Drinking on a school night: Students tap brand repertoire, bottles in alcohol appreciation class

By: Gavin Godfrey

Posted: 10/5/05

College students buy their Bud Light by the case, Keystone by the keg and red wine by the box. And these tastes can only mature with a little education, according to Bradley Beran, assistant professor in the College of Human Services and Health Professions.

"Students do not really know about the who, what, when and where elements that go into the alcohol they're consuming," Beran said. "They like to drink a lot, but that does not necessarily mean they're drinking good stuff."

Six years ago, Beran and his associate, restaurant owner and businessman Tim Burr, were conducting a wine appreciation class. Once a week, the class would meet and go over all of the technicalities of purchasing, understanding and drinking wine. As the class grew in popularity, so did the idea of adding another element to it. On a campus where beer pong, flip cup and funneling run rampant, it was only a matter time before students started thirsting for another element to be added to the already popular class.

"The students approached Tim and I and told us that the wine is great, but they wondered why we never spoke about beer," Beran said. "We figured, 'Hey, why not, let's add beer to the picture and have a class that covers both.'"

With the newly added brew element in place, Nutrition and Hospitality Management 422 was born, quickly becoming one of the most popular classes on campus. In the past five years, the class has boasted a maximum capacity enrollment average of 100 students.

With each student, there are various motives for joining such a class.

"The class obviously sounded fun, but I was hoping that the class would make me more knowledgeable about both beer and wine," said Alex Pellerano, a senior television, radio and film major.

When it comes to lesson plans for a class involving alcohol, the education goes beyond mere consumption of a beverage. Beran and Burr have prepared for the fall semester class since January 2004. Like the intoxicatingly humorous movie "Sideways," the two men set out to various wine conventions and vineyards, readying themselves for anything and tasting everything.

"The professors know their stuff, and they're serious about teaching," said senior nutrition major Lindsay DeSimon. "Their seriousness is reflected in the classroom, so it's good."

A class composed solely of 21-year-olds, the section meets every Tuesday at 5 p.m., and students are always anxious to get things going.

For the first half of class, things are pretty basic. Students are given history and geography lessons on the alcohol they taste. Following this is the science element of the class, when students learn about how chemical composition and environment affect taste.

Beran said after the first midterm there is always about a 15-20 percent drop in the class' enrollment. At this point in the semester, professors know exactly who came for the drinking and who came for the learning.

"We want our students to be critical and understanding of their consumption," Beran said. "We not only want them to drink, but we want them to know exactly what they are drinking and how they can tell."

At times, even opening a container exposes some alcoholic ignorance. Beran recalls a time when the class was drinking champagne - a $2,000 lesson plan - and the room became littered with three dozen bottles as students learned how to unscrew a cork. One student decided he knew everything there was to know, and proceeded to open the bottle, only to have the cork shoot out at about 100 mph and chip a huge chunk of plaster off of the ceiling.

"Nothing too crazy has really ever happened," Beran said. "We keep a very watchful eye on the students while the tasting is going on and never give them a large amount."

The overall goal of Beran and Burr is to teach their protégés to drink less and better.

According to Beran, the students on college campuses drink the brand names because they do not know anything else. To keep students in the loop, the professors have a list of micro, regional and major brewing companies who send in representatives to speak to the class. Students hear names like Anheuser-Busch, Saranac and Yuengling and realize Miller Lite and Pabst are not exactly the most tasteful drinking choices.

"I've learned that the knowledge involved in distinguishing different grades of alcohol is simply being able to know there is a difference," Pellerano said.