OnTap Magazine

Send it to lucy@ontapmag.co.za and you might just see your name in print. If your story is chosen for publication, you’ll get a year’s subscription to On Tap on us! ANNIE DUPREREYNOLDS I t’s a bit of an unusual story: girl teaches boy to appreciate craft beer. When I rst met my husband – onTinder, which is another story – he was an avid non-craft beer drinker. I attempted to share my passion for hops and he turned up his nose. “Craft beer is nothing special! I’d rather stick with my [insert mass- produced SA brand name beer here].” When I brought home a mixed case from the local liquor store he would sco as I went for the bottle opener while he simply unscrewed the top of his brew. As an American who was raised in Texas, North Carolina and Colorado, I developed an early passion for craft beer. I won’t say it started before my 21st birthday – because that would be revealing a bit too much – but once I made legal drinking age, I was bringing home a new variety of frothy, hoppy heaven almost every weekend. My brother shared my interest and we slowly made our way through every brewery we could nd, commenting on the smell, avour, IBU, alcohol percentage (not much compares to a 10% double IPA) and any other aspect we could think of. When I moved to South Africa I was excited to try a new world of beer. I would visit the liquor store and scan the labels, grabbing a few to have after a long mountain bike ride or at a weekend braai. I didn’t have much luck convincing my husband (then boyfriend) to join me or spend more money on beer. But slowly, as we spent more time together exploring Cape Town’s and Johannesburg’s never-ending supply of artisan restaurants, bars and markets, I sneakily encouraged a change in his palate. We would be at dinner and I’d order an IPA, red or amber ale, o ering him a sip to try. Before he could stop himself, he would react with a satis ed, “mmm!” or “that’s not too bad…” I kept an internal tab on the beers he liked most, and would be sure to order those I thought he’d enjoy. What I soon found, however, was that our taste in beer couldn’t have been more di erent. I preferred hops, pine and bold avours in my beer. He liked fruity, crisp and smooth brews. I realised I’d been trying to convince him of craft beer’s value in the wrong way – he was never going to enjoy my favourite IPAs and pale ales. e turning point came when I nally convinced him to do a brewery tour with me, when we were visiting my folks in the USA. We tasted a wide variety and the brewery sta quizzed my husband about his preferences. Discussing craft beer with its makers had a transformative e ect on him – he found a new appreciation for the art of making beer and the complexities in di erent varieties. Last year my husband purchased a beer fridge for the garage. If you look at it today you’ll see some of our favourites – Agar, Birkenhead, Darling, CBC – among others we’ve grabbed that week at the shops. We’ve attended beerfests and done further brewery tours. He even defends craft beer to his friends – a huge shift from the guy who once relied entirely on Castle and Amstel! It’s a great thing to share passions and interests with your signi cant other. For me, it was practically a make-it-or-break-it deal; it’s a darn good thing he came around! www.runridewine.com When I brought home a mixed case from the local liquor store he would scoff GOT A BEERY TALE TO SHARE? WIN HOW I TAUGHT MY HUSBAND TO LOVE CRAFT BEER 20 | Spring 2018 | ontapmag.co.za