Beer-articles 995

Take notes.

@madisonbeer/Instagram

If you’re anything like us, you have spent hours starring at

Madison Beer’s perfectly curated Instagram, wondering if there’s anything you could get your hands on to make your life all the more aesthetic. What digital camera she snaps her pics with, where she gets her home decor, and what makeup products she uses for her signature sultry look are all top of mind when we scroll—and we just found at least part of the answer.

Though Beer herself has already told us about the moisturizer she reaches for to get dewy skin and the face wash she swears cleared her acne—Tatcha Dewy Skin Cream ($70) and Panoxyl face wash ($10), if you were curious—we’ve always been curious about which makeup she layers on top of it all.

@madisonbeer/Instagram

On January 22, we got the answer we had been hoping for. Well, at least part of it: the lips. 

In an Instagram carousel taken on what we assume is the digital camera we need to be purchasing, Beer posed in a baggy gray crop top layered over a white T-shirt and paired with simple gold jewelry. She also showed off her picture-perfect makeup—giving us an up-close view of her lips, which were the perfect moody pink nude shade to compliment her skin tone.

@madisonbeer/Instagram

Once we got past staring, we checked the caption where she gave all the details on the lip combo she used to achieve the beige-pink high-shine finish. An Hourglass Cosmetics partner, she used both a lip gloss and liner from the brand to create the lip—reaching for their ultra-viral Phantom Volumizing Glossy Balm ($36) in the shade Trace, and their Shape & Sculpt Lip Liner  ($29) in the shade Uncover.

Though she kept the details of the rest of her makeup under wraps, we could still see how good it looked through the pictures. Her skin provided a glowy, radiant base but was still matte from powder under her eyes and on her forehead. Highlight lit up her cheekbones, contour added some definition, and blush provided some flush. The finishing touches were some faux freckles across the bridge of her nose, dark liner shaping her eyes, and some long fluttering lashes. That and an almond-shaped all-white manicure.

Up Next: Pamela Anderson Has Finally Entered the Skincare Game

Read the original article on Byrdie.

You may be familiar with Dos Equis, the Mexican beer that once had “The Most Interesting Man in the World” as its hype man, but did you know there’s also a Cuatro Equis? Well, not by that name, as XXXX is brewed in Australia, not Mexico. It’s not all that well known in the U.S., at least by anyone who isn’t a big fan of fantasy author Sir Terry Pratchett (some believe that Fourecks, which is Discworld’s “Last Continent,” takes its name from the beer), but it’s one of the biggest names in brewing in the land Down Under. Known for its bitter but slightly sweet flavor as well as smoothness, XXXX Gold was named the nation’s third-best-selling beer in 2022. But here’s a shocker for us non-Australians: Foster’s didn’t even crack the top 10.

Even though XXXX has a name that may seem somewhat suggestive, it has nothing to do with the adult entertainment industry but is instead an indication of quality or strength. It seems that in the 19th century, beer was rated in X’s, much as we award star ratings to just about anything these days. While Castlemaine Brewery was first able to produce an XXX-rated beer (which sounds even more racy), it gained that additional X in 1893. Much like Pabst Blue Ribbon when it won its eponymous award at the Chicago World’s Fair that same year, the company bigwigs celebrated the occasion by naming (or in the case of Pabst, re-naming) the brew after the honor.

Read more: Popular Vodka Brands Ranked From Worst To Best

Castlemaine Brewery first went into business in Castlemaine, Victoria, but the Queensland branch, which is today home to XXXX, opened its doors in 1878. 15 years later, XXXX itself was born (the beer formerly known — or at least rated — as XXX), but the next milestone in the brewery’s history came in 1924. That year marked not only the addition of XXXX bitter to the lineup but also the introduction of the mascot Mr. Fourex. This dapper gentleman, the Australian analogue of Baltimore’s favorite food mascot Mr. Boh, has been raising his beer bottle in a toast to the good people of Queensland for the past century, and XXXX doesn’t seem to have any plans to pull a Mr. Peanut on him.

In 1928, a merger occurred between two companies to form what is currently known as Castlemaine Perkins. The company continues to operate under this name, despite having changed ownership to Lion in 1990 and subsequently to KIrin in 2011. The Queensland XXXX brewery remains the hallmark of the company with its product closely identified with this state. However, it is noteworthy that some of the XXXX beers are presently brewed in New South Wales and South Australia.

XXXX introduced a household name in Australia, the “stubby”, sometime in the later half of the 20th century. This is a small, robust bottle that contains 375 milliliters, a little above 12 ounces. 1991 marked the inception of XXXX Gold, which has grown to become the brewery’s best-selling beer and also the initiation of its uninterrupted sponsorship of the Queensland Rugby League Maroons.

The process of brewing XXXX beer is comparable to that of other large factory-brewed beers— if you are interested in learning the exact steps, you may book a tour for about A$37 (Australian dollars), approximately $24 in US currency. It is important to note that this amount does not include airfare to Queensland. During your tour, the subject of the company’s sustainability efforts is expected to be highlighted. In 2020, the brewery was recognized as carbon neutral and utilizes solar panels and biogas to meet part of its power needs for its activities.

Lastly, two of XXXX’s beers — the Bitter and Gold varieties — are brewed devoid of any preservatives. Their ingredients consist of hops, malted grains, cane sugar, yeast, and water, which has been so since a 2008 initiative to adopt a more basic, natural approach. A crucial step in maintaining the beer’s freshness and taste involves the addition of carbon dioxide right after all oxygen is vacuumed out just before the cap is placed on the bottle.

Over the years, XXXX has introduced new brews and dropped old ones from the lineup. Among the dearly departed are the original pre-1893 XXX Sparkling Ale, followed by 20th-century additions including XXXX Lite and Castlemaine 2.2 Bitter. Today’s lineup includes the same XXXX Bitter that debuted a century ago as well as the XXXX Gold that came along toward the end of the last millennium. They’ve been joined by XXXX Dry, which first came out in 2020 and has been sold throughout Australia since 2021, as well as a line of lagers called Summer Bright that are available in mango, lime, and raspberry lemonade as well as a standard beer-flavored beer.

XXXX also offers a nonalcoholic beer called XXXX Zero that they’ve touted as being the nation’s first 0% ABV beer to also be entirely carbon-free. As Lion’s chief sustainability officer Justin Merrell explains, the brewery went so far as to contact the can and bottle manufacturers to determine the precise amount of carbon generated in their production so they could factor this into knowing how much of it they’d need to offset.

During WWII, XXXX sent its beers abroad for the very first time, but only for distribution to the Australian armed forces. They did so again during the Vietnam War, at which time the bottles earned the nickname “barbed wire” because the linked X’s bore a similarity to something the soldiers likely saw on a regular basis. Once the war was over, however, XXXX was out of the import business as to this day the brewery maintains that none of its beer will ever be available for overseas purchase.

Well, that isn’t entirely true. You for sure can’t get your hands on the stuff in the U.S., which has sparked a number of Reddit threads, although many of these tend to be overtaken by Aussie beer snobs who enjoy criticizing a beer that seems to hold a similar status to Budweiser in its home country (implying that millions of people must purchase it, but surprisingly few would choose to admit it). Nevertheless, if you cannot afford to travel halfway around the world, a shorter flight would allow you to try the XXXX brewed by Interbrew U.K. in Manchester. It’s plausible that the U.K. version might not taste exactly like Australian XXXX, but unless you try the latter, how will you truly know?

Read the original article on Mashed.

If you are a big lover of beer, then you may be interested in learning more about the specifics of the beverage, including the best ways to enjoy it. For instance, does beer need to rest after it’s poured? To find out, Tasting Table spoke with an expert: Jeff Tyler, the co-owner and head brewer at Spice Trade Brewery + Kitchen in Greenwood Village, Colorado.

According to Tyler, the short answer is no. However, there are some nitrogen beers (also known as “nitro” beer) that may require a rest mid-pour, such as Guinness. Tyler explained, “[They] typically have a longer resting period in the middle of the pour as the head subsides.” Additionally, if you pour your beer straight into a glass without tilting the glass while you pour (which is known as a “hard pour”), you may have to wait while the foam subsides, although that is a bit different than the actual rest that the nitro beers require.

Tyler continued, “Once your beer is properly poured, you are good to start drinking it! I prefer to let most of the beers I drink warm up slightly to maximize the flavors that you can perceive. You can do this by just waiting or cupping your hands around the glass to warm it up using your body heat.”

Read more: 15 Popular Hard Seltzer Brands, Ranked Worst To Best

When it comes to pouring your own beer, you’ll likely be pouring a forced-carbonation beer, which is the type that makes up about 95% of the beer found in liquor stores and supermarkets. Pouring this type of beer is pretty straightforward. Tyler explained, “You typically want to pour the beer a bit more aggressively than you would think, directly into the bottom of the glass or with the glass at a slight angle. The goal here is to allow a good amount of the CO2 to ‘break out’ of solution (i.e. get foamy) while you are pouring.”

He added that you don’t have to pour the entire beer all in one go; you can pause for a moment to let the foam settle before continuing with the pour. When you finish the pour, you can do so more gently. This method should lead to the ideal amount of foam at the top of the beer: about one to two fingers of foam.

The aggressive pour will lead to the best beer-drinking experience. Tyler said, “You really don’t want all of those bubbles staying in the beer because they’ll end up in your stomach and you’ll end up burping it all out. Less CO2 means you still get the aroma that you are looking for with some of the bubbles but it saves you from filling your whole stomach with beer foam.”

Read the original article on Tasting Table.

Oregon’s storied craft brewing industry suffered one of its worst years in 2023, with depressed draft beer sales and rising costs creating more pressure than some of the state’s businesses could bear.

According to the Oregon Brewers Guild, Oregon is home to about 400 breweries, brewpubs and taprooms, which collectively provide 50,000 jobs and generate nearly $9 billion in economic output. But the state lost around 30 of those businesses last year, and even more have contracted or are seriously struggling.

Migration Brewing’s Little Foot Red is pictured in this file photo.

Stephen Baboi

“We are seeing national trends towards canned cocktails, Seltzers and more nonalcoholic beer options,” said Sonia Marie Leikam, the co-owner of Leikam Brewing and the vice president of the Oregon Brewers Guild. “Those make up now about a third of our sales. They are lower profit margins for us, and that impacts our bottom line.”

Leikam says that, like other small craft brewers, she works another job in addition to her time at the family brewery.

“We also are spending just a ton more time and energy creating events,” she said. “So we now have crafting classes and a book club and comedy nights. Really anything that the community wants, we offer our space for those activities to drive folks into the tap room.”

At its peak before the pandemic, Laurelwood Brewing Company had three restaurant locations, in addition to three retail outlets at the Moda Center and two others at the Portland airport. Over time, said owner Mike De Kalb, the profit margins just disappeared. Laurelwood Brewing Company closed its last retail location late last year.

“The economy was different back then. People’s habits were different. People wanted to go out, they wanted to get out of the house and go frequent tap rooms,” De Kalb said. “All the streaming services, DoorDash, Uber Eats, people could order things in … People’s habits changed. People’s habits have been ingrained over two years of ordering, online services, grocery stores, those sort of things. And, when we opened up again, we had an initial rush, but then they went back to their old habits.”

Two different Leikam Brewing beers are pictured in this photo provided by the Southeast Portland business.

Courtesy Leikam Brewing

Leikam says breweries will continue to try to adapt and respond to things like “Dry January” and ad campaigns that discourage drinking alcohol.

“I think legal and moderate consumption of alcohol is absolutely reasonable and should be supported,” she said.

But she also pointed out that alcohol is a big industry in the state. “Beer, wine, cider, spirits — these are all huge parts of the Oregon economic machine. The third largest source of revenue for the state is this sector.”

Leikam has a message for people who want to see the industry survive.

“Make that extra stop. If you’re going to buy beer, buy it directly from a brewery tap room or a bottle shop,” she said. “Schedule a get together with friends, hold a PT [Parent Teacher] night at your local brewery. We offer nonalcoholic beverages too. We have community gathering spaces. We have philanthropy nights. Reach out to us. Talk to your local brewery. We’re here for you.”

The Pacific Northwest helped pioneer craft brewing, and it’s still a hub for small breweries and small batch distilleries. It should come as no surprise that the region is also a mecca of businesses that brew nonalcoholic beer and distill alcohol-free spirits, as well.

Oregon’s storied craft brewing industry suffered one of its worst years in 2023, with depressed draft beer sales and rising costs creating more pressure than some of the state’s businesses could bear.

Tags: Think Out Loud, Oregon, Alcohol, Business

Assessing the vitality of San Diego County’s craft beer industry could entail weeks of visiting all 160-plus local breweries.

Alternatively, you could explore Grantville for a mile. This neighborhood, in beer terms, is witnessing everything from a revival to a devastation.

On Friars Road, near the top of Fairmount Avenue, a three-decade-old brewpub is becoming noteworthy again. The new proprietors of San Diego Brewing Co., Tyson and Kristina Blake, along with Bob and Lisa Townsend, and house brewer Matt Navarre are rejuvenating the beer selection.

The highlighted pale ale, for instance, has a reduced ABV compared to its older version, creating a brew that emphasizes roasted malts and fresh hops over alcohol content.

Thus the renaissance. About a mile south, in a business park along Fairmount, 1-year-old One Season Brewing is in apocalyptic mode.

Owner Dan Romeo took out high-interest loans while planning the brewery and its sister business, TRVLR Coffee Roaster, during the pandemic.

These are small operations — One Season produced maybe 30 barrels of beer in 2023 — with unsustainably high overhead. Romeo has been unable to refinance his debt.

“I’ll be closing the end of this month,” he said.

Around the corner from One Season, 9-year-old Citizen Brewers has seen its regular customers return, restoring business to pre-pandemic levels.

“I do have a group of people who float the boat, that’s for sure,” owner Judd McGhee said.

Here, customers — ranging from bachelor/bachelorette partiers to firefighters to corporate groups — brew their own beer using Citizen’s supplies and equipment.

An experienced homebrewer, McGhee walks clients through the entire process, from brewing to bottling or canning to designing a label.

“I’ve helped a lot of people demystify the process,” he said, “which is pretty awesome.”

When business slackens, McGhee brews his own beer — see today’s review of Haze Juices.

That’s the status of craft beer, according to Grantville. The good, the bad, the in-between – it’s all here along Fairmount Avenue.

Maestro, tap the podium and the keg. It’s time for Beer Choir!

A national group with a San Diego affiliate, Beer Choir is a rich blend of singers who value harmony and hops, and melody and malts.

“Beer Choir brings a level playing field for these individuals,” shared Megan Jones, director of operations for the Chorale Consortium of San Diego.

To genuinely level this playing field, I’d require a multitude of bulldozers.

The Feb. 10 Beer Choir event at AleSmith Brewing is set to feature San Diego Master Chorale members.

Still, how much talent do you need to sing “Danny Boy” while hoisting a pint?

Very little, Jones insisted.

“For me,” she said, “the best part about this is it brings together people who love to sing in all different contexts.”

There’s no charge and no rehearsals, but singers should RSVP at sdsings.org. Then hie ye to the brewery/concert hall, 9990 AleSmith Court, San Diego, for the 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. performance.

At long last, in response to the musically inclined uncertainty, what ought one to do with an inebriated seaman? Refrain from extending an invitation to the Beer Choir.

“I do not perceive of this as an environment of wild, frenzied merrymaking,” expressed Jones, “rather, it is akin to a warm and festive gathering.”

This Saturday: From 12 p.m. to 4 p.m., Burgeon will celebrate its initial seven years by hosting a festival, where beers from a whopping 39 different breweries will be served. Unfortunately, the event has reached its capacity; if you have managed to acquire tickets, consider yourself fortunate. Location: 6350 Yarrow Drive, Carlsbad.

On January 27: Pure Project will be selling a limited number of tickets at the entrance for their 8th anniversary festivities. Each ticket will cost $40 and the sale will commence at 11 a.m. Please take note that these tickets only grant admission from 1 p.m. Pure Project: Positioned at 9030 Kenamar Drive, Suite 308, San Diego.

San Diego Pale Ale

From: San Diego Brewing Co., San Diego

ABV (Alcohol By Volume): 5.7 percent

Style: American Pale Ale

Drink or dump: Drink. Love at first sip. Hops and malts are perfectly balanced, a harmonious blend of the former’s piney-citrusy qualities and the latter’s toasted grain deliciousness.

Haze Juices

From: Citizen Brewers, San Diego

ABV: 6.4 percent

Style: Hazy IPA

Drink or dump: Drink. Haze Juices is a lean, dry IPA unlike the sugar bombs delivered by many hazies. Citra, Mosaic and Southern Cross hops cut through the unfiltered murk.

Westmalle Dubbel

From: Brouwerij der Trappisten van Westmalle, Westmalle, Belgium

ABV: 7 percent

Style: Dubbel

Drink or dump: Drink. A classic from a venerable Trappist brewery, Westmalle is considered the world’s original dubbel. This strong brown beer delivers a massive, creamy head, dark fruit and wheat toast flavors, then a mild bitterness at the finish.

Rowe is a freelance writer.

Pairing drinks with food can often lead you to either delicate wines with intricate floral, herbal, and mineral aromas, or a full-bodied, frothy beer that pairs well with your meal. Particularly with fried food, many people find themselves yearning for a refreshing beer.

Ideally, the beer you choose should echo the flavours of your meal while simultaneously balancing its texture and weight. Jessie Massie, Taproom Executive Chef at Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., suggests that a pale ale is an excellent choice of beer to consume with fried food.

Massie explains to the Daily Meal that “A universally suitable choice would be a traditional bar-style beer like a pale ale. A quality English-style or American pale ale can both cut through rich fatty flavors to cleanse the palate and also complement fry batter spices with approachable hoppy aromas.”

Pale ales are medium-bodied, gold or amber-hued beers, closely related to the IPA, that offer a wide array of flavors and fragrances due to their high hop content. They can be somewhat bitter with hints of bread and toast, and usually have significant carbonation. Pale ales are able to find the perfect balance of being adaptable and flavourful without being overpowering, making them the perfect accompaniment for your favourite deep-fried foods.

Read more: 10 Of The Healthiest Beers You Can Drink

Pairing food and drink is an art, not a science, with many different directions one can take. The factors to pay attention to are, of course, the flavors of the food, as well as the mouthfeel and general eating experience. Fried foods like chicken wings or French fries are saturated with oil, which can dominate the palate and make it hard to sense more delicate flavors. When choosing a beer, you’ll want one that has strong enough flavors to stand up to heavy food, and a healthy amount of carbonation to break up the residual fat left on your palate.

American-style pale ales (also known as APAs) tend to be more carbonated than English pale ales (also known as ESBs, or extra special bitters), so if you’re eating something really greasy, you may want to go American to thoroughly cleanse your palate. In either case, the beer’s flavor won’t get lost in the richness of the food, and the carbonation will be extra refreshing between bites.

Massie also advises diners to pay attention to the IBU of a beer, which stands for International Bitterness Units and, as you can probably guess, measures how bitter a beer is. Pale ales typically have an IBU in the range of 30 to 50 (with a score of 120 indicating maximum bitterness), and Massie advises diners to lean toward the lower end of this range.

“Bitterness isn’t all bad, but not all dishes will benefit from a bitter beer,” Massie said. “Generally with fried foods, like classic pub foods, I usually recommend going middle-of-the-road and choosing a beer somewhere in the range of 25 to 45 IBU.” Most breweries don’t print the IBUs on bottle labels, so you might want to do a little research before hitting the store.

The actual flavor notes of both styles of pale ales can vary widely, but English pale ales tend to have a little bit more malty sweetness alongside the hoppy bitterness, offering notes of caramel or toffee. American pale ales typically offer more hops and are known for their more bitter flavor profiles. In fact, the company Massie works for, Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., is generally recognized as having invented this style of beer through its incorporation of Cascade hops, which offers a grapefruit-like taste and aroma. American-style pale ales will be predictably easier to find in the U.S. than other kinds, especially if you don’t have access to a solid bottle shop.

Read the original article on Daily Meal.

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A Florida man was arrested after throwing a beer at a vehicle he believed was going too fast in his neighborhood, subsequently leading him to shoot his AR-15 rifle, according to officials.

Eric Proctor told investigators that he threw a beer can at a vehicle because the driver was speeding in the neighborhood and that he then confronted the driver about speeding, Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said in a video posted to social media.

Proctor said he was going to grab his AR-15 and returned to fire his gun, Judd said.

FLORIDA POLICE IMPOSE OLD-FASHIONED PUNISHMENT ON TEENS THROWING EGGS: ‘A COMPROMISE WAS ORGANIZED’

Eric Proctor said he threw a beer can at a vehicle because the driver was speeding in the neighborhood, according to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office. He later confronted the driver about driving too fast. (Polk County Sheriff’s Office)

“He went to his house, and he comes out with his rifle, and the dude shoots three times,” Judd said. “Once in the air and twice on the ground.”

Deputies said Proctor denied the allegations against him, but Judd revealed neighborhood video footage showing a man believed to be Proctor in the act.

FLORIDA MOTHER, SCHOOL-AGED DAUGHTER SURVIVE ‘FREAK ACCIDENT’ AFTER TIRE SMASHES THROUGH WINDSHIELD: POLICE

Neighborhood video footage captured a man believed to be Eric Proctor carrying his rifle back into the house after shooting it at the ground and in the air. (Polk County Sheriff’s Office)

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Proctor is facing felony charges of aggravated assault and is being held in the county jail.

“If you’re that stirred up, just call us,” Judd said. “We’ll deal with it, and you won’t end up in jail charged with a felony.”

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One of the Triangle’s most revered and frequented bottle shop brands is scheduled to shut its doors next month.

The proprietor of Sam’s Bottle Shop made the announcement that its South Durham beer haven will cease operations on Feb. 11, marking a decade-long journey.

The terminus symbolizes the end of an even more extended saga for the Sam’s brand, an influential figure in inciting the Triangle’s fondness for artisanal beer, through its entities Sam’s Quik Shop and Bottle Shop.

“The last 40 years, out of the total 80 years of our family business, have been an enormous blessing for me,” expressed owner John Boy in a video release on the Sam’s Bottle Shop Facebook page. “Over these years, I’ve become acquainted with countless customers, industry insiders and struck up many friendships. The layers of love and support from all of you have been heartwarming. Taking leave is proving to be a profound challenge.”

Sam’s Bottle Shop was established in 2014 and despite its closure after 10 years, its commitment to advocating for craft beer in the Triangle remains as part of its heritage.

Back in 1947, Carl Boy and his family began a gas station business on Erwin Road in Durham, which eventually transitioned into the Blue Light Restaurant.

Upon the restaurant’s closure in 1974, it was transformed into Sam’s Quik Shop, functioning as a convenience store.

Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, according to John Boy, his mother Gerry ensured a variety of beer options that extended beyond typical American brands. Under her influence, the Quik Shop highlighted imported beers and, to the extent possible at the time, craft beers.

John Boy indicated that as the demand for craft beer rose, the Quik Stop’s business model gradually transitioned from a traditional convenience store model to resemble that of a bottle shop more closely.

In recent years, Sam’s Quik Shop, under the management of John Boy, the grandson of Carl, shifted its focus onto craft beer from the United States and the rest of the world. It was one of the select locations in Triangle where enthusiasts of beer could consistently locate the latest west coast IPA, unique Belgian lambics, and much more.

In a telephonic conversation, Boy commented, “Its popularity continued to grow exponentially. As the demand increased, other sections of the store were gradually phased out and replaced with craft beer. It is important to note that this transformation would never have been possible if my mother had not started selling the then-available beer. At that time, no other store was venturing into this.”

John Boy sold the property situated on Erwin Road to a real estate developer named Wilmorite Construction in 2018. The deal was valued at $5 million. Subsequently, Sam’s Quik Shop had to shut down towards the year’s end. Presently, a seven-story student housing complex named Blue Light Living occupies that site, which pays homage to the previous occupant Blue Light Restaurant.

In closing Sam’s Quik Shop, Boy noted the property’s legacy and various forms in Durham.

“I would like to thank the generations of customers and employees that have walked through the doors of The Blue Light and Sam’s Quik Shop,” Boy said in the Facebook post on Dec. 31, 2018. “Thank you for your support, loyalty and your neighbor-like spirit. This is not an easy decision to come to and I thought about so many things, my parents, me growing up in this store, the changing times from when it was a diner & drive-in to a convenience store with movie rentals and a large beer selection to the premier beer store in North Carolina it has become today.”

Sam’s Bottle Shop continued on for the last five years, offering a larger retail and drinking space and a rooftop bar. Boy owns the Bottle Shop building and said there isn’t yet another business lined up to take it over.

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On a recent trip, I met a bartender named Nick who hailed from Belgium. Having never been there, I grilled him about certain Belgian beers and how they were viewed in his homeland.

We covered a wide span of topics, but what found most interesting about our chat was Nick’s combination of semi-surprise and minor confusion – let’s call it puzzlement – over the seemingly endless plethora of beer choices outside his country.

Belgium is known for some of the best beers going, but Nick said he was amazed about how many variations of the same styles can be found even in one bar. He said that in Belgium, most bars might have between five and eight taps, but also more bottled beer than in many other countries he’s been to.

It certainly didn’t seem like a complaint. Likewise, I sometimes ruminate on the cornucopia of beer choices with at least a small bit of bemusement. And like Nick, my thoughts don’t represent any sort of criticism. But I do wonder if the seemingly endless parade of variety is necessary. There doesn’t seem to be any downside: “the more, the merrier” and all that sort of thing, right?

And people love having choices and options. I know I do.

But Nick mentioned one problem with having so many options in one bar.

“It would be hard to control myself and not try them all,” he said, tongue in cheek.

This led me to wonder if there is such a thing as too many choices.

I’m sure we’ve all faced decisions where the options seemed overwhelming and we wished for a narrower field of choices. Sometimes certain details of a decision aren’t that important to us, and we’d just rather not have to deal with them.

With beer, I have seen customers walk into a bar with dozens of beers on tap and look a bit bewildered. Maybe they’re new to craft beer or maybe they’re just casual fans. Now, let’s assume that they know they like IPAs in general, but aren’t overly familiar with all the nuances the style has to offer.

They stare at the beer menu or lineup of tap handles and see four or five different IPAs (which isn’t unusual these days). While a lot of beer bars gladly give out samples, Nick winced a little about dealing with this type of situation.

“I can see giving two or three tastes, but not five,” he said.

And even for me, having a surfeit of choices can give me pause. Sometimes it’s just difficult to make up your mind. What if you choose wrong?

Well, the good thing about beer is that you can always choose again. And that’s better than having restricted options, right?

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The real reason root beer was invented wasn’t for the creation of root beer floats, although these delightful ice cream based drinks are a wonderful fringe benefit. It was actually a result of colonial settlers’ innovation to attempt beer production without hops. Despite not becoming a true beer, this beverage has developed its own unique place in our assortment of drink choices over time. Root beer has earned its position in the cooling box full of soda for outdoor gatherings, but interestingly, it also has a place in your favourite pot of chili. This seemingly odd inclusion may actually be a secret weapon to make this well-loved dish enjoyable for both children and adults.

The addition of root beer provides the chili with both a subtle sweetness and a sharp, herbal spice that gastronomy enthusiasts will find tantalizing on the palate. This fizzy drink incorporates flavours extracted from sassafras root, licorice, wintergreen, vanilla, cloves, cinnamon, molasses, and sugar. These are all flavours that perfectly complement a bowl of chili. The soda’s sweetness is well-balanced and helps to alleviate some of the spiciness of the chili recipe. Simply replace some of your tomato juice with root beer or use it instead of the beer that you would normally add.

Read more: Tips You Need When Cooking With Ground Beef

However, it’s important to remember to add your root beer to your chili slowly due to the carbonation. Bubbles will fizz and sizzle when exposed to heat. As the root beer cooks along with your ingredients, its flavour is going to intensify, and it will assist in tenderizing the meat in your hearty winter dish.

Be careful about being heavy-handed when you pour. Root beer, by its nature, is sweet, so it may take some trial and error to discover just how much of it you want to add. Some recipes call for a single can while others suggest using more. Just remember, chili is about balance. You want to make certain the sweet, the savory, and the heat are all aligned. If one is out of sync, it throws the whole pot off. So, if you find your chili is teetering towards too sweet, reach for a little squeeze of lemon or a splash of vinegar to smooth it out. Try this root beer trick the next time you make Texas red chili or live on the wild side and give your classic Cincinnati chili a new take.

Read the original article on Tasting Table.