Beer Class

Did you know that a beer a day keeps alzheimer’s away? That’s according to a 2005 study that moderate drinking (one bottle a day of beer) lowers the risk of mental decline by up to 20 percent compared to the non-drinkers. In addition, more women who downed one drink a day scored more than those 18 months “younger” on tests of mental skills  compared to  non drinkers.

I would have wanted  to have that kind of answer last week when I attended a “Beer Class” at the Bartenders Association.  Allan, our teacher, gave us the history, process of brewing beer and the different kinds as well.  Because of his extensive technical experience on beer, (he was the CEO for  that famous brewery above EATALY- a famous Italian establishment owned by famous chefs, Mario Bataly and Lidia Bastianich in Manhattan)  - he was able to distinguish different kinds of beers he had tasted from all over the world.  Presently there are 5,000 different kinds of beers in America alone.  Home made breweries from different localities, have been sprouting and have reached many a store’s shelves across the U.S. aside from those overseas.

Beer, like wine, has many advantages and it’s not just a second rate anaesthesia, but rather there are medicinal purposes. Dr. Oz , in his show, said that you can have a beer bath to treat psoriasis or similar skin problems.  Just add 2 cups of beer to a warm bath to have that healthier skin.

Also it is a cure for many diseases like cancer, avoids kidney stones, and reduces the risk of heart disease.  Moreover, those who drank beer had 30% more vitamin B6 than the non-drinkers.

If a sommelier is for wines, a cicerone is for beer.  There are three levels in beer connoseiur before one becomes a real expert  .  Initially, one first becomes certified as a beer server, which then leads to another certification into being a cicerone.  Finally one becomes only a master cicerone when one has fully complied with all the requirements of a full pledged beer expert.  From brewing, storage, process, tasting, pairing, including   sales and services among those that one needs to learn.  Although this educational process is fairly new since it was established in 2008, there are only about 10,00 cicerones in the U.S. 

And the saying about "wine before beer is queer, but beer before wine is fine" is totally a myth.  I am presuming whoever said that worked for a beer company thinking  you would be  too drunk to consume wine after downing several beers. Thus beer would up sales....smart but not really since it has been paired with higher spirits!

As a matter of fact below are some popular beer cocktails...

Beer Buster Sake Bomb

glass of beer half a glass of beer

1 1/2 oz. vodka 1 oz. sake 

2 dashes Tabasco Sauce drop the shot of sake

Stir gently into the half glass of beer   then drink