A note from a fellow brewer....

Dear IBS members, After reading Tony Forder's accounts of his brewing day from the day after the attacks made against the United States of America, I felt compelled to make a submission to the Forum on the behalf of not only brewers, but for the citizenry of Canada. I do not presume to speak for an entire nation, but the events surrounding the latter few days have prompted me to make my first submission, albeit unrelated to brewing. I work at Granville Island Brewing Company in Vancouver, BC, Canada. I work as an assistant brewer, also dividing my time between bottling, deliveries, and giving tours. On September 11th, I found myself with the unenviable task of giving a public tour; I had heard much news of the attacks from 7:30 am PST onwards. Vancouver, being a very tourist driven city, and Granville Island a beacon for all sorts of visitors, had more than its share of tourists that day. On my regularly scheduled tour I had three people from Australia, two from Mexico, two from Japan, and a couple locals. All had heard of the atrocities carried out in both NY, Washington, and Pennsylvania. My problem was this- Also on the tour were a middle-aged couple from Cleveland, Ohio, who had not yet heard of the attack. Being guests in our city, our country, the couple had left their hotel at 7 PST, and had remained completely oblivious thus far. Invariably, I discovered this fact upon completing the brewhouse tour. Silent and stoic until the sampling component, one of the Aussies, a nationality associated with candour, asked them what they thought about that morning's events. They were shocked. Over the next hour (tours normally lasting half an hour, tour and taste included), any predilections, biases or past ill-will were shed. I assure you, this had nothing to do with the drink service. The people on my tour, regardless of language barriers, political leanings, whatever, spoke openly, honestly, and clearly on the subject at hand. It was like witnessing a microcosm of the UN. People cried, openly wept, offering not only formalized condolences, but heartfelt apologies for what had taken place. I felt a genuine sense of well-being when I went home that night, not because I felt I had facilitated an open dialogue, or torn down international barriers, but because I saw humanity, concern, and empathy for one another and the state of the world in every person who sat at that table. It may sound overblown, or like the punch-line to some macabre joke, but common interests (even though it was beer!) brought people together for that brief period of time to diagnose and address the illness, the most base of motives, for what had just occurred. No toasts were made. It would have been inappropriate. Total strangers helped break the news to this poor couple from Ohio state, and consequently helped them through it, to comprehend, to accept it as fact. I was impressed. To everyone from within or outside the brewing industry, be strong in the time to come. Seek solace in the company of your loved ones, or, if you should find yourself in some far-flung part of the world, the bar-stool scholars who will listen to your plight. If my experience was any indication, they will hold you up and lend a hand, shoulder, or ear. Deepest sympathies from Granville Island, Tyler Austin Bradley ________________________________________________________________ GET INTERNET ACCESS FROM JUNO! Juno offers FREE or PREMIUM Internet access for less! Join Juno today! For your FREE software, visit: http://dl.www.juno.com/get/tagj.