Yes, You Can Have That Dream Job Tasting Beer

beer tasting dream job
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Dreams do come true. The thing you pay to do every weekend because you enjoy it? You can get paid to do that. At least, you can if that thing is having a beer or two.

Researchers at the UK's University of Nottingham are looking for professional beer tasters. Don't be intimidated by the title. No experience is required. There will be on the job training, which sounds awesome if your job involves tasting beer.

“It might not sound like it, but becoming a trained beer taster is hard work,” Marit Nijman, a PhD student at the University of Nottingham, told the Nottingham Post. “Beer is a complex product with lots of complex flavors, and it can sometimes take up to 50 exposures before people are able to identify specific odors in beer.” Nijman used to train beer tasters at Heineken.

The training will help the professional beer taster go far beyond determining whether or not they like a beer. They will learn to identify subtle nuances. That'll be important because the tasters are working with researchers at the university's Sensory Science Centre to answer questions about "how the aroma and flavor changes as the alcohol content is altered and time passes," among many other topics.

The project is sponsored by breweries, maltsters, and hop producers who will use the research to play with new ideas and improve their products. So, you'd be doing the whole world a service by drinking beer. You'd be a hero to your people.

It's a long-term project, expected to last three-to-four years, and the job is only a couple hours a week. So, it's probably not a job you're moving to Nottingham over. On the other hand, you would be getting paid to drink beer, so maybe it's worth it.

The Post says anyone interested in applying should drop an email to christina.dietz[at]nottingham.ac.uk before September 20.

h/t Vinepair via The Nottingham Post

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Dustin Nelson is a News Writer with Thrillist. He holds a Guinness World Record but has never met the fingernail lady. Follow him @dlukenelson.