Unless you live under a rock (as I admittedly sometimes do), you know that this evening, Obama is to have a beer with Professor Henry Louis Gates Jr of Harvard and Sgt James Crowley of the Cambridge Police Dept. Why? Because that’s what men (and sometimes women) do to solve problems. It’s less costly/taxing than war, and arguably much more fun.
“What will they drink?” you ask. It is reported that Crowley will drink Blue Moon, Gates will drink Red Stripe, and Obama will drink Bud Light. To each their own, I suppose. But there is some controversy over what they SHOULD be drinking. An outcry over their choices by American craft brewers such as Dogfish Head (@dogfishbeer) thinks that the President and his guests should be celebrating American craft brews at such a high-profile event. I am inclined to agree, although my philosophy of ‘drink what you like’ conflicts a bit, which is clearly what is being done here.
I had a conversation with one of my instructors this morning about this very subject. He said that when one discussing heavy subjects such as nuclear arms, or in this case, racial tensions, a beer most likely to keep that person AWAKE rather than put them to sleep is ideal – his suggestion: Castle Lager from South Africa, as it represents unity in an incredibly diverse geographic area. I’ve never had Castle Lager, but I suggested Peroni – as who can resist non-fascist Italians? Everyone loves Italy, just as everyone loves Irish pubs. And what a wonderful summer beer it is.
While both of these choices are not American made beers, I’m not entirely sure the beer has to be American-made to be conducive to discussion, which is the reason for the meeting in the first place. Certainly there are comparable American beers, and Presidents have a long standing tradition of enjoying American-made brews. George Washington, for an example, was especially fond of the Porter-style:
“We have already been too long subject to British Prejudices. I use no porter or cheese in my family, but that which is made in America: both these articles may now be purchased of an excellent quality.”
Perhaps we can convert our own President to this mindset.
Anyway, Toast tonight with Dogfish Head (www.dogfish.com) tonight at 5pm Central time (that’s 90 min from now!) as we celebrate American craft brewing. Live link: http://bit.ly/TcM1V
American beer or not, let’s celebrate how beer can bring us together. Good thinking, Mr. President.
Ein Prosit.
- Jameson Huckaba
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Awesome post! Well done!