I had drunk several bottles of Sierra Nevada Pale Ale in New Zealand over the years but only truly tasted it for the first time at a baseball game.

In the beer world, the term ‘cooper’ can have several meanings.  Most commonly it means a person skilled in making barrels but Pat Lawlor’s 1965 Froth Blowers Manual states it was also a drink which was a mixture of stout and porter. 

I was recently reminded about the story of how a famous beer writer responded to a member of the public adamant they did not like beer.  Now, have heard this story several times from various beer luminaries and, like many tales relating to beer, the details tend to vary greatly depending on who is telling it.

Workplaces around the globe are covered with “motivational” posters and “inspiring” quotes.  I particularly loathe the ones about the alleged badness of Mondays, how it helps to be crazy to work somewhere and that stupid cat “hanging in there.” 

There are many things in this world which seem inexplicably popular to me.  The list includes, but is not limited to, ham and pineapple pizza, Shortland Street, Dux de Lux Ginger Tom, Mike King, Hamilton, Chris Laidlaw, Ellen DeGeneres and chocolate.

One of the first challenges for any fledgling brewery is the key issue of choosing a name.  In most instances, that name will stay with them forever and will be the cornerstone of their labelling, publicity and marketing.