Craft Beer Blog

This article/quiz was contributed by the amazing Elena Roundtree on behalf of Washington MAST. Elena herself is an beer lover who thinks the drink hasn’t been getting the credit it deserves. For more great beer (and other alcoholic drink) tips and recipes, follow Washington MAST on G+.

For years and years, wine drinkers have been indulging without guilt. They’re able to do so thanks to the health benefits that wine has to offer. Unfortunately, beer drinkers everywhere have had no choice but to sit by and watch. When faced with the excuse of “but wine is great for heart health” what can a beer drinker respond with?

As beer grows in popularity - more and more discussions have been taking place around which is better overall - beer or red wine. They both have their own health perks, pair nicely with certain foods, have different styles from different regions to try - but which one is much better. 

For far too long beer lovers have not been getting the respect they deserve. Why can’t a beer tasting be just as posh and sophisticated as a wine tasting? When a wine lover crafts his or her knowledge to become an expert in the subtleties of different wines, he or she is seen as connoisseur - why can’t the same hold true for beer lovers? In countries around the world beer has a rich history - including America. In fact, many of our founding fathers (including George Washington himself) were avid beer drinkers. It’s high time to celebrate beer drinkers, and here is a six pack of great gifts for the beer lover in your life.

With the ever-increasing range of beer styles available today - it has never been easier to pair your favorite meals with a perfect beer. While most people traditionally think of wine when they consider meal pairings - beer should absolutely not be ruled out any longer.

While many consider pumpking just a seasonal favorite, we here believe it is becoming much more of an evergreen staple in today's society. This is an easy, yet delicious recipe for pumpking beer bread which you can bring to a potluck, a family gathering or even a work function. No matter the function, this festive pumpkin beer bread will do the trick - we promise.

As more and more people are diagnosed with a gluten-intolerance, major beer companies are beginning to accommodate their needs - with gluten-free beers. These types of beers are also great for those who are trying to stray from carbs, like those on the paleolithic diet or Atkins diet.

One of the best parts about craft beer is that there are so many different styles, brands and companies injecting their personality into the beer while constantly pushing the limits. This is what makes the craft beer industry so amazing - but what is interesting, is that many of the craft brewers don't use preservatives in their beer decreasing the shelf life of said beer. If not imbibed in the appropriate amount of time or stored correctly, the beer can potentially go bad.

We've gone through some of the most acclaimed beers and based on a few factors, created a list of the ones that everybody must avoid. Some of the factors that attributed to the list were the following:

Prohibition, also known as the Noble Experiement, was a well-known historical period in the United States dating back to the 1920's and lasted for just under 14 years. The points leading up to prohibition were cited to be the increase in people and amount in which people were drinking. New societies developed and encouraged people to use moderation while drinking, however, the movement began to turn to complete prohibition.