NoCoast Brewer’s Blog

by Chuck “Heisenberg” Crabtree

Blogging is Stupid – A Beer Selfie

Blogging seems to me to be the written equivalent of a selfie; a recipe, with a dollop of narcissism and a dash of look-at-how-techie-and-hip-I-am.  As nauseous as this entrée sounds, it cascades into the vomitus depths when it is garnished with a selfie-stick.  Pathetic!  In a society where “me” overshadows “others” in nearly all things it is no small surprise that blogs are as common as, well, as selfies themselves (slight exaggeration).  Now, because I cannot live with self-disdain, I declare now, before and to my fellow brewers, cellar men (and women), craft beer aficionados, fungal geeks, mashfits, and beerelicts, that this blog is all about you, not me.  This blog will celebrate the freaks that we are.  It will touch on the many brewing processes as they relate to the living and the inanimate, the simple and the complex, the miraculous and the mundane, the art and the science.  There will be practical insights into raw materials and less practical discussions of philosophy, with regular glimpses into the science behind the brews.  But most importantly, this blog will attempt to drill into the depths of the craft beer culture that is, paradoxically, trendy and yet a hater of trends.  

That being said, I am profoundly unqualified to write this blog (as if a blog requires qualifications).  I have nothing to tell you that all of you do not already know.  I am no expert.  I have not been gifted with anything except life itself.  In fact, I have far less experience as a brewer than most, and I have much to learn.  So, I can offer you nothing.  Nothing, but an attempt to animate the oldest manufactured beverage in the world and force it to take a selfie; a written selfie, hopefully without the nausea, and, of course, without the selfie-stick!

Much to Chuck's dismay, we've asked him and the rest of the brew crew to contribute to a monthly brewer's blog. Don't miss the next one- subscribe to the NoCoast Newsletter!