On it goes...1400 days

  In 72 hours it will happen...
  1400 straight days.
  Almost 4 years of beer.
  Sunrise and sunset, elbows up and pints down for longer than I could have ever imagined doing anything. Since November 21st, 2015, I have drank at least one beer and wrote about it on Instagram. Well over 4000 posts, beer reviews, pictures and videos now reside in the vacuum of the internet to show the universe who I was long after I am gone...a little scary to be sure. Why did it happen? How? When will it stop? Should it?
  I don't know.

  In the beginning, it was all in fun, there was no intention of writing about beer every day, never mind sharing my life, grand failures and triumphs et all, with the world. I was just a guy discovering a new world and seeing beer differently for the first time since he discovered how good it made him feel two plus decades before. Slowly, things grew and changed organically, set pieces with thought out backgrounds and stories faded as I realised it was just about the beer and my daily existence with it that was what my purpose was. I began with a thought to share beer with the world and that became the driving force behind everything I do. I decided without consciously knowing it that I would write about things as I did them, as I drank them and with little thought to anything but my own truth.

  There is no master plan, no hustle to what I do every day. I don't have a cache of posts, blog or Instagram, YouTube videos or poems for Twitter saved up on my phone or computer. I try to live very much in the exact moment I am experiencing things and leave the well thought out and executed stuff to those far smarter and more dedicated than I. Truth be told, once done with something, I have left it there as a marker in my life, moving on with the knowledge that I was there, but now I'm gone.

I have too much respect for people who work so hard to create amazing images and videos, thoughtfully written treatises on craft beer and other things to believe that I possess the patience or structure to do any of that. I am a fan of the beautiful and the mundane, the words that flow and the pictures that capture my eye every damn day. I love the passion so many people have found for crafting a small part of this niche in the world for themselves, some for fun, some for profit and some because they just want to feel like they are part of something a little bigger than themselves. I am an encourager of expression, a minstrel of positive messages and a believer that craft beer has changed a lot of lives for the better in a world that often seems hell bent on taking away the joy and community of people who just want to live and love with abandon and an open heart.

  I have fallen out with people I thought were friends, made new ones and found old ones once again. I have offended and fought battles with words, given shots and taken them in defense of beliefs I didn't know I had. I have loved and lived with the idea that the simple act of sharing a beer picture can make the world a little better for someone not having a good day. If my videos make someone laugh or encourages them to do something creative because even this old war horse does it, then I feel like I've done my part right. If my pictures gave anyone the idea to do it themselves or my words moved them to write their own, then it was all worth every pint and every agonized moment after I hit send. I wish I had the drive to create a space in the world where my words and love of great beer made me an income, but I long ago came to grips with the direction and ambitions I have. I salute and will help lift up anyone who is trying to capture lightning in a bottle and create something of value for themselves and their future, I see you and will always have your back. I help promote things and people I believe in, my voice added to a cast that can be in single digits or tens of thousands, no matter the number, know that I believe in you and what you're doing if it is a positive impact on the world.
  Thank you, my friends, for being a part of this, a trip round the sun 4 years long and many, many pints deep. Things have changed so much in our community since I began and while I prefer to sit sidelines as home and share that experience with you, know that I am cheering you on as you go forth and find your own piece of the pie. What I do is who I am, be yourself and do things in a way that makes you proud, happy and filled with joy...I feel it everyday.

Cheers!
Polk
 

Beer as Art

 

Brewing is a science. There is no doubt that it takes a serious commitment to brew great beer, from the cleaning and preparation, to the recipe to the execution, it all matters. Home brewing a 5 litre batch or making a commercially available 50 hectolitre tank come down to the same basic functions of temperature control, what you use and when and a little bit of the spark we all hope to see when we open the final product. It is that spark that separates the craft beer we drink now from the macro we used to consume with such devotion, the art of creating and designing something new is what we seek and that is what I celebrate today.
  To brew a consistently good beer, like Great Lakes Brewery Canuck Pale Ale or Collective Arts Ransack the Universe IPA is a truly brilliant thing. Maintaining the flavour profile batch to batch so that it never wavers from the original intent is the mark of pure and level headed brewing. Recipe locked and loaded, the steps known to everyone involved in the process and the final product something that is always the same, time after time. There is a subtle art to keeping this standard of excellence and it should be applauded, it is what the macro producers learned a long time ago and some craft brewers must either get on board with or perish as consumers start to expect that level of quality every damn time. But the unique experience of creating something new is not to be dismissed amidst the regular options we see available year round, for they are where art meets beer and we are most grateful for that.
  Waxing poetic? Perhaps, but the transformation in just a few short years of a dead palate and sombre consumption to a vivid and colourful exploration of a world of flavours is something to be damn excited about in my humble opinion. Taking a page from the artists of long ago, many brewers today seek to push the absolute boundaries of what we consider beer and with that embolden us to seek a new understanding of who and what we are as drinkers and consumers. When we see something new and shiny, we are drawn to it, craft beer has always been about that for so many of us. We want the next thing, the better and bolder expression, and with that comes a certain trepidation as others settle into a style lock and paying the bills means having an offering like everyone else and the public at large feels they need to seek at each successive stop. Hazy IPAs, lagered ales or even low level kettle sours become the pedestrian choice for so many to keep the lights on and without a doubt, there is a segment of beer drinker who will turn up their nose at anything but said IPA or sour if a brewery heads in another direction. I feel for the brewer that feels they must make these bill payers but understand completely the business of staying afloat.
  But let's now turn our practiced palates and perhaps slightly cynical heads a little at the beer list and begin to explore the world of one offs and creativity that really shines when given the chance. An old style revived with care and passion, brought to life in an injection of inspiration, lager made well, saison shown respect and given a spin never seen before or even the IPA hit with something from far out of what your mind had ever considered before.  I will assure you that not every idea will see fruition as a beer you love, no doubt some will fall short for your particular palate, but it is in trying and experimenting that so many of the things we love as our regular beers came to be real. It is the willingness of a brewer to step back, look around and say "I can do this differently.." that brings us to a next level in our pursuits.
  Bold changes in direction or style in any art is often met with resistance at first, we crave the comfort and familiarity of the known, even in the chase for the new, We circle back to the same breweries because we know them, we trust them and at the end of the day, the more choice we have, the more likely we are to default to that very setting. Breaking the chain means pushing yourself, much like some of our favourite places do, and being willing to admit that you can still learn more.
  Life is about balance, choices and challenges. Balance your expectations, choose to seek out the new and bold and challenge your palate...always.

Cheers!

Polk