The Pour: a column in Heliopolis Shreveport Bossier City by Lindsay Nations, Great Raft Brewing

Great Raft Brewing in Shreveport, a photo by Shreveport-Bossier: Louisiana's Other Side on Flickr.

Excerpts from Lindsay Nations' The Pour: New Year’s Resolutions for Beer Drinkers

Introduce someone to craft beer – Show someone that the US is full of creative, talented brewers that are pushing style boundaries and making delicious, enjoyable beers.

Try at least one new beer a month.

Host a beer tasting with friends – Beer is meant to be shared and enjoyed with friends.

Visit a local / regional brewery – There are nine manufacturing breweries in Louisiana, and a handful of them have tasting rooms. Dallas and Austin both have more than a dozen breweries. So, you’ve got options!

Read a book about craft beer – Some of my recommendations include: “Tasting Beer: An Insider’s Guide to the World’s Greatest Drink” by Randy Mosher, “The Complete Joy of Homebrewing” by Charlie Papazian and “The Oxford Companion to Beer,” by Garrett Oliver.

Drink less – Really! Drink less sub-par beer, be selective and drink craft beer. There’s plenty of good beer out there that doesn’t require iceberg expeditions. Pro tip: The colder your beer, the less you taste.

Always drink beer from a glass – Much of what we perceive as taste comes from the aroma. You can’t properly smell a beer if you are drinking from a long neck or can.

- See more at: http://heliopolissbc.com/Article/pour-new-year%E2%80%99s-resolutions-beer-drinkers#sthash.IUPVxwPJ.dpuf

Above: Jim Noetzel's photo of the new Great Raft Brewing Tasting Room, 1251 Dalzell St.