Beer drinkers can be a persnickety lot—from eschewing off-flavors to critiquing pours, being particular about glassware, and even having opinions about other people’s opinions. Still, there’s one area in the sensory experience that doesn’t get talked about enough: hand and dish soap.
Walk the hygiene aisles of a grocery store, and you’ll see soaps scented with all manner of aromas from flowers and fruits to weather concepts, such as spring breeze, summer storm, or winter warmth. In addition to achieving the intended purpose of cleaning your hands (or dishes) of dirt, debris, and germs, these scented soaps also leave you carrying around the odiferous effects long after your scrubbing has finished. That may be great for most occasions, but if you’re settling into a bottle share or heading back to the bar for another round, this can be problematic.
Aroma is key to the beer-drinking experience, and when you lift a glass to your nose in the hopes of getting hops, grain, yeast, and special ingredients but all you breathe in is rose blossom or Granny Smith apple, it distracts from the task at hand. The key here is unscented soap, and while that might sound like a no-brainer, it’s harder to come by than you might think.