INFLUENCER MEETUP: BEER FANDOM MATTERS

BEER FANDOM MATTERS AN INFLUENCER MEETUP

In our Fall 2017 issue, What's Brewing shone a spotlight on a few newcomers to the world of 'craft beer media.' Three years later, getting the word out about supporting independent BC craft beer seems more important than ever. So, once again we celebrate the contributions of of BC's volunteer beer advocates.

We've selected a sextet who became craft beer influencers during the 2010s, and asked them what they think of their personal craft beer fandom in 2020. Here are some of their abridged takes. Keep your eyes on our website for individual spotlights!

HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN A CRAFT BEER BOOSTER?

Mike G: Mike’s Craft Beer was founded June, 2012. Pacific Beer Chat's first podcast was March 2015. Mike A: Telling the good word since February 2014.

Carnell: I've been going since late 2014!

Matt: I started around mid-2016, mostly on the education side.

Alana: First D + A Instagram post: May 2017.

Malcolm: I also became an official beer booster in May 2017. But I've been boostin' bottles of craft since the early aughts, amigo.

HOW DID YOU GET INTO CRAFT BEER? WAS THERE A 'GATEWAY BEER'?

Initially, I was much more into wine. In early 2015, the staff at my local West End liquor store urged me to try a new ale they were carrying: Nectarous by Four Winds. It was in a champagne bottle with cork & cage, so this lured the bubbly fanatic in me like a moth to a flame.

On a trip to Australia I was offered a beer described as "Australia's best". I wondered if it really was the best and spent the rest of the trip seeking out comparisons. When I arrived home I had a similar goal for Canadian beer. Pacific Beer Chat recording live on location

I had a hollow leg that I filled most nights with Kootenay & Bud. Malnourished and neglected, the leg began to atrophy. Thankfully a good doctor prescribed me modest doses of BC's finest beers, and now the damned thing's bionic.

Growing up in Campbell River, BC, I may have been surrounded by Lucky, Canadian, and Blue drinkers, but I would always look for smaller, more independent beer options, like Vancouver Island Brewing and occasionally Shaftebury.

The original Granville Island Winter Ale was a big eye opener for me. My brothers and I would eagerly await its arrival every year.

WHAT STYLES ARE YOU INTO TODAY?

These days, I find myself seeking out a good ESB or Gose. I love a good bock, especially a doppelbock or an Eisbock. There's something about the rich, malty nature of the style that just draws me in.

HOW DID YOU COME TO BLOG ABOUT BEER?

My friend Steve Hoffmann was my catalyst into craft beer, basically. When I told him I was starting to share and blog about beer he was jacked to join in. Full story online

As for podcasting, I started to search for beer-related podcasts and found Four Brewers Podcast from California. Four guys with a wealth of knowledge of beer but also a funny side. I branched out from there.

I began my foray into reporting on beer in December 2013 with an International Beer Advent Calendar. Most of the beer being sub-par, I posted about it on my personal Facebook page, and people thought it was funny. My wife-to-be, tired of hearing me spout off, said "Why don't you write a blog about it." So I did.

In 2016, I took time off work and immersed myself, passing the first level of the Cicerone Certification Program. I knew I wanted to take the base knowledge and passion I had and expand it, so I dove in with both feet and haven't looked back.

MIKE G. MIKE A. MATT CARNELL ALANA MALCOLM

MEET OUR PANEL OF CRAFT BEER ADVOCATES

Mike Garson, founder of Mike’s Craft Beer, Pacific Beer Chat and Brew Crime, and occasional event judge. @pacificbeerchat

Mike Ansley, aka The BeerRater: offering an unfiltered view on the world of craft beer. @thebeerrater

Mathieu Poirier of Matter of Beer: Certified Cicerone®, Beer

Columnist for Monday Magazine. @matterofbeer HOW DID YOU PICK YOUR HANDLE? It was a Seussian confluence of geography and meter: Sea to Sky Beer Guy rolls off the tongue as playfully as beer rolls in. I was regularly searching for new sours, so my local liquor store staff nicknamed Sour Girl...and it stuck! @thebeerrater was originally pronounced "The Berater". Get it? It was a dumb name then, and it still is now. Watching my local Port Moody scene grow. The central geographic feature here is Burrard Inlet, so I simply smashed "Brew" into it... although many don't make the connection.

First off, my name is Matt. Secondly, my passion was the subject matter of beer. Finally, it was a play on being matterof-fact, which I try to be. WHEN COVID-19 HIT, WHAT WERE YOUR THOUGHTS FOR THE BEER INDUSTRY? I'd be lying if I didn't say 'grim'. Not just the industry I love, but it seemed the world itself had rounded third base en route to the flaming hoop of home plate. I thought this might be how the ancient Romans felt before their empire crumbled...then I remembered those poor bastards didn't have the luxury of craft beer to wash down the taste of ash. Truthfully I really worried about the breweries and their staff. I had some doomsday thoughts in my head for sure. I didn't know what to think. With BC already losing a couple of breweries before this started, I was afraid more were on their way out. But the way the industry rallied together has given me a lot of hope. Beverage Alcohol has long been a recession and disaster-proof industry. I wasn't that worried about it dying off. I Carnell Turton of Breward Inlet: living his best beer life with wife Banny. If the beer's not good, he'll say it. @brewardinlet

Alana Marin Bourne, aka Sour Girl: beer and wine adventures alongside Dave 'The Heretic'. @sourgirlandtheheretic

Malcolm Yates, aka Sea To Sky Beer Guy: comes out of

retirement to share his eloquence with us. @seatoskybeerguy was more interested to see how the industry would pivot to find a way through.

I thought it would be tough, but I was confident the community would pull together—and it has. Things like the Four Winds collab in support of Alibi Room show this industry is strong even when times are tough. That said, it is clear that 2020 will be the start of a slow down..

While I was anxious for the breweries, at the same time I felt confident that the things that make our industry so special would help them adapt to the unexpected challenges. And so many have done just that.

It really feels like they eagerly celebrate each other's successes and commiserate through the tough times, rather than simply being competitors for the same dollar.

HOW DID THIS ALL AFFECT YOUR PERSONAL CONSUMPTION?

I was part of the hive mind driving liquor sales through the roof during those murky months.

I've been talking about and directing people to our local BC breweries more and I am actually buying locally more.

More talking, more drinking.

I'm in a household with somebody who is immunocompromised, so I haven't been able to expand my bubble. I've taken advantage of a lot of packaged products, and have been focussing on supporting the industry in ways I can for the time being.

HOW MUCH DO YOU MISS THE EVENTS?

I always look forward to events like Weathered, VCBW Fest and GCBF, including my volunteer shifts. It’s difficult to pick a favorite, but if I had to choose only one it would be Farmhouse Fest.

They're a major focus of what I write about and promote, so I miss them all: Farmhouse Fest, GCBF, BC Beer Awards.

I miss all the events too. When you've been around the industry long enough, it doesn't matter which event you go to, you're sure to find a few friends. I miss my friends.

I am a person that definitely loves high fives, handshakes and hugs so it's been weird going from lots of contact to almost none overnight.

ANY THOUGHTS ABOUT LIQUOR LAW, OR WHAT GOVERNMENT SHOULD BE DOING?

The changes have been so nice to see, as the government seems to be listening. I would like to see a lot of the changes made permanent, as many of them were requested before March.

I have loved seeing cities like Vancouver finally get a clue and allow at least temporarily patios and I hope they become permanent. It's also high time they allow civilized people the chance to drink a beer, cider or wine in public.

I'm hoping being able to drink responsibly in public parks & beaches gains more traction. If people are allowed to light up a cigarette and have their smoke interrupt my good times, a beer that doesn't disturb anyone shouldn't be a problem.

This is something I have seen work successfully all over the world, and I am confident Metro Vancouverites can partake outdoors responsibly.

YOU ARE PART OF A "BEER COUPLE". DID BEER BRING YOU TOGETHER?

When I moved to Victoria to finish my degree in 2010, craft beer was everywhere. Then I found a girl [now Mike's wife Britt] who was obsessed with IPAs, and the rest is history!

Banny was into beer when we met, at Twin Sails where I was working. She had been trying to get one of her photos featured by Banny & Carnell a brewery, so our first date was taking photos for Twin Sails' Instagram. A short time later she started @BrewsBabesBanny.

Dave (@thebeerheretic) and I initially found each other on

Twitter, as both of us regularly attended the #BCwinechat held Wednesdays on Twitter. I was a wine lover who happened to be gravitating towards beer, and he was curious about wine. We began visiting breweries and attending events together and eventually evolved into Sour Girl and the Heretic.

WHAT ARE THE UPSIDES/DOWNSIDES OF BEING ON A BEER TEAM?

The coolest thing is quickly being injected into a local community that you otherwise might not be. It has been helpful for me in learning about beer, especially unfamiliar beer styles. Having a partner in your tasting experience often doubles the number of things you can both potentially experience.

Also we are both terrible at taking selfies so it is awesome to have someone else who can capture the moment. Alana & Dave

ANY PERSONAL ACCOMPLISHMENT OR MOMENT YOU’RE MOST PROUD OF?

Finally passing the Certified Cicerone® exam in 2018 was a huge moment for me. It confirmed that this wasn't just a hobby or a distraction, it was something that I had the knowledge and passion to do something with, and I feel I've managed to do that.

Being invited to brew some collaboration beers (as an individual and as part of Pacific Beer Chat) has been amazing! The CraftCoHop Photo Contest (yes, it will be making a return soon!) I loved bringing together local bloggers, influencers, and instagrammers to creatively promote a local beer. The growth of the community and friendships made because of it are the best part of this whole thing!

WHAT WOULD YOU TELL SOMEONE GETTING INTO BEER BLOGGING TODAY?

"Back off, get your own sandwich!" But seriously, I've turned what was originally just a blog into more than a full-time job, in addition to my full-time job. It's exhausting, but I love what I do, and the amazing people in this industry.

If you want to get into podcasting, do it because you love the subject. Don't give up if you are not an instant hit; if it is authentic people will listen. But if you are not passionate about what you are doing, it will die off because it is more work than you ever expected. Find whatever excites you most and focus on that, whether it’s a beer style, or a hop variety, or the breweries closest to you.

Decide on an angle, and lean into it. Watch out for accounts that pop up with "DM for collaborations". Do everything you can to deliver value. It's not about you, it's about the beer and the industry.

Be unique and don't go for the cheap growth. I've tried most ways of grabbing new followers, views, and likes, but the only thing that has really worked is honest networking, supporting my community, and loading every opportunity with as much value as I can.

Oh and no, we don't get lots of free beer, so it can get expensive.

The market is saturated and the pay is shite. You will frustrate your spouse and tax your tight jeans. Your moral compass will be ever tempted to totter from true to magnetic north; from enthusiast to shill, such is the ethical indifference of declination. Do it anyways and let the gods decide your fate.