Matt Scheller of Fork & Barrel and Tap & Table describes his discovery of craft beer.
Beer? The million-dollar question can be cracked with a simple proper noun: Lehigh University. Yes, amidst the fury of shot-gunning, funneling, bar rallying, keg standing, morning cocktail-ing, golf pros and tennis hoes-ing, (studying?), and beer pong-ing the crisp, decisive flavors of our nation’s finest pilsners, I was able to purge forward, rise above, and evolve, unlike most of my fraternal colleagues. I had grown fond of the mystique I associated with the beer world. My knowledge came from reading various texts, most notably, Michael Jackson’s dense, yet portable, “Great Beer Guide.” My ignorance propelled me to be overwhelmed by the dizzying variety of bottle shapes, bottle colors, and labels. I would find myself routinely reading this and other books by Jackson. This is what released my adrenaline: reading about beer. I suppose, in retrospect, I was exceptionally dorky, but this became one of my hobbies. Read more…