It's an odd thing, family. We grow together and even in close proximity, maybe never really "get" what makes it special until well after the fact.
Some of us, at least.
I started getting into beer in my college days, but wasn't a Card Carrying Geek until around 2009 or so. I started homebrewing in 2011, buying my first pieces of equipment and recipe kit that fall. Unbeknownst to me, so did my brother. He had been living in Seattle, and still does, and even on literal opposite ends of the country, we had somehow managed to synch up our brainwaves. Independently, our love for beer had taken us to a new space that we came to understand we actually shared.
Josh sends me beer as a holiday gift every year. I've sent him stuff back. When I visit, we hop around breweries and he lets me raid his ridiculously impressive cellar for rarities I never thought I'd actually taste. One time, we hung out with a friend of his so we could watch the magic of making a clone of Westvleteren 12, considered to be among the best beers in the world.
The two of us traveled in Belgium a couple years ago, Josh playing tour guide and me happily following along, falling in love with centuries-old bars or beer that made brief moments feel like home.
Josh and I have shared a lot, and our love for beer has often been at the center of it in recent years. Outside of this, Josh is also a Very Smart Man. Which is why I'm not surprised he's taken his considerable talents for research and analysis into the realm of beer.
And, if you've read this blog over the years, you know this is a place I like to hang out, too. Talk about activating our Wonder Twin powers.
Over on Instagram, Josh has started an experiment of sorts, working to give quantitative value assessments to beers. As " The Flocconomist," he's trying to inform other enthusiasts that big bucks don't always mean a big experience. There are tens of thousands of beers we can find in the U.S. alone, and I'm excited to follow along for the way he'll look at it all.
Yes, this is pretty much an endorsement post, but it's also a reminder about the odd randomness of life. Josh and I are family, but we're also friends, and we continue to find commonalities that circle each other and beer.
All in the pursuit of getting what makes both those things so special.
I'd suggest checking out what Josh is up to if you're interested about beer, pricing, and where they meet. His basic primer:
