my palate sucks

agree

 

I thought I had a pretty good palate, until I saw this documentary, and it brought me down a few notches:

If you haven't seen this, it's definitely worth a watch. I know, it's all about wine and not beer, but it's SO similar to reviewing beer as far as taste perceptions go. People picking up notes of 'fresh cut garden hose' in the wine, and stupid shit like that. It just goes to show that, yea, some people have an incredible perception of flavor compounds in beer and wine. But, some don't, and just enjoy their drink for what it is. Either way, there's really no right or wrong score on a beer.. if you like it you like it. But if you are one of those privileged few, you could be a BJCP Judge, or a master sommelier!

 

Personally, I consider it a blessing that I enjoy beer that others refer to as "meh".

 

But what it also points out is that while there's certainly some natural variation, there's also a lot of practice that goes into it. One of the master somms is quite explicit about it, explaining how he goes to the farmers market every week and just smells everything to keep his nose calibrated, and how you're not just born knowing the difference between the smell of fresh violets and dried violets (for example) but you develop that by actually going and smelling the things.

 

I think the problem is that the scale you are using to rate the beer is based on your enjoyment rather on how well the beer fits the style. Here's what the Bros have to say on the matter. You may like a beer, but is what you are tasting appropriate for the style at hand?

"Keep Style in Mind
We don't expect everyone to judge like a pro, but keeping the beer's style in mind will help you approach each beer a bit more objectively."

http://www.beeradvocate.com/community/threads/how-to-review-a-beer.241156/

 

Sounds like instead of a Midas touch you have a grapefruit touch - which I would love to have! I'd be more concerned with palate fatigue and try to break away from IPA's a little bit as to not lose said touch. If not, seek out beers using different hops to help fine tune that awesome magical palate!

 

To me, not being able to pickup on the stated in a beer is a bit of a negative. My palate is by no means experienced, but when a beer states that it is brewed with 3-4 different ingredients and I pick up none of them is a very disappointing experience.

As a bit of a side note, I do kind of wish my taste buds were not as sensitive. Not sure if I am a supertaster or just that much of a newbie to beer, but I couldn't even stand Brown Shugga the other night. The bitterness of the hops was too much, which is pretty sad.

 

Sounds like a familiar problem but my inability to taste or differentiate anything usually kicks in after the 2nd DIPA. I now know that after 2, my taste buds are shot and I need to switch to a totally different style like a stout or barleywine.

 

Lots of information here, but I suggest looking for a local homebrew club who are conducting a BJCP training class, and take part in the class front to back. You'll learn all the styles and history, and most likely they'll conduct an off flavor sensory panel. Training your palate takes time and effort but over time, you'll develop the lexicon needed to describe what you are tasting. You have the means to taste already, but you don't have the training to describe or understand what you are actually sensing.

 

Agreed. It is definitely a practice as well, I didn't mean to rule that out. I've noticed that in my years of beer tastings, I'll go back and look at some of my older reviews and wonder "why the hell did I give that beer a 4.25? that should be a 3.25 at best". The palate definitely changes over time, through different experiences, trying different styles, etc.. great documentary though, nonetheless. Those guys are hardcore

 

I couldn't even begin to write a beer review. I'm still in the "love it/like it/hate it" boat, and dont pick up much of the subtle notes at all.

This is after a year of 'paying attention,' hopefully my palate just gets better on its own.

I did however notice a difference in the last "Enjoy By"...which presumably has the same recipe all of the time anyway...

 

How long have you been drinking beer for? Becuase when I started drinking craft, I felt similar. But the more different beers I tried snd the more beers I reviewed, it opened my palate up. Now I feel like my palate is very sensitive and I can notice a beer change within 2 days.

 

To the OP or other posters who are similar: what don't you like? And why? For example, I had a coffee at lunch I didn't like. It was thin, no full taste, too bitter at the end, kind of empty. And I know very little about coffee, but I can say that. (I can also tell when it is stale, too long on the burner).

Use your own words to say what you don't like and why, give me an example.

 

Honestly man, I think a lot of people make stuff up. I'm not saying all people do, but a lot them get a little too freaky about this stuff. If you like the beer, then I think thats all that matters! This should be fun and not pretentious.

 

I agree beer should be fun, but most people don't make stuff up, there is no reason. People simply make an analogy to other drinks, or foods sometimes, to help explain what it tastes like.

 

To me, the question is whether this guy could reliably repeat his judgments over time. For example, if in a blind test, he tried 10 wines, and said that 5 wines tasted/smelled like fresh violets, and the 5 other wines tasted/smelled like dried violets--could he accurately sort the wines the same way, two weeks later. You could run the experiment a couple different times--once tell him that the second ten wines were the same as the first ten, and then another time tell him the third ten wines were new (while secretly keeping them the same).

I have my doubts that the guy would be consistent. I could be wrong though.

If he can't be consistent, I don't have much reason to believe he can really distinguish dried violets from fresh violets in wine.

 

How is this a curse? You know what you like and know what you don't. .. sounds good to me.

 

Ain't nothing wrong with loving beer my friend.

 

My sense of taste and smell have been ruined by cold medicine. Drinking beer is 50% less enjoyable. I can't smell anything. Taste is muted. The booze part still works well.

 

Ha ha! I love it! I often ask my wife for help in identifying aromas and tastes even though I'm the bigger beer aficionado. I hear that scientifically speaking, women tend to have a better sense of smell. So why is this community so male dominated?