homebrewing
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homebrewing
The Dark Side of Home Brewing | Brewer's Friend
I found this short article to be a refreshing take on the possibility that a home-brewer could become an alcoholic and acknowledgment of dependance. There seems these days to be a widespread denial that alcoholism exists, that it is some outdated puritanical throwback from the days of prohibition (in the US). AA is branded as a cult. Abstinence is deemed unnecessary and not science-based, you just need to figure out how to moderate. Beer and wine are food. Alcohol is good for you. Your liver can heal. Etc. Etc.
It's the same mantra's over and over, basically denying the danger and pain of becoming dependent. I home-brewed for well over 10 years, I got hooked and it caused me a lot of pain and loss. It might have happened if I was brewing or not, but the self-enabling part of the hobby makes it hard to quit.
The last two paragraphs in the article I quoted below relate to my own experience towards the end (though I drank a lot more than just what I brewed):
"Home brewing ultimately leads to having large quantities of high quality beer on hand at a very affordable price. At home you are surrounded by reminders of brewing – the equipment, the bubbling fermentor, the empty bottles, the spreadsheets on your computer’s desktop, the hops outside the house, and the closet or fridge full of beer just waiting to be enjoyed. These reminders can be triggers for cravings. Acting on those cravings repeatedly can lead to higher tolerance, and that is when the progression begins. The progression is dangerous because it can slowly creep higher and higher. There is such a thing as a functional alcoholic, but functioning at what level, and for how much longer?
In the past, I was always surprised to see a craig’s list post of a home brewer selling off their entire kit for a ridiculously low price. My original thought was, once you figure out how to brew beer that is perfect to your own taste, why ever stop? One explanation is they brewed themselves into alcoholism and were forced to choose between booze or life."
I found this short article to be a refreshing take on the possibility that a home-brewer could become an alcoholic and acknowledgment of dependance. There seems these days to be a widespread denial that alcoholism exists, that it is some outdated puritanical throwback from the days of prohibition (in the US). AA is branded as a cult. Abstinence is deemed unnecessary and not science-based, you just need to figure out how to moderate. Beer and wine are food. Alcohol is good for you. Your liver can heal. Etc. Etc.
It's the same mantra's over and over, basically denying the danger and pain of becoming dependent. I home-brewed for well over 10 years, I got hooked and it caused me a lot of pain and loss. It might have happened if I was brewing or not, but the self-enabling part of the hobby makes it hard to quit.
The last two paragraphs in the article I quoted below relate to my own experience towards the end (though I drank a lot more than just what I brewed):
"Home brewing ultimately leads to having large quantities of high quality beer on hand at a very affordable price. At home you are surrounded by reminders of brewing – the equipment, the bubbling fermentor, the empty bottles, the spreadsheets on your computer’s desktop, the hops outside the house, and the closet or fridge full of beer just waiting to be enjoyed. These reminders can be triggers for cravings. Acting on those cravings repeatedly can lead to higher tolerance, and that is when the progression begins. The progression is dangerous because it can slowly creep higher and higher. There is such a thing as a functional alcoholic, but functioning at what level, and for how much longer?
In the past, I was always surprised to see a craig’s list post of a home brewer selling off their entire kit for a ridiculously low price. My original thought was, once you figure out how to brew beer that is perfect to your own taste, why ever stop? One explanation is they brewed themselves into alcoholism and were forced to choose between booze or life."
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