Jan 15, 2014

Shower Beer, yeah, its a real thing!

The Shower Beer is defined by Urban Dictionary as

 "The beer you take into the shower when you're in a hurry to go out and still need to get cleaned up, or want to relax from a long day."
 
or as
 
 "The most delightful beer in the world. Can be anything from Pabst to Guinness, but must be consumed within the shower and while the shower is on."
 
 
 
A while back, on The Beer Czar Facebook page I posted a pic of a product geared towards the "shower beer". I had never heard of such a thing, but there seemed to be a fair amount of common knowledge around the subject, so I wanted to look into it a little further.
 
I was a little shocked to be honest. A quick Google search will yield results such as comment threads, blog posts Reddit threads, tons of photos, how to guides, do's and don't guides, and even products geared towards the shower beer (here and here).
 
 
Why have I never heard of this? I am a fairly active member of the beer community, I shower on an almost daily basis, why have these two wonderful worlds never collided for me before now?? It seems a match made in heaven if you think about it, I mean, drinking beer, naked? Yes please! So, I wanted to know what you thought about it, so I asked the question on our Facebook page...."have you ever had a shower beer?". Well, it was one of my most responded to posts on our Facebook page. The results were a tad shocking to me. The question was multiple choice, the choices and results were as follows....
 
 
1. Never done it...  14.29%
2. I've done it once, that's all...  7.14%

3. I have on occasion, I don't make a habit of it..  42.86%
4. Love it, do it quite often...  32.14%
5. Don't ever shower with out one..  0%
6. Only when I have company...  3.57%
 
 
I got over 50 responses! So, it seems most, 85% to be exact, have at least tried the shower beer, 75% of them indulging in the practice on at least a somewhat regular basis. A few of the things that seemed to play a factor, at least for the folks responding to our little, unscientific survey was age, and time of year. Some said they use to be a 4, now that they are older, they are a 3. It also seems summer time is the preferred time to partake in a shower beer
 
So, I figured, why not? I love beer, I shower daily, plus I normally prefer to shower at night, so I figured it would just lend itself to the occasional shower beer if I had a favorable experience with it. One shot against it I thought, before trying it (at least for me), I am not the kind of person that lingers in the shower. I take about 3 minute showers normally (I don't have any hair to shampoo), and I wasn't planning on shot gunning a beer in the shower, so well, I had mixed feelings as to what to expect. So, one evening, after getting home from the gym (that isn't a joke, yes I do actually go on occasion) I decided it was time to try it. This is what I learned....
 
First, I think cans or plastic cups would work best, a must really. I made the mistake of pouring my Mudshark into a beer snifter, and well, with wet, and sometimes soapy hands, it became an almost stressful affair at times, afraid I would drop my glass, and break it, and lets face it, you are a bit more exposed then you normally are when you are in the shower, and the thought of a cut needing a trip to the ER to get stiches from an injury I sustained in the shower was a bit embarrassing.
 
Second, make sure the beer is quite cold, colder then you would probably normally drink it. Drinking in the shower is sort of like drinking in a sauna, its a bit hot and steamy in there, and it will warm your beer at a disappointingly, and surprisingly rapid rate. This could be why summer maybe "shower beer season". Summer beers would work best I think, they taste pretty good really cold, and you don't normally take scalding hot showers when its 115 out. 
That being said, this could be (and was for me) a very enjoyable practice. If you don't have kids running around, and you have some extra time to kill, or you are trying to save time and start pre-gaming even earlier, this is for you! I don't see myself doing this on a regular basis, but after mowing the lawn (as was suggested as the best time to indulge in one by a fellow blogger) or other yard work, after a hike, or lengthily workout, I can see a shower beer being a wonderful way to relax, unwind, refresh and cleanse yourself, all at the same time. Multi tasking at its best!
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
I still want to hear from you if I haven't already. Is this something you do, have done? Even better, if you decided to try it, as a result of reading this, I want to hear from you, send us your thoughts or even photos of your prized shower beer if you have them, we would love to read or see them!!
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Until next time
Bottoms up my friends!
 
The Beer Czar
 
 
p.s.- the photos were all taken off a public Reddit "shower beer" thread, and already made public. None of the photos are of fans or readers of The Beer Czar (that I know of)
 
 


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