Decent Mess Eh, it works

A Means of Classification – Party Beers

I’m doing a Master’s program here in the UK. So far, so good. In fact, so far it’s been a shit-ton easier than I’d imagined. This week’s been a rough one, though. In the UK model of higher education, you’re more on your own throughout the term than what I was used to back in the states. Consequently, there aren’t as many (if any at all) assignments to benchmark your progress throughout the term.

With this in mind, and in embracing English culture, I dedicated many working hours to the pub. And so began a maiden voyage.

I like beer. I like many different types of beers, for different reasons. I think that value of a given beer need not be solely based on it’s flavor. I think that when buying beer, drinking context ought to be considered (Who are you drinking with and why? Are you telling your friend she's fat? Are you celebrating your Guinea pig's new babies? Or are you just hanging out?) In placing our beer in context we may more specifically judge its value/worth/utility to us (this certainly goes for many types of alcohol as well).

I want to classify beer differently, and this is how.

Yao Ming Makes Wine, Ditka Makes Champions

The 7'6'' former NBA star retired from basketball last year, and no longer will his feet stomp the paint, but instead, grapes. Yao Ming’s interest in wine probably has something to do with the current Chinese Wine Boom , but, die-hard fans aside, who thought this sounded appealing?

According to a few blogs, he’s collaborated with wine consultants to get the ball rolling (bouncing? dribbling?). The wine experts said their goal was to “[get] to know him in a way so [we] could express his personality in the wine … He's physically imposing, but he's also very personable and gentle. We wanted to capture that in the wine.” (There’s a joke in that quotation somewhere.) Honestly, though, if they’re marketing the wine as a taste of his personality, it sounds pretty fucking boring. Despite being ridiculously tall, Yao Ming didn’t exactly bring much personality to the court.

So, this got me thinking, who else is “expressing their personality” in wine right now?