Intersections of Bad Beer and Memory

After some feedback from yesterday’s Summer Shandy post, I got to thinking more about beers I drink not because they are intrinsically good, but partly because of the positive associations I have with them. I mentioned two in the post (Old Style and High Life) but was reminded of a few others later that day. Given that this is not a feeling unique to myself, I thought it would be fun to do a post sharing my beer associations. I encourage anyone who actually reads this to share their’s in the comments. The key to these stories (unlike the Schneider-Weisse post) is that I wouldn’t otherwise be jumping at the opportunity to consume these beers, but rather enjoy them because of their larger meaning.

Old Style – Wrigley Field - This is the inspiration behind this whole theory. Old Style has a long and complicated history. Originally brewed by G. Heileman Brewing Company out of Wisconsin over 100 years ago (the name Heileman still appears on the label today), Old Style was bought by the always delicious Stroh Brewing Company in 1996. Three years later, Pabst bought out Strohs and licensed Old Style to Miller. Despite numerous changes in ownership, Old Style has been a sponsor of the Cubs since 1950, providing ample refreshment to rowdy bleacher bums and more discrete fans alike. I wanted be surprised if the ivy was watered with the stuff. Aside from the corporate sponsorship, Old Style simply can’t be easily found outside of the Illinois/Wisconsin portion of the Midwest, further inextricably linking the beer to memories of the Midwest. Old Style isn’t the worst beer you could possibly drink, but its definitely in the category of “Beers I drink because it’s there and cheap.” It is definitely not a beer you casually sip to enjoy the unique flavors. Old Style is best made for shotgunning or drinking games – anything with expedites the drinking process and minimizes the time the beer is in your mouth. Old Style Light is bearable (pun) because of its association with mass drinking and good times at games.

Drinking at Cubs game (note the stacking of cups to keep a tally)

Old Style heavy is like eating bad beer and should only be done under the most extreme circumstances. The Old Style/Wrigley link is made stronger by the fact that some White Sox fans will refuse to drink the stuff, considering it akin to rooting for the hated North Siders. Another great association with Old Style is the Old Style Bombers, the greatest co-ed rec softball team ever assembled.

Luke Represents the Bombers

Just like Cubs fans will always believe it’s gonna happen, Old Style is always a beer we can believe in.

High Life Light – Caps at Phi Kappa Psi (See also: Light, Busch) – Another beer I would not choose to drink unless it was for a very specific purpose. Entering Northwestern, I would have estimated there was about a -12% chance I’d ever consider joining a fraternity. Freshman year I arrived in Evanston a few weeks before the start of school to get ready for the debate season. There I met debaters that happened to be in a fraternity. During that time I would hang out in Phi Psi and drink, and it turned out the people there were cool. Long story short I ended up joining and playing thousands, if not millions of games of caps there. They were some of the most fun times I had during my collegiate years. High Life Light, the champagne of beers, was always a staple at these games. Before living in the house me and my friends would figure out a way to get a case of this sweet nectar of the gods and show up at the house knowing that a game would always be available. There was even a streak of 9 consecutive days freshman year playing caps at the house and sleeping on whatever surface would accommodate me. From getting beat by Friedlander 15-1 paying fulls in about 12 minutes to throwing my first quad, the slightly tinny flavor of beer never tasted so sweet. Busch Light was always an able substitute, and the decision on which beer to buy always resulted in the most inane arguments about which swill was better. The reason the High Life worked so well for caps is that it is best consumed as fast as possible, ideally bypassing the taste buds all together. I believe it was used to expedite the game (except, of course, when Luke Hill was playing, because when he drank you knew you could take a nice leisurely break). The memories of living the high life were great and I’ll forever love that beer.

Rolling Rock – 1800 Trivia/CUtley – For some reason my good buddy and ridiculously good writer, Colin, absolutely loves the Rolling Rock. I mean he loves this stuff more than I love Hillary Duff (her music, not her looks). The Rock is an extra pale lager brewed in Latrobe, PA before being purchased by Anheuser-Busch in 2006. For a point of reference, the paleness of Rolling Rock relative to other beers is akin to comparing Powder to Lindsey Lohan. It really doesn’t taste like much, but some people love it and for that I don’t judge them! Buckets of Rolling Rock at 1800 Trivia night were standard and good times always occur. It was over Rolling Rock we would come up with such great trivia names as “Take Back the Night: Sponsored by Duke Lacrosse,” “The One Eyed Wonder Weasels and their Two Balls,” and “the AnalRapists.”

Icehouse – Avery – He loves this stuff. I don’t know why, but he does. It’s cheap. It’s 5.0% alcohol. It doesn’t actually taste that bad. However, whenever I see the ‘house, I will always be reminded of Avery’s love for it. This can also be used in a caps game, just keep in mind the game will be a bit shorter, because you’ll get full or drunk faster.

Other notable non-beer associations

Randall, Avery, Me, Petersen looking REALLY young 5 years ago...Dave looking the same

Bacardi O – Freshman year/FIFA Soccer – In my dorm room in PARC, aka Nerd Central, I always had a fifth of Jose Cuervo and a handle of Bacardi O. I found that the O tasted less like alcoholic and more like oranges (I was naïve). I drank a lot of this stuff because it was an easy hard liquor to drink. Avery and I would play Fifa soccer in the suite area and any time a goal was scored the loser had to run back to the dorm room and take a shot discretely out of sight. It was after one such 7-0 drubbing of Avery (I took 7 shots to make him feel better) I went and completed my first power hour. Granted, I may have had a forced evacuation of the stomach off a 2nd floor balcony at about minute 56, but I did my four required shots to finish like a pro. Good times.

Franzia – Sophomore year PKP Thanksgiving – Lets just say there was some drama surrounding this event that I avoided by drinking way way way too much Franzia, everyone’s favorite boxed wine. The end result of that was me running around in my undershirt, thoroughly stained in a nice burgundy, being ridiculous. The next morning I woke up with what remains the worst hangover I’ve ever had. Even a delicious breakfast prepared by JT could not cut the pain. Memories of Paul Turner puking this across the hallway "into" the bathroom entrance after playing caps (!) with it also stand out.

Not even JT can stop the Franziaover

Wild Turkey/Andre – Gone Greek Night – While we at Phi Kappa Psi gentleman’s fraternity don’t condone drinking or hazing in anyway, we most certainly enjoy it in moderation. I will never touch Wild Turkey again, but it made for the start of an excellent night.

Canadian Hunter – Something about Liz having a multiplesome with Army Boys and a bear – Good ole days of nonstop GChat harassment.

I hope everyone will share their stories in the comments (I know there is at least a Carlo Rossi one waiting to be told).