ever known to man.

The market will even itself back out after the overcompensators lose interest, but Jamie Oliver is here to say, jalapenos will be found in Finnish supermarkets for a long time now, and IPA isn't going to disappear from US supermarkets. The growth that Mr. Coors is surprised about right now can pretty much be attributed to the 50 grand bass boat in the yard, wife who doesn't own a pair of shoes syndrome.
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I'm back working in the same irrigated desert valley along the Colorado River where I grew up, and there have definitely been some culinary changes. Before I left, an outdoor cookout inevitably consisted of grilled hamburgers (or steaks for special occasions), and maybe hot dogs for the kids.

Nowadays, even the CIO's (California improved Okies) and their descendants here are more likely to have carne asada or pollo asado on the grill than hamburger patties - with tortillas, salsas and all the fixings for burritos or fajitas laid out on the table.
 
Sorry Podz, back in the late 50's until '65 or so Ballentine had a kick ass IPA. It faded out due to the then beginning of the Great Femineziation aka American Wussation. Check it out.
 
BrianMac said:
I get, a mixture of that's legal, and puzzled why face.
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My neighbor acts like I'm doing something illegal and he's keeping quiet for me. Its funny. He's always like hey what are you making for dinner tonight when there are other people around. He's a good guy really. I guess if I was doing something illegal....
 
Jsamp said:
My neighbor acts like I'm doing something illegal and he's keeping quiet for me. Its funny. He's always like hey what are you making for dinner tonight when there are other people around. He's a good guy really. I guess if I was doing something illegal....
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Dinner?!? Look, Mac, I'd tell ya but then I gotta kill ya!
 
kingboomer said:
OK, I'll admit it. I work for one of the three BMC's, inspecting bottles at a glass plant. I'm not ashamed of this, and I get 3 free cases a month!
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I was wondering about that, some one bragging up the purchase of America companies or something like that said that when they got bought out that free beer was one of the things they cut. He went on to talk about how much money had been cut From the budget and how much more money was being made for shareholders..... blah...blah...blah. just wondering if that was the case?

This was about bud...

Nevermind..... I continued reading and found you don't work for bud
 
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'Why do you need that much beer?'

'is it hard to make?' not sure why this annoys me but it does

'i dont like hoppy beers'

'Oh so you make beers like Blue Moon?' :confused:

I took a picture of a new flask i bought for yeast starters and got the comment 'what are you planning to cook with that?' Really?

'is it good?' no its terrible...i just do it for the hell of it

'that illegal.'
 
Pete_WNY said:
Most annoying response:

"Oh."

Endo convo.
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I'd take this over many other possible responses.

I don't generally "volunteer" information about my home brewing but sometimes it comes up in conversation as it did with a coworker awhile back. This guy always gave the clear impression that he considered himself superior in all ways of any consequence to just about everyone he had to associate with. He'd had limited and unfavorable experience with home brewing long ago and said he'd decided it was a waste of his time, clearly implying (because this was his MO) that I was wasting my time as well. I'd have preferred "Oh".
 
My most annoying: "Do you make anything like Michelob Ultra, thats my favorite"
my response: "well then, I do not need to be talking to you"

Also, the repulsed response is annoying. Most people hear "homebrew" and remember an awful "kit-beer" their roommate made in college with expired yeast taped to the lid of a can. I have a hard time convincing people I can make beer that can taste as good as commercial if I don;t have a cold sample right there to hand them.
 
My mom asking my GF if what I do is any good...

Which is odd, since like... Well most of the brewers I guess, I tend to be way more severe in judging my beers than everybody else.
 
MXDXD said:
My mom asking my GF if what I do is any good...

Which is odd, since like... Well most of the brewers I guess, I tend to be way more severe in judging my beers than everybody else.
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You can say that again. I tend to only share my best results. If anyone comes over it's whatever is available on all of 2 taps or a handful of bottles. For going to social events and bringing with if it isn't great it doesn't go.

Unfortunately it means I end up drinking a fair share of "alright" beer and not so much of the great stuff. I guess I'm too generous. Or want to showcase the highlights of my brewing. Or maybe I'm starting to ramble...
 
No such thing as too generous. Beer was made to be shared! (So, good for you). I share all my brews that are not infected. (None of that recently, thank goodness) But, like you, I judge mine harshly. That's why I share, it either confirms my fears or allays them.
Mostly I get pretty good feedback, on homebrewing and the beer. The only unhelpful, though flattering response is: "When are you going to open a brewery?"
No time soon.
 
MXDXD said:
My mom asking my GF if what I do is any good...

Which is odd, since like... Well most of the brewers I guess, I tend to be way more severe in judging my beers than everybody else.
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I just had this problem with an amber ale I did. It was my first crack at recipe formulation and I thought it was simply ok. A guy at worked begged me for 3 weeks to let him to try it and I finally brought him a bottle and he reported back that "it was Hell of a lot better than he expected" he went on to say he preferred it over Bells' amber ale which is ironic because I brewed it and I definitely don't
 
Zepth said:
You can say that again. I tend to only share my best results. If anyone comes over it's whatever is available on all of 2 taps or a handful of bottles. For going to social events and bringing with if it isn't great it doesn't go.

Unfortunately it means I end up drinking a fair share of "alright" beer and not so much of the great stuff. I guess I'm too generous. Or want to showcase the highlights of my brewing. Or maybe I'm starting to ramble...
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I'm kind of like you. The beers I know are good, I'll share. The ones that are so-so, I'd rather not. I don't want to get a rep for serving so-so beer, esp. when I'm capable of making good ones. On the other hand, what might taste good to me might not be good to someone else, so it's kind of a crap shoot. The last thing I would want is for someone to absolutely detest a brew I've made and tell me it's good just to be nice. I *think* it has happened and it's probably happened with more of us than we'd care to admit. But to share a brew I am not particularly fond or proud of is not where I start.
 
I wish I had the "only share the good stuff" mentality when I started.

I started with wine and had it bottled in a matter of about a month. I thought it was good at the time (it really wasn't) and handed out a few bottles to the inlaws. They weren't really willing to try my next few efforts.
 
Most annoying? When someone takes a beer, blows smoke up your a** and then covertly dumps it or leaves it laying around out of the way. You do not have to enjoy my beer. When I ask for criticism on my beers I want actual thoughts. And for gods sake, if you are sampling something you are not sure if you would like or not, use the sampler glasses, thats what they are there for
 
I share for objective input. Most of the people I associate with are not afraid to give me the "what for" should it not be up to snuff. I am looking to improve and appreciate that. I am still trying to get them to get interested enough into doing the same but they are lazier than me :). No worries as I am not gonna be a private brewer unless they want to pay premium prices.

I am now looking to branch out into ciders for the ladies to drink while me and my mates drink my home brew. My wife has taken a liking to a pear cider (she liked Magner's Irish Pear Cider), so I am going to start trying to make some of that to appease CINCHouse :)
 
A few weeks ago I was at my fiancee's parents' house telling their friend about brewing while he tried my porter (which he really liked). My fiancee's mother has known I brew beer for years, but she looks at me and asks "so why do you do it? I mean why put in all of the time to make your own beer instead of buying it?" I really couldn't come up with a direct answer because I thought she understood the impetus seeing as she makes her own salsa, has a garden, her husband welds his own smoker pits and barbecues religiously. I guess it wasn't so much annoying as it was confusing, but nonetheless it stumped me.
 
gometz said:
"so why do you do it? I mean why put in all of the time to make your own beer instead of buying it?" I really couldn't come up with a direct answer because I thought she understood the impetus seeing as she makes her own salsa, has a garden, her husband welds his own smoker pits and barbecues religiously. I guess it wasn't so much annoying as it was confusing, but nonetheless it stumped me.
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mentioning her salsa should answer her question.

"so why do you do it? I mean why put in all of the time to make your own *ANYTHING YOU CAN MAKE AT HOME* instead of buying it?"
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there's no end to the list of things you could easily buy at the store, but can make at home.

no end to the list of reasons to do it. #1 is just the satisfaction you did it yourself. #2 is someone else expressing how good it is and the satisfaction you get when you can say, "I MADE THAT"
 
gometz said:
A few weeks ago I was at my fiancee's parents' house telling their friend about brewing while he tried my porter (which he really liked). My fiancee's mother has known I brew beer for years, but she looks at me and asks "so why do you do it? I mean why put in all of the time to make your own beer instead of buying it?" I really couldn't come up with a direct answer because I thought she understood the impetus seeing as she makes her own salsa, has a garden, her husband welds his own smoker pits and barbecues religiously. I guess it wasn't so much annoying as it was confusing, but nonetheless it stumped me.
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I got the exact same question from the mother in law this past weekend. This coming from the woman who is a perfectionist in the kitchen, and says that everything homemade is better. I was certainly confused by this question too.

As a matter of fact, she asked that question while she was happily eating the homemade pizza, with homemade pizza dough, and homemade pizza sauce that I had been preparing for her and the family for days prior!
 
I was looking for a rental and mentioned to one prospective landlord that I preferred garage space or a patio to accommodate my homebrewing hobby. He said that there were kids in the neighborhood and he didn't think it was appropriate for me to rent there because of my homebrewing hobby. After that I stopped mentioning homebrewing during subsequent rental viewings...
 
wardens355 said:
I was looking for a rental and mentioned to one prospective landlord that I preferred garage space or a patio to accommodate my homebrewing hobby. He said that there were kids in the neighborhood and he didn't think it was appropriate for me to rent there because of my homebrewing hobby. After that I stopped mentioning homebrewing during subsequent rental viewings...
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I thought it was the law...that when you move into a new place you had to introduce yourself to all the neighbors and announce that you're a home brewer. I think there are some websites with our photos and maps of where we live, too.
 
gometz said:
A few weeks ago I was at my fiancee's parents' house telling their friend about brewing while he tried my porter (which he really liked). My fiancee's mother has known I brew beer for years, but she looks at me and asks "so why do you do it? I mean why put in all of the time to make your own beer instead of buying it?" I really couldn't come up with a direct answer because I thought she understood the impetus seeing as she makes her own salsa, has a garden, her husband welds his own smoker pits and barbecues religiously. I guess it wasn't so much annoying as it was confusing, but nonetheless it stumped me.
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To save money of course!!!!
 
gometz said:
A few weeks ago I was at my fiancee's parents' house telling their friend about brewing while he tried my porter (which he really liked). My fiancee's mother has known I brew beer for years, but she looks at me and asks "so why do you do it? I mean why put in all of the time to make your own beer instead of buying it?" I really couldn't come up with a direct answer because I thought she understood the impetus seeing as she makes her own salsa, has a garden, her husband welds his own smoker pits and barbecues religiously. I guess it wasn't so much annoying as it was confusing, but nonetheless it stumped me.
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To save money of course!!!!
 
gometz said:
A few weeks ago I was at my fiancee's parents' house telling their friend about brewing while he tried my porter (which he really liked). My fiancee's mother has known I brew beer for years, but she looks at me and asks "so why do you do it? I mean why put in all of the time to make your own beer instead of buying it?" I really couldn't come up with a direct answer because I thought she understood the impetus seeing as she makes her own salsa, has a garden, her husband welds his own smoker pits and barbecues religiously. I guess it wasn't so much annoying as it was confusing, but nonetheless it stumped me.
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To save money...lol
 
An annoying repose I got was "can I try your beer ". I love sharing and explained it's a very bitter ipa (maybe 70 ibu-not that bitter). Everyone still seemed enthused so I poured a few pints. After taking a sip they all admitted to not liking IPAs as a style. I said they didn't need to finish it if they didn't like it. They didn't drink much more of it. It was a good beer and ended up with a few pints dumped.

I now make sure people like the style before being generous.
 
How about asking to try a brew because everyone else is having one even though they don't like beer. My mother in law has done this numerous times. Then she has a few sips and wastes a whole pint or bottle very annoying. The other is when people drink your beer and immediately ask when you are opening a brewery.
 
StonesBally said:
How about asking to try a brew because everyone else is having one even though they don't like beer. My mother in law has done this numerous times. Then she has a few sips and wastes a whole pint or bottle very annoying. The other is when people drink your beer and immediately ask when you are opening a brewery.
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Answer: "When you come up with the capital to finance it"
 
To me the whole idea of taking your passion and trying to make a living out of it seems like the best way to ruin the joy. Suddenly you're no longer doing what you want, you have to do what's profitable. I've heard the same problem exists for those who decide to become hunting or fishing guides...or gigolos.
 
When sharing beers with BMC drinkers or other unknown quantities, I split the brews up, usually about three pours per 12oz bottle. That way it's not wasted.
 

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