Boozin’ Blog

No, we here at the Boozin’ Blog are not promoting altruism; we wouldn’t want to be associated with THAT crowd. We’re suggesting that you do yourself a big favor and volunteer at a beer festival. The big season for festivals is just around the corner and many of them depend on volunteers to make things work. (You can find a nearby beer festival by checking out the beerfestivals.org or my beer festival schedule.)

While there are lot’s of things to do at a festival most volunteers wind up pouring which is, of course, the most fun.  There’s no pay but there are perks. Most volunteers are invited to enjoy the beer within reason - you can’t be much help if you get sloshed. You will also probably get a tee shirt out of it and you get to spend a few hours with a bunch of beer lovers. Sounds like a damn good time, right?

I picked up an interesting tip from a volunteer this spring. It was at the St. Louis Brewer’s Heritage festival. I’d been walking around for a few hours and wanted to rest. I found a table with two fellows wearing volunteer badges who were probably in their seventies. They were laughing together and invited me to sit with them. I asked what job they’d been assigned and of course they were pourers.

“Have you tried the new blueberry beer from Anhueser-Busch?” one of them asked me.

No, I hadn’t. He said that that was the beer he’d been pouring. His buddy had been pouring a wheat beer from a smaller brewery.

“The secret is to try to pour a fruit beer,” he told me, winking. “That’s where all the cute girls line up. I’ve been pouring nonstop all afternoon.” He had a very satisfied air about him.

Oh, and if you must be altruistic most beer festivals are held to raise money for some worthy cause or another. So chances are that your volunteer hours will be spent in doing good…if you’re into that kind of thing.

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