“The common man is not concerned about the passage of time, the man of talent is driven by it.” - Arthur Schopenhauer
Time is an interesting thing; we always feel as though we don’t have enough of it. Sometimes, our days seem to drag on; and yet, at the end of the year, we look back and say how quickly they have all gone by. This past year, 2020, in particular, seemed to have been the longest year ever, yet somehow, it also went by in an instant.
Time is a crucial factor in brewing. To craft any beer, it takes time and patience; however, depending on the variety of the beer you're crafting, you need to allot yourself more or less time. For example, lagers, in comparison to ales, need several weeks to be conditioned before they are ready for consumption. It takes time and patience to boil the wort and then to ferment the beer until it’s done. When developing new recipes, you often spend time brewing small batches and waiting weeks for them to be done just to try the final sample and say, “not good enough.”
In life, we often find the same thing happening. It is commonplace to view time simply as an abundant resource that you can grind through to achieve an end goal. We might dedicate a substantial amount of time working on something only to get to the end and not feel satisfied; as though that time was wasted. However, if the time spent on a particular task was fulfilling in the moment, how could that be considered a waste? Realizing that our time is precious serves as motivation to make sure we spend it on things that we value. For me, I find the work I do to be gratifying and I find fulfillment in spending time with the people working alongside me.
Outside of work, I find that the best way to spend my time is to simply be in the company of close friends and family. Nothing beats an afternoon with old friends- laughing, conversating, and obviously enjoying a few beers together. That’s what I love about beer; it's communal. I mean, no one ever asks if you want to go grab a glass of water after work, right? Beer is meant to be shared. That’s why I enjoy making it so much; because I get to see the final product poured into a glass and shared amongst friends, which makes all the time spent making it worth it.
This beer has been a labor of love for me. I started over a year ago and would brew a sample batch in between other new recipes we were working on whenever I had a free day. I’ve enjoyed many of the recipes along the way; but, it wasn’t until this final batch that I truly felt proud of it. I’m excited to share it with my friends and family and to see it enjoyed amongst others. So think about the time you have every day and, no matter how trivial, spend it doing what makes you happy. Cheers!
- Jim
