I always think this about garlic, chilli, onion, etc. Feeling all tough, naturally designed to punish whatever’s just eaten it. Then humans be like, “OOOOO that’s yum. Add a bit more.”
We like plants that offer a challenge, apparently. We probably evolved to like these chemicals because we refused to be beaten and just ended up liking them.
“animal: evolves to run away from predators as a defense mechanism”
humans: ayo, catch that shit and put it in circle with wood so they can’t leave, since, you know, they like to move. Also posts provide all their food and water and let them fuck to make more. Eat them with the evil plants.
ayo evil plants aren’t evil enough. Let’s make little more evil baby plants and from those even more evil baby plants and let’s name the really evil one after a combination of a U.S. state and death itself and then put that shit on the tasty movers
If you search the web you’re bound to find what I’m about to broach over but humans are pretty much the real life orcs, if we think about it.
We tolerate serious injuries - even losing limbs - heal at a crazy speed and still remain functional, tolerate foods that other animals consider toxic and as predators we don’t get tired and because of that we evolved an entirely new form of predation called stalking strategy, where we can just give chase to prey until they just fall from exhaustion, as our walking is incredibly low on energy consumption and our complex brain allows us to learn patterns on how and where prey are and behave.
Things like onions, garlic, chili and spices have anti microbial properties. This is why warmer countries tends to have spicier food, it protect from food poisoning.
Passing through the digestive tract of a mobile animal is a good way for plants to disperse seeds and reproduce. It makes sense that some plants would be naturally repulsive to some animals and attractive to others.
Also the plants and the animals evolved together. If you’re the only animal in the desert that can chomp on a cactus, you’re going to survive and pass on your genes.
We don’t know whether they evolved these chemicals to prevent being eaten by animals though. People have tested spicy (capsaicin based) foods with mice, and found that mice actually seemed to like or not really react to spicy foods. This means that capsaicin did not evolve to protect against rodents like initially thought.
In fact, we now know that capsaicin is a very powerful antifungal chemical. Chili peppers naturally grow in hot, humid environments where fungi thrive. There also aren’t many rodents in those areas. So the spiciness experienced by mammals like humans is just a side effect that didn’t really affect its evolution.
I’ve always liked IPAs, and I’m probably going to continue to, but the style is kinda beat. They’re at a point now where they’re just doing the most nitpicky variations on the theme. Dry-hopped rather than wet? That’s a juicy IPA. Lactose back sweetening? Milkshake IPA. Ran out of finings and can’t clarify your beer? It’s not ruined, it’s haaaaaazy. Strong enough to black you out after three? Double IPA. After two? Imperial IPA. No stronger than the American light lagers you used to steal from your dad? Session IPA.
The point of IPAs was that they were full of huge, bold flavor in a market that was saturated by beers that were competing with one another to taste the most like a vodka soda and have the lowest calories (and therefore ABV) possible. They were the revolutionary vanguard of beer that tasted like beer. But now I can get all sorts of wild shit. Fruit sours, coffee/chocolate stouts, real pilseners that actually taste like beer, proper copper lagers, all sorts of amazing stuff. The era of the IPA being the only “real beer” has ended. I wish someone would tell the breweries.
No, I mean I wish someone would tell the breweries that they can pare it back to only seven different IPAs per season and instead invest more in different styles. I can get some wild shit because I’m fortunate to have one really good store about 20 minutes away but between being in PA with weird laws about who can sell booze, how strong it can be and how much they can sell and the relative glut of local brewers that are still in 2010 we could stand some work. Even moreso because the summer is winding down and I can already hear the thunderous sound of the Imperial Pumpkin Ales rolling in. “It’s 14% ABV! Put a caramel cinnamon rim on the glass and it might even taste like something!”
Man, all those “wild things” you mention have existed for ages here in Belgium. IPAs are pretty much the new kid on the block. Weird how different our cultures are.
I love a real ass IPA, but like anything, after a while you get bored of the same old same old. Dabbled with seltzers for a hot minute, but I’m back to wine/cider mostly now. IPAs being so heavy feel more like Trappistes to me now: only during the winter.
Fair go. I really only brew ciders and seltzers nowadays but that’s mostly because they don’t have a cook step (and therefore don’t have a wort chilling step that’s a giant pain in the ass and a wonderful place for infection to creep in)
A lot of that stuff existed alongside IPAs like Dogfish Head for years. The explosion of IPAs in recent years coincides with the rise of Tree House Brewing, who may not have invented the New England IPA, but certainly mainstreamed it. At their second brewery, you’d see license plates from all over the country and you had to either show up 3 hours before opening or wait 3 hours in line. It was insanity. They were selling out every day at $15-20 a can back in 2014. They made stupid money, and their expansions since then will tell you all you need to know.
Anyway, within a year, the copycats started appearing, and that’s when the IPA craze really took off.
In general GNOME is frustratingly good. I do find myself wanting more options for customisation every once in a while, and jump to another option. But after a week I remember that no other option Is as smooth and polished and end up right back with GNOME.
Cinnamon has been doing a great job for me. On ubuntu 22.10+ you can use sudo apt-get install ubuntucinnamon* and it’ll install a themed version (but lightdm3 shows Ubuntu 22.04 for some reason)
There is a local brewery here in Alabama that makes a beer called “Sour-Pash”. Does it have a lot of alcohol? No. Hops? No. Is it fucking delicious and refreshing? You god damn right.
I love this beer, and it’s always sold out when I go to buy it.
@prole They tend to not be available in the grocery stores nearby. The only place I've found a really good one was at a brewery tour and it was a one off brew someone had done for the attached bar.
Seems like (at least in the US), region can make a massive difference.
That said, my experience is that grocery stores are always going to have a limited alcohol stock, and sours probably don’t sell well enough for them to stock them.
Never had a beer I liked, and EVERY SINGLE TIME a friend will tell me what they like is actually good “you can’t even taste the beer flavor, just the blank” and every single time, it tastes like beer with no hint of the blank.
Same. I gave up on beers years ago. I accept it’s not worth my money anymore just in hopes of figuring out what people like about it. I still enjoy some wines (though relatively few and I wouldn’t consider it an amazing taste). Mixed drinks are really where it’s at. Can’t go wrong with spiced rum and diet coke! There’s also so many very delicious sugary mixed drinks, but I try to minimize those because it’d take like 500+ calories to get a buzz.
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