Drinks at a Roulette Table at a casino in Atlantic City

Sip and Spin: Navigating the Interplay Between Beer and Bets

As someone who worked as a dealer at a casino for 11 years (nearly 12 years), and who now works in the brewing industry, the idea of how gambling and alcohol correlate and cross-intersect is one I find very interesting. While working at the casino we had signs up “We don’t deal to intoxicated gamblers” and things like “Intoxicated Gambling is Illegal Gambling”…. but where’s the line and how do you draw it? …And does anyone even pay attention to the line? If a guy comes in with 50$ that line is a lot more apparent, than when a guy brings 25,000$ to the table.

So with that all in mind, I did a bit of research to look at the intersectionality of gambling and alcohol.

From Casinos to Couches: The Role of Beer in Gambling Dynamics

Gambling and Drinking

The intricate relationship between beer consumption and gambling activities is evident in settings like casinos, where the allure of free alcoholic beverages serves as a strategic enticement to enrich the gambling experience. Alcohol’s well-known effect of lowering inhibitions contributes to a more relaxed approach to gambling, often leading to higher stakes and more spontaneous betting decisions.

This concept of complimentary incentives is not confined to physical casinos but extends into the digital gambling space. Online gambling platforms lure new users with attractive promotions, such as the “$200 no deposit bonus 200 free spins,” allowing individuals to gamble from home. In such settings, the choice of drinking beer remains, but without the physical environment’s constraints, offering a different yet impactful dynamic.

Exploring Alcohol’s Psychological Effects on Gambling

Gambling in a Saloon

The impact of alcohol on gambling behavior is complex. Moderate beer consumption might reduce stress, potentially leading to clearer decision-making by reducing the anxiety associated with gambling. However, excessive drinking can impair judgment, complicating strategic gambling efforts and the ability to recognize when to quit. The outcome depends greatly on individual tolerance and the gambling context.

Even minimal alcohol consumption can subtly influence the balance between caution and risk in decision-making, with long-term effects on gambling outcomes. Additionally, alcohol can affect memory, possibly altering the perception of wins and losses and amplifying the perceived benefits of gambling while minimizing the risks through the social aspect of drinking and gambling together.

Key Psychological Considerations:

• Risk Perception: Alcohol may make the risks of gambling seem less daunting, encouraging bolder bets.
• Impulse Control: Drinking beer can reduce self-control, leading to more impulsive gambling decisions.
• Stress and Cognitive Clarity: The stress-reducing effects of alcohol need to be balanced with its potential to cloud judgment and decision-making.
• Social Influence: The social aspect of drinking while gambling can intensify alcohol’s impact on gambling choices, influenced by the behavior and suggestions of peers.

Statistical Trends and Gambling Behaviors

The global online gambling market is expected to grow significantly, highlighting the increasing popularity of digital gambling platforms. Research shows that alcohol consumption is linked to riskier gambling behaviors and an increased likelihood of regrettable decisions, underscoring the importance of moderation and awareness in combining beer with gambling activities.

According to Statista, the global online gambling market is expected to experience a growth rate of 6.59% from 2024 to 2028, reaching a total market size of €126.60 billion by the end of 2028. Engaging with statistical data reveals telling patterns about the correlation between beer consumption and gambling behaviors. Studies indicate that individuals under the influence of alcohol are more likely to engage in risky gambling behaviors compared to those who abstain. The likelihood of regrettable gambling decisions increases parallel to the amount of alcohol consumed. These statistics underscore the importance of awareness and moderation in the consumption of beer within gambling contexts.

The Growing Role of Online Gambling

Online gambling introduces a unique aspect to the beer-gambling dynamic. Even without the physical presence of free alcoholic drinks, the decision to consume beer at home can influence gambling behaviors and decisions. The online environment emphasizes personal responsibility and awareness in managing alcohol’s impact on gambling, given the ease of excessive drinking and the challenges in tracking time and money spent.

The Intersection of Beer and Gambling: A Complex Dynamic

Conclusion

The link between beer consumption and gambling is nuanced, affecting cognitive functions, emotional states, and decision-making processes. While the combination of beer and gambling in social scenarios is appealing, it requires mindful navigation to ensure a balanced experience. Recognizing alcohol’s influence on gambling behaviors is crucial for enhancing the enjoyment of these activities while avoiding negative consequences. Informed choices and self-regulation emerge as essential strategies for maintaining a balanced gambling experience in both physical and online environments.

Hemauer Brewing and The Adventure’s Guild are Hosting a Board Game Night at Hemauer Brewing

Hemauer Brewing and The Adventure’s Guild are Hosting a Board Game Night at Hemauer Brewing

Do you like board games? Settlers of Catan? Scythe? Game of Thrones the Board Game? Risk? Monopoly? Exploding Kittens? Trash Panda? Organ Attack? Ticket to Ride? Pandemic? King of Tokyo? Dominion? Small World? 7 Wonders? Tiny Towns? Etc, etc, etc. Or how about even card games like Uno, Poker, Trash Panda, Wild Fox, War, etc?

Then come on out to Hemauer Brewing on March 5th, from 5PM to 9PM (EST) and get to play some of your favorite board games, or learn a brand new one!

Board Game Night

Our neighbor, The Adventurer’s Guild, is partnering with us to bring you a board game night at the taproom! Join us on Tuesday, March 5th, from 5:00 PM until 9:00 PM for games, pizza, and drinks!

The Adventurer’s Guild will bring a stack of board games to play, but feel free to bring your own! We hope to see you there!

#hemauerbrewingco#hemauerstrong#beer#boardgamenight#brewing#drinklocal#localbeer

— at Hemauer Brewing Co.

Hemauer Brewing

The day started with some trails around the Jackson Falls. The Rock Furnace Trail walks right along the beautiful creek’s edge with lots of little rapids and small waterfalls. Beautiful 9AM walk with nobody in sight. It then led into the Roaring Run Trail along the river where there were more bikers and walkers.

After my hike, it was time to keep moving west young faithful traveler.

The first brewery for day two was Allusion Brewing Company in Vandergrift Pennsylvania. A pretty little brewery pub that really captured the old – time feel of the town. The town was quaint, small, and old in that way most small Pennsylvania towns are. It reminded me of the town from the Back to the Future (when they travel back in time). It just had this oldey timey feel. The beers at Allusion were top notch. And if you visit, and Jim is there, make sure to say hello, great guy and fun bartender. The flights are also very cool, they repurposed old library card catalogue holders.

After this I ventured into Pittsburgh itself (I know a dangerous thing for a Cincinnati Bengals, Philadelphia Flyers, and Philadelphia Phillies fan to do), but I visited the Rodef Shalom Botanical Biblical Garden. I stopped here last year with my girls, to find out we were there on the wrong day (despite Google Maps saying they were open). Well, once again Google Maps got me, and here they closed for the season back on September 15th.

I was invited by Bobby, the current head brewer for Couch Brewery, to stop in and pay him a visit. They were closed but he was in the ‘shop’ kegging their upcoming release – The Four Horseman, so he invited me in, gave me a tour of their facilities backstage, and brought me out to the bar, and let me have a run of samples of all of their beers. Even giving me a four pack to go. Top notch dude, a complete blast and riot, funny guy, and knows his beer as well. The beers were all fantastic, and he sent me on my way with – Macho Man, Sofa Quasimodo, Morning Wood (not often can I say that a guy sent me on my way with Morning Wood), and Atomic Clock.

He even gave me a sample of their upcoming collaboration beer that he was kegging – The Four Horseman. (He’s Arn Anderson.) I can’t say enough thanks for the hospitality and friendliness he showed me. If you are in the Pittsburgh area be sure to stop out and check Couch Brewery out.

I then traveled up to Riverview Park, where along the way, I must’ve made about ten different wrong turns, going up the steepest hills and back down the steepest slopes. I passed the St. Anthony’s Chapel, where I had taken my daughters to last year, to see a piece of the Cross. I finally made it to the Alleghany Observatory parking lot, and spent the next couple of hours walking and hiking.

While up on Troy’s Hill I saw Penn Brewery and stopped, they were unfortunately closed, but I still snapped a picture, and found a brewery (don’t fail me now Google Maps) that was open, so I was on my way to Hop Farm Brewing Company.

I got to Hop Farm Brewing Company around 7:30PM to find they were at max capacity, so I walked the block, and went back to my car for about fifteen minutes and read, then came back and they luckily had an open table. (Seating was pretty limited.) The burger was delicious and they did their french fries in hop oil (like how Troegs Brewing does their’s at their brewery), and they were absolutely stellar, better even than Troegs.

My night concluded with me going to The Meadows Casino and Racetrack. Hung out there for a bit, checked out the dice tables, poker room (didn’t play), and tried to get a local beer on tap – Sobel’s Obscure Brewery’s Prehistoric Pilsner. But it kicks with barely a taste in it, and when for replacement I asked the bartender for a local beer, she offers me the Sierra Nevada’s Little Hazy Thing …… sigh. Oh well, so it goes.

Hop and a skip over to my hotel, and I’m calling it a night. See you guys on here again for tomorrow’s recap as I venture into Ohio and Columbus. Cheers!

-B. Kline

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The Trip to Indianapolis:

• The Trip to Indy
• The Trip to Indy – Day One Recap
• The Trip to Indy – Day Two Recap
• The Trip to Indy – Day Three Recap
• The Trip to Indy – Day Four Recap
• The Trip to Indy – Day Five Recap
• The Trip to Indy – Day Six Recap
• The Trip to Indy – Day Seven Recap
• Recap and Stats

Thats the nature of the game and while they might not be the greatest beers you’ll ever have, there is still some decent beers, and doesn’t mean we can’t give them a little write-up and review.

So that’s exactly what I’m doing here. Giving two beers that most blogs and most reviewers will overlook a write-up. Why? Well, because I drank them, so why not? But also to highlight that there is so many different beers in the world, and so many different styles and ways to consume beers (draft, can, bottle, at home, away, at a bar, at a party, with friends, while playing poker, while doing trivia, etc.). Beer is just as much as the company you are with as it is the quality of the beer itself. The right company can make a Miller Lite taste acceptable. Or it can even make a JREAM or Utopias taste like swill. (And obviously there is times where the quality of the beer impacts the quality of the company as well. Everything is a two way street after all …..except one way streets…. they are just annoying.)

Tuesdays at the Arooga’s on Rt. 22 means Poker Night. Many of the dealers and workers from the casino will drive (pretty much right down the road) and play. Its free. Its close. And happy hour is 5-7 so if you get early you can catch a beer or two to pre-game before the tournament starts (7:30) or grab one, then grab a second one at the last second (6:59 order for the win) to sip on while you play. (Key strategy right there.)

Despite this being a semi-regular from Founders and having been out for I believe a few years, its one I haven’t had yet, so when out at bars like this, that’s a plus for it right there, new Untappd check-in (and as it turns out has its own badge, so there we go, badge hunting at its finest), so double plus.

Let’s see what we got here:

Beer: Green Zebra
Brewery: Founders Brewing Company
Style: Sour – Gose – Fruited
ABV: 4.6%
IBU: 10
Untappd Write-Up: Subtly sour and a little sweet, this ale is a refreshing take on a nearly extinct German style, gose. Watermelon is the highlight of this lightly-hopped treat and gives it a hint of satisfying juiciness. The soft mouthfeel and dry finish comes courtesy of the addition of sea salt, a traditional gose ingredient.

This is very slight on the sour side. No real tartness and no real crazy sour. It is very much on the sweet side of things. Not quite like their Lizard of Kaz where it was super syrupy and sweet, but this is sweet and clingy all the same, kind of like a hummingbird nectar that you could put out on the back patio and watch the hummingbirds swarm to and acts and other bugs bathe in.

That’s not to say this is a bad beer. Its a refreshing beer, and its very sweet, and a good sipping beer to start a poker tournament with. The aroma is very nice, heavy watermelon, heavy sweet fruit notes, and there is no bitterness to this at all. It is cloying and clinging and the mouthfeel is slick but sticks to you.

And for those of you fans of poker : started off the tournament doing pretty well. Some nice early hands, even getting pocket Kings followed by pocket Jacks as well as A10 and AQ and hitting a broadway with the A10 to double-up and knock a player out. The mostly dealer table got wiped pretty clean early and we began getting players from other tables, while I moved onto ordering my next beer.

My Untappd Rating: ***.75
Global Untappd Rating: 3.76 (as of 7.23.19)

Yes, I am fully aware I’m doing a beer review for the dreaded In-Bev machine. And yes, I am also aware that its stupid to give them a shout-out and a review. Primarily because I hate a lot of the things they stand for, and their handling of craft beer and craft breweries. I will attempt to pass this off as a mistake thinking it was by Great Lakes (which I did), but its neither here nor there.

For those not in the know, Goose Island Beer Co. is a subdivision of In-Bev which owns Anheuser-Busch. The makers being Bud Light, Budweiser, etc. They have a notorious record in the craft beer market and community for basically attempting to destroy it. Through many ways (a lot of which are nefarious, though ultimately all legal). Things like buying up lots of smaller craft breweries (or at least regional/medium sized ones) like Wicked Weed, Blue Moon, Goose Island, Elysian, etc. They have also done some underhanded commercials aimed at craft beer and craft breweries with making stereotypes out of craft drinkers (hipsters, effeminate, etc.) as well as doing other shady things like attempting to buy hop farms in South Africa and other places. They also do a lot of practices of tap manipulation at bars to push craft breweries/beers off the tap lists as well as shelf space at grocery stores and gas stations.

So needless to say, they don’t exactly have the best reputation in the craft beer market. But I am going to overlook all of these things and review the beer impartially. (And besides, as some might have noted, I have done reviews on Wicked Weed in the past, so I’m not immune to having done reviews of In-Bev owned breweries and besides, I’ll most likely do Goose Island in the future, and I’m sure you can guess which one[s]).

Beer: Next Coast IPA
Brewery: Goose Island Beer Co.
Style: IPA – American
ABV: 7%
IBU: 40
Hops: Eureka, Nugget, Mosaic, Citra, 06277 Hop
Untappd Write-Up: It’s 7%, but totally crushable — it’s not quite like any other IPA you’ve had. Big, bracing, piney hop flavors meet a tropical bouquet of Eureka, Nugget, Mosaic, Citra, and 06277 hops. There’s a balanced bitterness that blends seamlessly into the light to medium body. Sip it or rip it. Whatever. We’re not your mom.

A total difference from the watermelon fruity nectar Green Zebra I just had, this is a hoppy West Coast traditional IPA. I think the write-up for this is a bit more marketing than actuality though (sadly) but its serviceable for what it is. (A 3$ last second happy hour grab.)

Its not really crushable like the description lists. The aroma is hoppy, piney, but not a crazy smack you in the mouth hop punch that it could be, especially given all the hops they list being in this.

(Brief poker interlude: table breaks down and we’re moving down to two tables. Sitting on a decent stack thats probably the upper of the middle, bottom of the top stacks.)

The taste is hop bitterness first and foremost. A bit overly bitter aftertaste thats not really representative of the hops (especially some of those listed like Eureka and Citra). Not familiar with 06277 Hop, I assume some proprietary hop that Goose Island has access to but most craft brewers won’t be able to access (again, one of the perks of being owned by In-Bev).

Sadly there isn’t much more to say about the flavor. Its a traditional piney hop west coast IPA that lacks any other distinguishing flavors or notes or interesting bits about it. There is a real aftertaste that is a bit overly bitter, again, especially given the hops involved, but its not too unpleasant to the point of making the beer undrinkable.

Would I order this again? Probably not. Am I upset I dropped 3$ on it at a happy hour while out with friends at a sports bar playing poker? No. So I guess it served its purpose? *Shrug*

My Untappd Rating: ***.25
Global Untappd Rating: 3.68 (as of 7.23.19)
(I wonder if its not an In-Bev beer if I would have given them the benefit of the doubt and went 3.5 on it, but I dunno, and really its not worth dithering too much on a .25 on an Untappd check-in for a beer that will be checked in uptowards 30K just due to brand/market share).

And so not to leave everyone in suspense, the poker recap.

14 players left, and get moved to down to two tables. First hand on the new table, I look and have pocket 10s (10H and 10C). First person to act folds, second folds, I make it 60 (blinds are 15-30). Call. Fold. Small blind goes all in at 75. Big blind calls. Leaving him with about 45 behind. I call the 15 more.

Flop comes KH-5S-9C. Rainbow flop and a bit all over the place. Not hitting anything I’m a bit hesitant with an over-card out. Big blind is first to act (small blind is all in). He checks. I check. Turn comes 10S. He checks. I make it 45 (forcing him to be all in.) He calls. Now that everyone is all in, all hands are flipped up, the small blind had A-J suited diamonds, big blind had KD-JC. So their sharing outs and I already have the set. River comes 5 (of hearts I believe?) giving me a full house, and knocking them both out. (Got my second full house of the tournament, and my second bonus 50 chip for it.)

A few hands later I do impressively well with back to back Ace-Rags hands. On one knocking out another player and taking a decent chunk from one before he folds, and on the other taking out a pretty good chunk from a fellow dealer before he folds.

But then I donkey off nearly half my stack right back to him a few hands later with another Ace-Rags where I didn’t hit my heart with both the turn and river to go. (Ace high flush draw vs. his two pair after the flop, I had several outs going into the turn, flush draw or runner/runner Ace or two pair).

Immediately after that, I’m all in with Jacks vs. Ace-Jack. Which is a good position for me (I have two of his outs, I just need to avoid him hitting his Ace, so he theoretically has 3 outs.) Of course he hits his Ace on the flop and thats all she wrote. 11th out of 33 I believe. Respectable (especially since I haven’t played in roughly 7-8 months).

Future upcoming blog posts:
* a flight from Moo-Duck Brewery
* the Moo-Funk Homebrew Event
* Ffej of July: 17
* Mango Guyobano sWheat Tart from Rotunda Brewing
* Fuzzy Nudge from Troegs Brewing
* my hop harvest at my house
* canning day at Tattered Flag

So until then, enjoy everyone!

-B. Kline