I first heard about this from the cycling community being an avid mountain biker. The first article I read about it was Pabst was not sure of what to make of it, and just kept quiet. Now there are more articles showing Pabst supported it once they found out their appeal to hipsters. In contrast when I did a race in Wisconsin, PBR flowed like a river during the whole race, no hipsters in sight. In my state some cyclists make friendly jabs at each other by razzing other racers of being a PBR drinker. Across Lake Michigan from me PBR is treated like holy water. The new beer showing up nowadays can't be ignored as they sponsor a lot of events. My collection of free swag pint glasses is growing from all of the beer sponsors. And related to what you've pointed out, doesn't matter who is drinking it. Results may differ from state to state, so I find the subject of "hipster beer" to be hilarious at times. I find most of the PBR jabs to be more related to competition between racers. Good or bad, looks to me Pabst is getting some free advertisement out of this subject.

MichNS,

The hilarity of your tale is inescapable. Come to think of it, I have seen more PBR consumed at gigs than any other drink. Could it be that PBR is cheaper to trade for the labor of freelancing musicians than other drinks? Could this be the secret behind the fawning admiration of rock and roll goobs and flannel-clad, bearded millennials?

Nay, we may never know the secret behind the allure of the beverage whose legendary, vaunted bouquet tempts our palates with top notes of horse urine and an earthy base of dumpster-goo.

Like a fine wine -- may those discerning souls enjoy every drop! More IPA for me.

K

I don't even drink, however Bell's, Shorts, and a few other Michigan brands have been awesome sponsors of local events. Maybe they could fix a few things wrong in the music industry. Get an IPA to sponsor some of your gigs and I'm sure nothing but good things will happen. Not sure if you are old enough to have seen them, but I've often thought Pabst became the butt of many jokes from their old commercials where they had a really hilarious country song "I've got Pabst Blue Ribbon on my Mind". Back then kids who were too young to buy beer were making fun of Pabst just because of that goofy jingle. Awful marketing.

IPAs seem to have their marketing right. I did get to see a live presentation from a husband and wife who wrote a successful series of books on "Bike and Brew in Michigan/America". Just this week I saw a post from someone looking to do a bike and brew ride where he could go ride and hit a really good brew pub afterwards. How about "bands and brew"? Seems nowadays IPAs get people out of the house to go attend events.

Some pics of a hops farm I took near Glenn's place:

K

I forgot to mention, Kev, I've used your method of trying new beers!

"Which one has the most alcohol?"

Bullseye

Ha! Andy! You've been paying attention, eh?

Usually I go for taste, bouquet, etc. But when I'm working in a corporate environment, catching a buzz as quickly as humanly possible is paramount. Luckily, my gorgeous wife was there to facilitate my beer drinking adventure with Walter. She's a really good wife... shames us all, really... and Walter was a most interesting and lively companion.

But Andy, it's a fine method. Good luck in your beer hunting, and thanks for the laugh!

Kev

I wasn't going to mention it, but you guys missed it...