For The Betterment of Beer: The Best Beer Inventions (Besides, of course, Beer)

From beer cans with built-in shotgunning tabs on the side to those ridiculous funnel hats "that guy" dons at sports games, beer has kicked opened numerous doors to cheeky inventors since Ancient Egypt. And, while I'd stake my taste for 2XIPAs that Pharaoh never buckled up a beer belt, there have been at least a handful of inventions that have been for the beer-good, inventions that don't focus on consumption, ergonomics (who the hell needs an ergonomic beer can? Screw you, Miller Lite), or air-flow (that's you, Coors!). The best beer inventions either benefit the beer itself, benefit the social aspect of drinking beer, or benefit both. With that in mind, I've opined my favorite of the best recent beer inventions, though, deciding my personal favorites was nothing if not difficult, with hours of schizophrenic self-debate, choosing whether to include the revolutionary Hop Cannon, or the Dogfish Head-Sierra Nevada collab IPA pint glass, or a UK design team's Fight-Friendly beer glass (though benefitting man-kind, let's face it, pub brawls are as British as pubs themselves). So, with no further adieu, the best beer inventions: (plus, honorable mentions and inventions that should never have been):

Anamorphic Art: The Art of Arrangement

I honestly feel there is nothing cooler, more beautiful or inspiring, and certainly more difficult, than art. Incidentally, there are many forms of art--much of which defies beauty; much more defies modern conceptions of "art." (Which is good; it breaks down current conception, opening the door to new modern conceptions). 

The Mona Lisa is considered art by everybody and is revered by everybody, most often because everybody has grown up able to identify The Mona Lisa, and told to revere it, without actually revering it, and often less impressed by its petite size. Conversely, the apartment building across the street may appear as art to few, and revered as art by few--indeed, perhaps only revered by a handful of tenants, impressive only to an architect. Two different examples of art, and the conceptual differences surrounding them. But, periodically, a piece emerges that only most convulsive contradictors could deny as art, and not revere or be impressed by as art. 

Rooms Like White Elephants

Archinect feature project, "White Elephant (Privately Soft)" by Jaminez Lai.

All images: White Elephant, by Jaminez Lai, via Bureau-Spectacular

One morning, I was sitting on my back porch, sipping coffee and lending my mind to idle musing, when I suddenly and completely out of the blue decided, with vocal proclamation, "I'm interested in architecture." The interest was not fleeting. Too, despite minor colour blindness, I've always had a workable eye for interior design. This, though undoubtedly inherited from my mother, may be more my self-diagnosed OCD than her inadvertent influence.