Do Beer Labels Matter?

Do they impact what we buy? Even in the slightest? Let’s face it—labels surround us, motivating us to spend our money—or not—as they speak directly to our brains, set expectations, tell a story, introduce us to a company and the people behind it, and so forth. The subconscious pull they can have on our opinions and purchasing patterns can be powerful. Dismissing the potential influence that labels carry would be a bit naïve.

Of course, many consumers love to say labels don’t matter—at least for them. However, anyone who claims that they don’t judge a beer by its label, touting that it’s what’s inside that truly counts, has simply yet to encounter a beer label that’s truly made them pause and think. Maybe they never will. But nothing in life is certain, and few people can be so consistently objective.

The importance of labels is often ignored and taken advantage of by brewers, too. Some great beers unfortunately get tagged with horrid labels—ranging from boring to sophomoric, to sexist—while mediocre beers get wrapped in a packaging tale that’s much more interesting than the beer. Thankfully, we beer geeks can see past the label to the beer inside… but we have a feeling that many of those who aren’t in the know probably aren’t so lucky.

What about you? Do beer labels matter to you? Send us your thoughts: [email protected]

Respect Beer. ■