I believe, on this fine eve, I’ll be taking a break from my typical roguish ways, my brutes. Instead of harping on the myriad ways people piss me off with what I consider their over-the-top obsession with beer (I know… “Hey, pot, the kettle’s calling. I have leveled off in the past several months to a start a healthy moderate relationship with beer, though. I haven’t made the 2:00 booty call to it for quite some time.), I thought I’d chat just a bit about one of the things that I really appreciate about the beer-geek club, almost regardless of level of obsession.

   I know it’s all about the beer, but an overlapping piece of that is the camaraderie one finds between beer geeks. I harsh on the beer snobs out there, but there are by far more beer advocates (fie on the brothers, I’m not capitalizing it and it’s standard usage for the term) out there in my experience.

   I have a few friends who appreciate craft beer and we do talk about a bit, although one is in California and the other is in Alabama. One of my brothers also likes great craft beers, so we’ll share a few when I’m visiting family.

   The local home brewing group is an excellent source of craft beer camaraderie – at least the one I belong to. Typically willing to share a pint when there’s time and willing to share their beer, commercial and home brewed, members are supportive of the craft and are great mentors for those just starting (be it craft beer in general or brewing at home specifically).

   Beer fests are great places to go, although some are better than others. Having a load of brutes that’ve spent their time and energy into brewing what they’re giving you can ratchet up your appreciation several notches. When it’s slow and they have time to talk about their work, it’s even better. Even the fests where you have a slew of Johnny Jack laymen pouring, it’s still a great time.

   While I’ve said my share of macro jokes (why is drinking Bud like making the beast of two backs in a canoe?), the camaraderie doesn’t start or end with craft beer. Macro drinkers are some of the most unselfish brutes you’d ever want to meet when it comes to sharing their libations. True, it’s a lot cheaper for them to do so, so I find it slightly more meaningful when craft beer is shared, but that shouldn’t take away the credit from anyone’s willingness to share in the joy of beer.

   Beyond the occasional Johnny Jack that thinks his/her opinion on beer is the be-all-end-all, there’s plenty of room in the beer geek club for participants of all levels. From macro guzzlers to those who’ll only have an imperial stout in a snifter at fifty degrees F.  As long as it’s not at the expense of others, I would like to slightly modify an ethos of the US military: Never shall I leave a brute thirsty!

   Until next time, fare thee well, ya brutes!