Oil-Eating Yeast in Beer and How That Relates to Kiehl’s Centella Skin-Calming Facial Cleanser: or, the Story of Joon’s Skin

This post has nothing to do with wine. It doesn’t even have anything to do with alcohol.

Well, I’ll take that back. There was a magazine article a few years back that brought up the fact that the yeast from beer could basically digest oils, as in the sebaceous oils from human skin. While the research I conducted online yielded just as many counts for as against his hypothesis, the author of that article suggested that acne dropped off after the age of 21 because people drank more alcohol–specifically, beer–once they turned legal.

Well, here I was, 25 years of age and still suffering from moderate acne (sorry, ladies, for destroying your mental image of me). I tried Proactiv and a whole bunch of other treatments–salicylic acid, benzyl peroxide–and had at best mixed results. I even took the author’s advice and tried drinking beer heavily. There’d be periods of time when I’d be relatively clear, and then–BAM!!!!–the same problem spots.

I feel I had such disappointing results because I had oily yet sensitive skin that dried out really easily. I think it could be characterized as “combined” skin. I think a lot of people have this condition.

My brother visited a Kiehl’s store recently and picked up a bottle of their Centella Skin-Calming Facial Cleanser. This non-greasy, non-foaming, soap- and alcohol-free cleanser is AWESOME. It is so gentle that it can applied to the face and wiped off with cloths in case there is no water available. It contains Centella Asiatica, Aloe Vera, and Chamomile Extract.

The best thing about this is that it doesn’t dry out the skin. At all. And it leaves my skin feeling soft, refreshed, and moisturized. I don’t even have to put on a separate moisturizer (though I suppose it wouldn’t hurt to use a toner for my pores once in a while).

One of the gripes I had with those acne care systems like Proactiv is that they cost so much–like hundreds per year. This Kiehl’s is $28.50 for an eight-ounce bottle, which lasted both me and my brother over two months. If you use it only for yourself I can’t imagine running out in less than three months.

I promise I’ll be back to my usual hijinks: I’ll be heading over to Mission Wines on Sunday (later today) with my friend James (author of The Eaten Path), there’s a quick blurb about a canned Australian chardonnay I had tonight, and a bit to write about a beautiful Belgian dark chocolate with crushed pink peppercorn (!). But, until I get to those topics, do yourself a favor if you suffer from sub-par skin and check out the Kiehl’s website. The Centella cleanser may be just what you need.

And if anyone from Kiehl’s is reading this, I accept check and money orders only, thanks.