I've been enjoying a James Squire's India Pale Ale every night this week and it made me wonder when relativist become a pejorative term. I mean the use of post-modernist as one is faintly ridiculous – like accusing someone of being a beatnik , but relativists?
I'd therefore like to argue that there are no bad beers only bad contexts. Slag off Emu Export as much as you like but if it were hot (the weather, not the beer -Jesus no!) and I were thirsty well then who knows what could happen. Actually, go back and read the Emu link – the intricate workings on the existentialist dichotomy of the human mind – justice for Emu.
I'm not the biggest fan of IPAs – too hoppy and I didn't think much of the James Squires. I've since realised that this was because I was drinking it out of the bottle. Once I put it in a glass I ended up buying a carton of the stuff.
Rob at the IBS says
Firstly I never rate a beer direct from a can or bottle, use a glass and where possible make an attempt at using an appropriate clean glass. Of course having the exact glass recommended by the brewery is ideal but when I don’t have this, I use for example; a standard pint pub glass for lagers, stouts and English ales; a “chalice like” glass for Belgian Ales, and flutes or champagne glasses for Lambic beers. Make sure your beer is at the correct temperature and this does not mean “almost frozen”.
Here's my possibly-read-it-somewhere-and-too-lazy-to-look-it-up theory. The flavour is too concentrated for the spout and hits the taste buds too hard – not unlike chugging a bottle of red. The glass gives it a bit of space. This would also explain why less challenging beers, like Corona or Miller, aren't too bad out of a bottle at all.
As a sad footnote – apprently all the good beer glass manufacturers in Europe are closing down, so get them quick.