I Am A Homebrewer

Watch the video

When I’m not not-posting to BOV, I tend to hang around Homebrewtalk, one of the bigger homebrewing forums ’round the intertubes. After the I Am A Craft Brewer video was released (which may not have ever been posted here because roughly every other website on the internet ever did instead), a few people decided that they should make their own, and I was one of the glory seekers who jumped on board. I think the final product turned out great, and I’m proud to have been a part of it.

Now, I’m not saying the video is perfect. The internet did what it does best — break out into a flamewar — when the Brewing Network’s Sunday Session spent over 10 minutes criticizing it (starting at about 22:00). While I do think they were being assholes for the sake of being assholes (and we violated one of the primary laws of the internet, ‘Don’t Read The Comments’), they brought up a few good points that need to be addressed. In some cases I’d like to clarify, and in others just pretty much agree (or bring up my own concerns)

• It’s a ripoff of IAACB. Well, actually we saw it (as does Greg Koch) as a tribute to the original. Perhaps we could have changed more of the script, but the point was to show that we’re followers of a proud tradition too.
• It said things that didn’t need to be said. Yup. So did IAACB. Both are pure propaganda. Is that a bad thing? Take it for what it is.
• I have an issue with the opening line, ‘I am a craft brewer.’ I like it as a bridge between the original and the new, but dude, you’re not a craft brewer. Neither am I. There are three craft breweries in the Buffalo region (remember, the Tap Room is CBC) and I don’t work at any of them. This is a discussion I’ve seen before, though, ‘”homebrewer” brings up bathtubs and Mr Beer’ but I have none of the skill, knowledge or financial investment that Tim Hertzog does and damned if I’m going to say I do.
• The production values vary widely. They actually make fun of me specifically in here, and after I recorded I have to agree with them. The wind noise was terrible. What are homebrewers if not people using equipment held together with duct tape? I don’t have a HERMS system and I don’t have an HD camera with wireless mic. (I suppose I could have tried suckering WNYM to film my segment, but they have better things to do)
• It was too serious. Yeah, it was. So was IAACB. If we were writing it from scratch I’d have taken issue, but you can’t make a tribute if you decide to totally change the source material.
• It acts sanctimonious regarding adjuncts. Again, taken verbatim from IAACB. I thought it was Maureen Ogle, one of the few people immune to the ‘ohmygodthisisawesome’ properties of IAACB, who pointed out the irony of Sam Caglione acting like rice was the Devil’s Seed and like he was a strict adherer to the Reinheitsgebot, but it turns out she wasn’t (I link to her entry anyway because it’s still a good post and there were maybe 10 comments after I had last checked, including ones from the Brewers Association and Greg Koch). As the BN says, if you don’t use adjuncts then you’re not making a Classic American Pilsner. This is the same attitude that Pete Brown complains about with CAMRA at the very end of Hops & Glory (an amazing book I’ll hopefully review soon): you can insult macro brewers and their use of adjuncts, etc, but (a) they do what they do well and (b) acting like a prick about it isn’t going to win you any fans (with the exception of other sanctimonious pricks, and they won’t make for very fun parties). I have yet to use any rice or corn in a beer, but I’ve made some with cherries and I’ve made some with Belgian candi syrup. Those aren’t malt either, fellers.

This is why you need to make an outline before you start, kiddos: I think I covered everything? Heh. To summarize, I think the video does inherently have some issues, but not many that weren’t in the original. Take it for what it is: a handmade collaboration between 22 people on the internet (an astounding feat as it is), made to reaffirm homebrewers’ spirits and potentially inspire new people to join the hobby.

And also, I’m in it.