Beer science

Alejandro Lovera is an MBA student of the University of Westminster and is currently working on his dissertation project. He tries to measure how responsible drinking campaigns, organic products and other factors can influence the buying decisions of beer consumers.

He needs people to fill in a short online servey, which only takes a few minutes.

http://edu.surveygizmo.com/s3/985615/77a10541dfc0english

I’ll ask him to pass along the results when they are ready. Help him out, please.

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For sunny and rainy days – BBC Food podcasts

While there is intelligent radio here in Scandinavia, too, there are limits to what relatively small language communities can offer in the way of output.

Sure, there are celebrity chefs in Scandinavia, too, some even have global TV series. But good no-nonsense journalism about food is lacking. In this day and age we are, however, lucky to be able to pick and choose from the offerings of the global village. The BBC Food Programme is broadcast weekly on Radio 4. There are podcasts going back several years. Quite  few of them are related to beer. I particularly recommend the programme about malt, which includes an interview with Alastair Hook from the Meantime Brewery, contrasting craft beer with beer being designed by accountants.

Check out the full list, there are many hours of knowledge and enjoyment available for free, splendid for sunny days by the pool, rainy days in the  countryside or just an escape while you are commuting to work.

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A young Alt in Dusseldorf

The direct flights to Barcelona were very expensive, so it was a matter if finding the most convenient stopover. Dusseldorf has a compact airport and a city centre just 20€ away by taxi.

This being a family outing, I did not have time to make a crawl of the traditional Altbier brewpubs I have visited before. They seemed to do a roaring trade on a sunnu Saturday afternoon. Instead I made a stop at the Kurtze brewery, tucked away on a quiet street in the Altstadt.
As the only customer, I was invited to a tour of the premises. They aim for a younger crowd than the traditional breweries. If the others have been around for centuries, you have to find your own niche.
The beer is a bit different, too, less bitter than the others. It is not aged in oak barrels, but distributed through pipelines to a clear glass tank at the bar.
Not an institution as yet, but well worth a stop if you are in town.

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