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! LEZANNE HOFFMAN M y beer love story begins with a guy... a guy who goes by “MrBeerPants” in fact. Judging from his name, beer had been the other lady in his life for quite some time. He was often mesmerized by her golden locks and curvy figure. I hated beer: bitter, horrible stuff. But it seemed to be important to this guy, and I kind of liked him. So fine, I thought – I'll pretend to be interested. The best offence is a good defence, so I knew I’d have to get to know my opponent, lady lager, in order to beat her. Every time he bought a pint, I'd take a sip, wince and give it back to him. Then I’d hastily take a sip of my trusty glass of wine to get the taste out my mouth. We’d then have a discussion of what I didn’t like about it. However, slowly, an amazing thing started to happen. Over time one sip turned to two and two turned into me ordering my own pints instead of reaching for the wine. I think my first pint was an Apollo Blonde. It hit all the right notes and converted me to the beer side. Bitter became less bitter and I am now proud to say that I love IPAs. These days I’m a regular visitor to beer festivals and beer events. My favourite would probably be the annual Fools & Fans festival in Greyton. It has such a vibe and is a festival to attend whether you’re a beer novice or an aficionado. The brewers and attendees are friendly, welcoming and love talking about all things beer. Add it to your beery calendar now! My absolute pet peeve is going to a festival and having a brewer make a snap judgement on what style I would like, just because I am a woman. I will never forget a brewer offering me a watermelon cider and while MrBeerPants was presented with an IPA. Ladies can like IPAs too – just as some men would have opted for the cider. It also happens far too frequently that my IPA is placed in front of the male at the table and I get whatever he ordered. The industry is slowly changing though – they are learning that ladies can be serious about beer and we know our stuff. I love beer and am I a strong advocate for everyone to just try it. I went from feigning interest because it was important to someone else; someone who understands and loves the complexity of what goes into a brew. I have explained styles to newbies that started out like me and made recommendations on what to try. It makes me really happy when I hear someone enjoyed a recommendation and more importantly, would drink it again. I truly believe there's a beer out there for everyone, just be brave and try it. My absolute pet peeve is going to a festival and having a brewer make a snap judgement on what style I would like GOT A BEERY TALE TO SHARE? WIN WITH BEER FALLING IN LOVE... 10 | Summer 2019 | ontapmag.co.za