Let Them Down Easy
Categories: Featured, General beer discussions, wheat beer
Written By: THFBeer_nate
Growing up, a very simple rule regarding food and mealtimes was enforced upon my siblings and I: Eat what is placed in front of you, no if’s and/or but’s. That was it. Whether we adored the cuisine or detested it, we had to eat every last bite, and had to do so with a good attitude…after all, we were blessed to have ample provisions. My wife and I continue this practice with our children. Harsh as it may seem, it is for the best interest of our children. Not only does it avoid embarrassment upon themselves should they be served a less desirable dish as a guest in someone’s home, they develop broader, more sophisticated palates.
I not only enforce this rule upon my children, but upon myself. I have eaten weird looking whole fish with gypsies in Croatia, canine with poor laborers in El Salvador, and plenty of my own unfortunate culinary concoctions. The same is true for beer. if I am a guest in someone’s home, I’ll drink what they serve me, given they don’t first offer me a choice.
While dining at my sister’s apartment a couple of months ago, a friend of hers picked up that I was really into better beer. He excitedly ran across the hall to his apartment and returned with a 22 ounce bomber of Bud Light Golden Wheat for me to try. Anyone reader of this site knows that I don’t jump up and down with joy over an InBev product, especially those of the “light” variety.
Nonetheless, just like I instruct my children, I cordially and gratefully accepted the imbibement. Like I tend to do when I offer a guest some of my homebrew, he watched me take my first sip. Facial reactions are a dead giveaway to one’s satisfaction or distaste, so I mounted a stoic look and dove in.
He quickly, and excitedly asked me, “What do you think?!”
I paused, and didn’t answer. I took another sip, doing justice to his generosity. The Bud Light Golden Wheat was pale and watery. There was no noticeable hop qualities. There was generic orange flavor, as you may find in a bottle of Blue Moon, but it was more pronounced in the Golden Wheat. There were wheat qualities: Bready and earthy. While this beer would not achieve a high rating on this site (maybe 2 stars out of five) it was a bit better than the perception formed in my presuppositions.
Now I had to respond. Just as I value returned hospitality when offered an undesirable, I value honesty as well. The young man was so cordial and giving, I did not want to offend him. Besides, he was clearly embarking on a journey into better beer. Far be it from me to let a haughty response deter him. I think many interested beer drinkers have gone back into the insipid world of macro beers after being burned by a tactless beer geek.
After thanking him for the beer, my response was, in essence, “I’m not a typical fan of Budweiser or Budlight, thus I have not tried this beer yet. But, it was better than I expected (true), it is way better than standard Budlight (true), and I have had a few craft wheat beers that could learn a thing or two from this brew (true).” I then pointed out a few flavors I picked up on and made some suggestions of other (craft) brews he might enjoy since he was so fond of Budlight Golden Wheat.
The whole purpose of this account was to point out that many people who know us as “beer guys” pander for approval. Much like the subject of the Chris Isaak song, while we don’t have to enthusiastically approve of their tastes, we should humbly let them down easy. Now, if another beer geek offers me a pint for review, the gloves are coming off, as that is what he/she expects.
Have you had any recent offerings like this? What was your response? Thoughts? Comments?
February 3rd, 2010 at 11:35 am
Probably better the most people, I’m not sure I could /would have been so courteous, even though I would like to be. I usually can suck it up, but most people already know what I do so rarely do I find myself in that situation. Last weekend I had a Heineken, it pair up perfectly with the bland chicken at the event. But then again no body asked me what i thought about it.
In your situation, I would make the assumption that it would be easier to put on the game face with the amount of excitement the person showed towards the beer.
February 3rd, 2010 at 12:03 pm
mmmm…heineken and bland chicken.
there are numerous factors I didn’t explore. I griped at my sister’s wedding that all she had on tap was coors light. But that was a whole different scenario.
February 3rd, 2010 at 12:56 pm
I thought that it was handled very well, and really allowed you to introduce some other beers to the novice. I never make fun of or put down a free beer. That is a sign of respect between two people. I have a friend that would drink a BudLight over anything else, no matter what I put infront of him. I know what he likes, but he still accepts whatever beer I grab for him (the Arrogant Bastard woke him up once). At least now he is getting into Russian Imperial Stouts.
February 3rd, 2010 at 1:23 pm
Nice! I think being gracious in those situations is the key. You’re right to say that you could have done more harm than good by turning up your nose. Next time you will be able to share something with him because you let him do the same.
February 3rd, 2010 at 4:38 pm
Props to you sir, as you are a better man than I. As much as I want to be respectful and not such a condescending beer geek, when there’s poo poo beer around and a friend asks my opinion, I’m usually too honest. And that more than likely turns the macro drinkers completely off. Hopefully, going forward, I can learn a bit from this post.
February 3rd, 2010 at 7:02 pm
I think you did good Nate. Heck, Liz brought this Golden Wheat to one of our beer exchanges. Sure I gave here dirty looks and shook my fist at her, but the rules we have state that any beer can be brought in. So, I gave it a fair shake, and like you found it better than I had expected to might be. Still, it was pretty bad.
http://thebrewclub.com/2009/10/26/bud-light-golden-wheat-beer-review/
I think the other good thing that comes from drinking something like this once in awhile is that you REALLY get a sense of how good we have it when it comes to beer. People literally have no idea what they are missing.
February 4th, 2010 at 8:07 am
Nate – In my opinion, perfect approach. I’ve never understood beer snobery. This situation usually arises in “beer bars”. If someone comes into a bar with a good beer selection and orders a Miller Lite and the bartender makes fun of him, the guy probably drinks his beer, leaves, and never returns. Why not be kind and recommend a quality microbrewed pilsner instead? That way everyone wins. If he still wants the Miller Lite, who cares? It’s his loss.
February 4th, 2010 at 8:16 am
Good call Zack. I’ve seen a few good bartenders at good beer bars do exactly that – get the man his Corona he ordered, and when he comes back, hands him a sample glass of something similar that he might like. And that approach usually works.
February 4th, 2010 at 1:50 pm
As most of the commenters have noted, we could all probably be more forgiving in our encounters with people we meet who are just starting to see the entire world of beers available.
When pressed on why I may turn down a beer from Inbev or SAB or if I say that I don’t like it, I explain that I wish that they would do better. They have all the tools to make world class beer technically proficient brewers, access to whatever raw materials needed and state of the art equipment. I attempt to end on the hopeful note that maybe the presence of craft beer will encourage them to “up their game”.
Most people I talk to understand this position because we all have dealt with products, be it toasters or cars, that aren’t made as well as they could be.
February 6th, 2010 at 5:55 am
I run into this situation with music a lot. When I was younger I wondered a lot why so many people around me seemed almost afraid to discuss music with me… I’ve had to learn how to be a little more gentle with my opinion since then. Also, doing as you did and recommending related, easier to approach music/beer/etc. shows effort and encourages exploration.
I’m young in a college town. It’s a hipster college town though, so you run into quite few people who have at least had a few decent beers. I’ve had the opportunity to get one of my very good friends trying different beers (he loves Arrogant Bastard and Stone IPA but drinks anything I put in front of him). I still have a tendency to make snide comments about BMC beers though…
My mom won’t drink anything other than wine and when she does drink beer likes Bud Light. I did some beer pairings with Thanksgiving dinner and didn’t have much luck with her… I’m going to have to try a little harder next time I’m home. La Fin Du Monde and Ephemere would probably do it.. maybe something with a lot of plumb or grape notes?
That was way longer than originally intended…
February 6th, 2010 at 8:39 am
Juiceman, try Allagash Victoria. it’s pricey, but its very white wine like.
February 6th, 2010 at 10:38 am
Garret Oliver suggests Saison (either Dupont or Hennepin) with Thanksgiving dinner and I can see why. All that herbal spiciness with such a refreshing wheat quality…that’s what I’m bringing this year.
As far as your response being long, don’t worry about it. We like when people write a lot; it means they have something to say. I don’t have much luck with my mom either. She likes my homebrewed oatmeal stout and will try almost anything. Yet, she still goes to Bud. I think she will change her mind at some point but at least she’s trying for now. Most of my friends will try anything but it’s because I try to be gracious. with them.
@Sean. I think you’re right. Already these companies have the potential to be great. To make great stuff, they choose to intentionally dumb their product down. That’s a good way to explain your position.
February 6th, 2010 at 3:34 pm
+1,000,000 on a Saison with Thanksgiving, it’s an absolutely sublime pairing! I did Goose Island’s Sofie with our big dinner last year, and I couldn’t get enough.
February 7th, 2010 at 9:42 am
Yum! I still haven’t had that one but I love stuff outside their normal line-up.