Our sense of smell is incredibly powerful and the only one of our senses that is wired directly into our brain; however, smell has been erroneously relegated to a lesser sense - not as important as sight or sound. The relegation of our sense of smell began in ancient times, with Aristotle linking our sense of sight to abstract thinking, a concept only men were considered capable of. Over time, this line of thinking evolved into women and non-white people being better at smelling because they weren’t as fully formed as white men and therefore more “barbaric.” An often overlooked core value of Eurocolonial cultural hegemony is the olfactory neutrality of those in positions of power, whereas marginalized classes were classified as odorous. In this seminar, we will go over the role our sense of smell has had in creating and enforcing social hierarchies.

Jen Blair is a Master Cicerone and National BJCP beer judge. She is the Exam Manager for the Cicerone Certification Program and co-host of False Bottomed Girls, a podcast about beer and brewing. Jen is the creator of Under the Jenfluence and Aroma: Explore the Wheel. She is an international beer judge and judges for the Great American Beer Festival, Festival of Barrel-Aged Beer, and World Beer Cup.