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Social media is deeply embedded in our everyday lives, and a large majority of us spend far too much time on these platforms. The amount of time I spend scrolling through Twitter on a daily basis is actually quite disgusting. To make matters worse, a new one has recently been added to the rotation — Untappd.
I am not sure why it has taken so long for me to discover it since it has been around since 2010, but I know that it should have remained undiscovered because it has turned me into a monster.
Untappd combines two things I could stand to consume less of: social media and beer. As such, your boy has dived in head first. I’ll admit I have never really been into the craft beer scene even though I live in Maine (which is 2nd in the US for breweries per capita according to Craft Brewing Business, largely thanks to Portland being a major hub in the industry). That all changed when I downloaded Untappd.
Untappd allows you to check in at beer venues, rate beers, evaluate beers’ flavor profiles, snap photos of beer, and share your overall beer experiences with your network of friends. As your network grows, you can sift through your feed and find out which beers are on the rise and which beers are gross. The app even tracks your drinking and rewards you with badges for completing certain tasks like having 10 beers from cans or drinking a certain number of beers from one country. So not only do you get drunk, but you get a trophy for it! Huge.
Drinking is always ramped up in the summer, so it goes without saying that I certainly could have stood to do without the shot of nitrous this app has provided to my alcohol intake. I find myself cracking a beer on a week night 30 minutes before bed just because I need to check in on Untappd. My alcohol spending has also spun out of control, because instead of just drinking Miller Lites (the only 5-star beer on my Untappd currently) I find myself spending triple on craft brews at most places I go. The 12er of Lattes I normally pick up before going somewhere has turned into a $15 4-pack of some random beer with a fancy label. My taste buds are becoming refined to the finer details of beer, and I hate myself for it. It used to be about drinking something cold and crisp that’ll make you feel all fuzzy after a few of them. Now, I am in search of validation from this silly app whenever I pick up a brew. I earned the “Liquid Lunch” badge last Tuesday afternoon. Not one, two, or three, but FOUR beers at 2:00 p.m. on a Tuesday. I have lost it, folks.
I hope this new addiction is just me playing with a shiny new toy, because this behavior is certainly not sustainable. It should be fun while it lasts, though. That being said, if anyone wants to watch me go down in flames, DM me for my Untappd username. See you at happy hour tonight..
Respond
@207Cush
I know this take will get shit on, but “beer-obsessed” people really need to get a fucking life. It’s the new wine snob and it’s obnoxious. Nobody cares how craft your craft brew is or what you claim you can taste in the new seasonal beer…if it’s good it’s good, drink it and shut up about it.
Yeah well golf sucks too.
Congrats, you’re an idiot
I agree, no one should have to hear about what other people are drinking but damn man why you gotta assault my hobby of trying different styles of beer.
It’s all in how you approach it. I love trying different craft beers and will talk about them with other interested parties but I’m not going to pretend like I have some sort of refined pallete and I’m certainly never going to scoff if somebody passes me a cold domestic light beer.
Just curious – how is loving golf, for example, any different than loving craft beers (or any other less traditional hobby)? Unless you’re playing golf and never uttering a word about your new irons, the course you’re playing this weekend, or the amazing birdie you made, it’s kind of hypocritical to tell people to “drink it and shut up”, right?
PS I do love both golf & craft beer, I simply don’t get why certain hobbies mean people need to get a life, when they’re all just ways to gather with friends and blow off steam
Well no, because I don’t talk to people, who don’t give a shit, about my new irons or birdie on 17. Plus, there is a difference between a hobby and people who want to spend 30 minutes discussing the hints of citrus they taste in a beverage that gets you drunk
I guess we simply disagree at the core issue of “what is a hobby”. there are plenty of people within the beer community who use tasting, brewing, discussion, and trading different regional beers as their hobby. I mean it’s not a sport but if it’s important to them they should be able to discuss it as such and treat it as their hobby, that’s all I meant
Untappd was a really fun thing until I realized it was posting on my Facebook that I earned a badge for some accomplishment at times like 2:00PM on a Tuesday….be sure to turn off Facebook notifications.
5 stars you say?
Sup?
Does this app have the ability to suggest similar beers that you’ve rated highly? If so, may be worth a peek. But my friend and I’s taste in beer is dog shit, don’t need an app to tell me that.
Yes it will also give you suggestions when you check a beer in, and tell you where you can find them nearby.
I’m going to need to drink enough to forget I read about the existence of this app.
I meannn it’s (kind of) a cool concept but I would feel like a huge beer douche/snob if I downloaded this app. To each their own, though