What Meatloaf and Beer Have Taught me about Audiophiles
Recently in life and online I've had some curious observations about human behavior I thought I'd share. To begin with, I have recently discovered that a surprising number of My Fellow Americans do not like meatloaf. As a meatloaf maker and meatloaf cognoscenti I was absolutely astonished at this. Some people who otherwise like burgers and the like hate meatloaf.
If you make meatloaf and love it your immediate reaction to this is "but you haven't tried _my_ meatloaf." That's our natural knee jerk reaction because we just can't imagine. Related to this I have a bartender. We'll call him Calhoun because his name is Calhoun. An otherwise respectable fellow who knows beer and tequila better than most. I would go in to see what the latest rotation of Indian Pale Ales were. About once a month they'd get some new "dessert beer." That is a brew made to taste like a sweet food substance. The least offensive of which were peanut butter and the worst strawberry shortcake beer. Calhoun would proceed to push me to sample these unholy abominations every time he could.
Of course I'd tell him "I don't like flavored beers." Which was partially a lie as a coffee or espresso flavored beer would probably be divine.. but we digress.
Sometimes he was so adamant that the latest beer flavor was the one that would change my mind I'd go ahead and try them. Of course, they were invariably disgusting.
My point to all this is that being on both sides of this argument. It's really hard to accept that our fellow audiophiles don't like something we feel is sublime and we will push our fancies onto them in the hopes of enriching their lives for the better. It's hard for us to respect that someone else can love music and the stereos that play it and yet not have found their happy place the same way we have.
By the way, I use the Betty Crocker meatloaf recipe and add a tablespoon of chipotle powder. Amazing.
I like meatloaf but most, especially restaurant fare, give me mild heartburn. And I'm not even prone to heartburn. My mother's meatloaf did not have that effect on me and although pretty mild, it was what I grew up on, so I liked it. the recipe was from the "old country" and it went to the grave with her.
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When our kids were younger, my wife would make ’feetloaf’ Shape them like feet cut off at the ankles, used sliced onion for toenails and poured the sauce over the ankles to ooze down. They loved it, especially around Halloween. And @yesiam_a_pirate , she too is a Southern Belle, and lord, that woman can cook and bake! |
What a fun and interesting post! Thanks Erik. My mom (who is a woman of excellent character) may well be the worst cook in in the lower 48 and her meatloaf was so bad even the dog wouldn't eat it. Some decades later a little Southern Belle friend of ours made her meatloaf in spite of my best polite persuasion to the contrary. She used garlic ritz crackers in the meat- 50% lamb and 50% fatty prime ground beef. She also added loads of pepper jack cheese, onions, some hot chili powder and smothered it in katsup which backed back into a tomato paste and sealed in the juices. I was in heaven! A big cold Ale made it all the more better. Happy Easter! Eric |
@erik_squires one of the greatest posts ever. I love meatloaf. My wife hates it. I love this audiophile experience and the process of figuring out what I like. She likes Spotify. But we are both happy. To each his own. Just find what you like and move in that direction. |
@mapman "...what Lisa Douglas made for Oliver..." dahlink!! |
Big fan of meatloaf (the food) and a little spice in the sauce makes most things taste better (btw - great pic @nonoise) Big fan of IPAs (singles, doubles, even some triples and quads). They have to be interesting and not bland. (btw - never had an "Indian" pale ale - made from maize?) Generally, do not like flavored beers (although a place over here makes a great tasting berry sour and another one called Fluffsicle that tastes just like a creamsicle) Big fan of listening to my stereo and I hope everyone else is happy listening to whatever system they happen to have.
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I like to cook and I think the above is an excellent analogy. It’s got me scratching my head, wondering what the sonic equivalent of "croutons" might be. Actually, I often think in terms of sonics when adjusting seasonings. Does the dish need more bass? More mids? More highs?
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I use the soup analogy. No two soups taste the same, many are delicious. Yum! Some cost more to whip up than others. People like some and can’t deal with others. It is what it is. Nothing to lose sleep over. I have a $80 DAC that I think sounds great. So shoot me! Punishing others who do not see things your way appears to be a big thing these days. Just read the headlines. So much for freedom of speech much less actions. If I were a tourist, I wouldn’t want to visit here anymore either. Very sad state of affairs. It’s up to each individual to try and make the world a better place. We all better get busy!
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