Just last week, brewer, author, intrepid beer personality and Brewer’s Association President, Charlie Papazian called in to Beer Sessions Radio (TM) causing a bit of buzz amongst some of our close friends in the beer industry. Ben Granger of Brooklyn’s treasured (and recent Good Beer Seal inductee) Bierkraft had this to say in a recent correspondence with Beer Sessions Radio’s host, Jimmy Carbone:
“THE CHARLIE PAPAZIAN? I have and old ass copy of the Joy Of Homebrewing and suggest it to all of the new home brewers that come to Bierkraft. The man is a legend! Please tell him he has much respect in Brooklyn from us. Now [in response to your question re: deans of beer after Michael Jackson] beer “deans” or figureheads when speaking of Charlie Papazian is a difficult comparison. Charlie is a science teacher/home brewer that has climbed to the top of the heap by simply being a bad ass. Most of the figureheads in beer now are commercial brewers, who are recognized for brewing the beers that we drink on a daily basis and have the ability to market themselves as brands. Michael Jackson and Charlie Papazian are quite different in that they were born almost out of Counterculture. They rose to fame and popularity by simply being real people who worked in different aspects of our industry. It is tough to compare to guys like this, I mean they really were and are legends. I guess the real question is; who are the new champions of beer without being brewers or brewery owners? People who have moved the industry forward without letting it lose sight of its past: The Alstrom Brothers, Tom Peters, Alex Hall, Ray Daniels and John Palmer, to name a few.
This is a tough question because I would lump Mike J. and Chuck P. into the same group as Louis Pasteur, Duke William the IV of Bavaria (Reinheitsgebot), and Billy Carter as people who have helped direct the course of craft beer over time into the place we know it today.
Please tell Charlie Papazian that Ben Granger and the staff at Bierkraft say thanks.”
And thanks to you, Ben Granger, for sharing your thoughts with us. We’ll relay the message!