Beer blog roundup w/e August 12th 2012. Ish

Late on parade again. Abnormal service will be resumed as soon as possible.

I'm a sponge for decent brewing science in a blog and there's very, very little out there. Step forward Beer Sensory Science with a fascinating run-down of several sessions from the recent World Brewing Congress. Start here and work your way forward.

Over at Beervana, Jeff Alworth believes an American brewer that doesn't have an IPA in their stable is committing "commercial suicide". Does that make the beginning of the end of the style's ubiquity, though?

Good news in the beer world should always be celebrated so it's great to hear that Hardknott have secured European funding to aid expansion of the brewery.

One of the first 'beery' people I met through Ratebeer was Daniel Brown. He's getting quite excited about the emergent beer scene in Birmingham. Quite rightly too, it would seem.

Every now and then, The Pub Curmudgeon puts up a piece that deserves attention. His recent article on tradition and beer enthusiasm is one of those rare beasts; a blog that made me stop and think.

I'm way overdue an European weekend and have been toying with the idea of revisiting Barcelona with my beery hat on. It's good to have updated gen in your pocket, so Knut Albert's Barca musings will prove useful.

Boak and Bailey tackle the etiquette issue surrounding tasters. I'd like to see legislation to allow 10-20cl samples to be sold, in flights. So if you want to try, there's no nervousness on behalf of customer or bar person. Just a straightforward financial transaction.

Something's stirring down Somerset way. As Adrian Tierney-Jones found out, if the trial brews from Wild Beer are anything to go by, the county will soon be home to one of the countries most innovative brewers.

And for everyone who's gone on holiday with more socks than is strictly necessary, Beer Cast will raise a smile.

More next time. Possibly this Friday. Possibly.