Author: Marshall Schott
Today is Thanksgiving in the United States, a holiday intended to remind us of all we have to be grateful for. As I trust readers around the world can relate, this year has been quite a doozy, the consequences of Covid-19 permeating myriad aspects of our lives, which can understandably make it difficult to see the good that does exist. It’s not my point with this article to get overly sentimental or minimize the burden some are experiencing during these crazy times, so I’ll just say that all of us here at Brülosophy hope everyone out there is staying safe, healthy, and happy.
Something we’re all immensely grateful for are all of the folks who read the articles we write, listen to the podcasts we produce, and regularly communicate with us. Without you, there’d be no reason for us to keep doing this, and considering how much we enjoy doing this, we want to make sure you know just how thankful we are for you.
We decided against publishing a list of Black Friday deals this year, as all of sites we’re affiliated with do an excellent job displaying the deals they’re running, and we’ve got a few other things to get to. For those who plan on doing some online shopping and would like to help us out financially, these all of the companies who give us a small commission for sending customers their way—simply click the logo, do your shopping, and help us to keep doing what we do.
If you’re looking to get a little more in return for your support, please consider becoming a Patron of Brülosophy where you’ll be rewarded with never-before-published recipes, participation in private Q&A sessions with people in the brewing world, and unique discounts at Yakima Valley Hops!
New Contributors
Since Brülosophy was started in early 2014, the cast of contributors has steadily grown in order for us to be able to keep up with everything we’ve got going on. With the goal of continuing down the exBEERimental path and eventually introducing even more cool brewing projects, we recently brought a couple new contributors on-board that I’m super excited to introduce.
Currently residing at Florida’s Eglin Air Force Base with his wife and daughter, Jonathan Mcpherson spends his days making sure American fighter jets are safe for pilots to fly. In 2015, after discovering a love of good beer, Jonathan realized he could make his own and began homebrewing. While he appreciates most anything that has to do with beer, Jonathan has a particular interest in German beers as well as harvesting wild yeast from plants grown in his garden. Jonathan will be focusing primarily on brewing xBmts for Brülosophy, though he’ll also contribute occasionally to other projects as well as co-host The Brülosophy Podcast.
Steve Thanos has been brewing since 1999, and if the name rings a bell, it’s likely because of his contributions on beer styles for Homebrew Academy. Steve lives with his wife and daughter in the Chicago area where he teaches middle school reading. As much as Steve enjoys drinking the fruits of his labors, what he really loves is sharing his fermented concoctions with others, which makes him a shoo-in for Brülosophy! With broad brewing interests, Steve will certainly be sharing his unique adventures on the site and podcast, though his main focus will be on brewing for the xBmt series.
Covid-19 Updates
While the necessary adaptations we made at the beginning of the pandemic left me with a feeling I can only describe as precarious, it pleases me to know that we’ve made it this long without any major issues. Yes, we’ve be forced to forgo our standard data collection, which definitely sucks, but based on the responses we’ve received over the last few months, it’s nowhere near as bad as I expected. As restrictions have eased in certain areas, we have been able to collect some data, and that has felt surprisingly amazing. Of course, in the interest of doing our part to slow the spread of the virus, we take every effort to ensure participants stay safe.
Given the seemingly weekly changes in Covid-19 related hospitalizations and subsequent shutdowns, there’s really no saying when we’ll be back to normal, but it feels good to know at least some new data is going to start flowing in. Here’s to hoping an effective vaccine becomes available as soon as possible!
Brülosophy Merch
Multiple times per day, I’m contacted by people asking where they pick-up Brülosophy merch, from t-shirts and hats to taster glasses and fanny packs, and it kills me when I have to inform them we’ve currently nothing available. One of my goals for 2020 was to figure out a way to get Brülosophy merch into the hands of those who want it, then Covid threw a wrench in things. As we approach the end of the year and things are more or less getting cinched up, this is certainly something I’m thinking more about. At this point, the most feasible option appears to be Amazon, as they manage warehousing and shipping so I… err… my wife won’t have to.
Until then, we do still have our classic t-shirts available on Amazon for those looking for a way to wear your support.
Thanks again to all of you for allowing us to keep doing what we love so much. We hope this season, odd as it is, treats you and yours well. Cheers!
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