Introduction to the Gainesville, FL 2007/2008 Beer Bracket

“October is the best month for sports.”

This happens every October. I’m lounging around, watching a game and enjoying some craft brews with my Gainesville drinking team when someone (okay, it’s usually me) declares this. Typically, we argue about this for a while, but usually end up in agreement.

October is the best month for sports.

Which of October’s eleven brothers and sisters can compete? The month begins with MLB playoffs and ends with the World Series, the Fall Classic. It’s also the start of the NHL season and is almost the start of the NBA season. Not only is college football well under way, but the NFL season has just started, too. How many more reasons to drink some tasty brews do you need? October has almost anything you could ask for.

Why are we even debating this? October is the best month for sports.

“March is the best month for sports.”

This happens every March. October’s excitement is long gone and someone has to bring this up. Again, we argue this over several beers before ending in agreement. March is the best month for sports.

Sure, we thought October was great, but March every bit as good, only better. The MLB season is nearing Opening Day and Spring Training welcomes the promise of a new season of opportunities. The NBA and NHL seasons are nearing their end, which means every game is critical to who makes it into the playoffs and who gets top seeding.

And then there’s college basketball. The NCAA Men’s Basketball tournament is named March Madness. March found its way into the name of the sport! How is that not proof that March is the best month for sports? March is the best month for sports.

Of course, March ends and come October the whole “March versus October” cycle starts again. I don’t know which month is better. To be honest, I don’t even care. Both months offer all beer/sports-lovers endless reasons to enjoy their favorite brews.

“Who would win in a fight, Chuck Berry or Fred Berry?”

This is the nonsense that’s left to discuss when drinking beer and watching sports in months not named March or October. And there’s the ridiculous rationale that accompanies it, “I don’t know, Fred Berry’s definitely got a weight advantage and he’s all used to dancing around a lot, so he’s probably got more endurance than you’d think, but Chuck Berry is pretty mean and wiry.”

Once we run out of minor celebrities with similar sounding names to hypothetically pit against each other it’s on to the beer banter, “Who would win in a fight, Anchor Steam or Sierra Nevada Pale Ale?” (I don’t know why, but the majority of our discussions are based around who would win in a fight, even if the opponents are inanimate objects.) This absurdity will undoubtedly lead to a discussion on the merits of the Bud Bowl, and finally onto the mother of all sports/beer discussions:

“What if there was a March Madness style tournament for beer?”

Think of the possibilities: There would be 64 beers all vying for the title of the greatest beer of the year. You can fill out brackets and start betting pools. Would there be a Cinderella beer? Could there be a sleeper beer? Which styles of beer would fare better in head-to-head match-ups? The topics for drunken discussions are endless!

Sure we’ve all thought of a beer bracket before. The Washington Post even did one this year. Excitedly, I tuned in every morning to see which beer advanced and I was continually let down. Rolling Rock made it into the 3rd round. Are you serious? Miller High Life is competing. Is this a joke? Who the hell is picking these beers to advance? There’s no explanation. Better yet, who the hell is even picking these beers to compete?

“We can do a better bracket than this.”

The idea was discussed in much detail over the next few months, but like all ideas discussed in much detail when drinking, this one was getting stale. The details were too many: Which beers will make the tournament? Do we really get 64 beers, or should we just do 32? Should we pit stouts versus stouts and lagers versus lagers, or should we mix and match? Should we sort the bracket regionally? Should we sort the bracket by style? How are we going to score the matches? How are we going to prevent ourselves from just voting for our favorites?

There are so many variables.

Rules need to be established.

“The time has come for someone to put their foot down….and that foot is me.”

(stay tuned for the Gainesville, FL 2007/2008 Beer Bracket)