Social and friend focused drinking: A fun night with Mikkeller Running Club - LA, but few beers will stand out later.

Mindful Drinking? What’s that?

I recently led a guided beer tasting. It’s really fun to do these in small settings because you have no idea what questions will get asked. This tasting I got to explain the difference between a standard and a nitro stout and what ‘cask’ beer is. This was great because people were thinking about their beer. They were drinking mindfully.

If this tasting was different because everyone was tasting mindfully, then how do people drink beer regularly? My research shows that when most consumers drink beer, they use a thumbs up, thumbs down evaluation method. If a beer is ‘good,’ then the consumer may think of a reason they liked the beer, or they may not. Similarly, if the beer is bad, there may be a thing they identify that they didn’t like about it. This process is ‘quick and dirty.’ The consumer isn’t really retaining much because they’re not stopping to think about the beer.

On the other end of the spectrum, when a brewer drinks a beer, they break down the flavor components, analyze for off flavors, assess the beer’s fit with the stated style, etc. If they don’t like the beer, they can point to too much astringency from the roasted malt, off flavors from stressed yeast, oxidation from poor storage, or (in the best case) a flawlessly executed beer from a style they’re not a personal fan of. This multi-component consumption is an example of Mindful Drinking. In Mindful Drinking, the beer is a main, if not central, focus, and there is a much higher likelihood the drinker will remember the specific beer.

How to facilitate Mindful Drinking

In order to drink mindfully, the drink must be one of the main focuses, if not THE focus. Hop onto Rate Beer, Beer Advocate, or any other beer rating site and you’ll find people who are breaking their beer experience down in a systematic way. This structured system is one way to create Mindful Drinking, but there are many other ways that can be used to a brewery’s advantage. Not every drinking occasion can be a Mindful Drinking occasion, but many are winnable.

The benefit is simple: loyalty. Mindful Drinking can help a brewery by increasing product recall, which keeps you top of mind when a consumer is considering a beer purchase. If a customer has a few of your beer over the course of a night, enjoyed them, and then can’t remember what they were, they’re much less likely to become a loyal customer. So the key is to help your customers slow down a bit, think about your beer for a few more seconds, and remember you fondly when it comes time for the next one. Here are a few ideas to help you achieve this.

Story

People love stories, they sit down for multiple hours (think Avengers Endgame’s 3 hour run) to consume stories. If fictional superheros can capture an audience, think what delicious liquid that makes you feel great will do!

The good news is that every beer has a story, whether it’s inspired by a local park, a trip to Europe, a local agricultural product, or an old high school inside joke. You can use the story to highlight aspects of your beer and aid retention. For example, rather than stating your witbier is brewed with coriander and orange peel, you can describe your beer as “inspired by mother’s cooking. The fresh orange peels add a bright citrus counterbalance to the tartness of the yeast. The clove and coriander notes add a hint of sweetness that will remind you of waking up to the smell of holiday baking.” This story framework can cause a customer to taste for each component and think a few more seconds about the beer, and, hopefully, remember this wit next time. Stories help us remember things better, and your witbier goes from being one of many, to the one that tastes like momma’s cooking!

Experiential

6 years ago, I was at the Meantime Brewing Company in London for their pie and pint night. There were two beers I wanted to try alongside my shepherds pie, and they were kind enough to do a half pour of each one. As I’m enjoying my pie and half pints, one of their staff members stopped by to chat with me about the flavor notes of the beer, as well as show me how to agitate the beer to get a really good sniff. He covered the beer with his hand, swirled the tulip glass, and took his hand away so I can get all the aroma. I remember this moment and beer today (over 6 years later), but I don’t remember what beers I had at the bar last Saturday (a cream ale maybe?). I still will cover and swirl my glass if I want to pay particular attention to the aroma, such is the power of experiences.

The lesson here is that teaching someone about beer, or providing a memorable experience can create a lasting memory that can give your beer recall and equity many years later. I may not have seen their beers (if anyone knows where I can find it in LA, please let me know), but I know exactly who Meantime Brewing Company is. A simple way to bring an experience to your brewery is to grab a few tasting glasses and some of your ingredients. A row of malts ranging from light, 2-row all the way to roasted barley can be visually appealing (make sure your tasters have your logo on it, it’ll be all over Instagram) and a cool experience for the patron who now can pick out the Caramel-60 in their red ale.

Educational

People like to learn, and people tend to like the brewery that teaches them something. I’ve heard from a brewer in FL that has built a loyal following by teaching people about their beer and allowing them to spread the word. By tying a fun fact in a consumer’s mind to your brewery, they’ll remember your beers each time they show off their knowledge to their friends. This fact may spark deeper learning and discussion and you continue to develop their Mindful Drinking technique.