What makes a brewery great?

I was relying on the following article at FanGraphs when I said that the data source is BA, but the article predated the tweet you found by several months. I definitely agree with the tweet that BeerGraphs should "up that visibility." Thanks for the correction.

http://www.fangraphs.com/not/introducing-beers-above-replacement/

 

Right off, I'd say quality control and consistency (not quite the same thing but sorta related). I don't mind if you only have three or four beers in your lineup, as long as they are of high quality. Perfect a few before trying to create barrel aged mango lime chipotle saison stouts. I fear that too many upstarts feel pressured into creating a mind blowing limited release without creating their own "brewer identity" first.

Next is expanding your footprint in a way that makes sense. Decide how many barrels you want to commit to each line you have and demand distributor partnership that follows your business model - not theirs. Do not allow a distributor to bully you into production you can't meet or markets you cannot keep up in. Of course, this assumes you had a business plan to begin with, and a solid one at that.

So now we have solid products that are distributed in a responsible way. Next is reinvesting those profits into innovation and expansion. You've made a great couple beers, so now up production and increase that footprint. Meanwhile, you've purchased more equipment and are ready to expand your offerings by a few more beers. Not necessarily a barrel or sour program either (unless someone has done some specialty training and can pull it off - AND you have space for barrels or a coolship).

So I guess what I am getting at is a great brewery (to me) does what they do in excellent fashion and doesn't try to conquer geography at the cost of a potentially loyal local fanbase. It excels at a few beers at a time instead of pumping out tons of "meh" also rans that will ultimately shelf turd up the world.

 

No prob. The tweet I referenced is almost 2 yrs old at this point, so I wasn't sure if it still held true or not, but it is buried in the "About Us" page on the site.

 

nice variety of beers, great tasting beers, ethical work practice.

But what makes a great brewery is the passion that shows when you open the can or bottle and take a sip.

 

Sounds like Anchor.

 

beer.....

 

1. good beer
2. not being dicks

 

Consistency, Creativity, works well with the public.

 

I may be alone on this, but for a local brewery it is about more than the beer. Its about the brewery experience - the appearance, level of service, etc in the taproom - the nature of tours - community involvement, special events, etc. Not everyone is all about connoisseurship first and foremost.

 

Beer...that's it...Oh, amazing beer, I mean...and no assholes present on the premises...especially those who make the stuff...and the people who make it should get paid well...it should be the most fun place to work...like Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory but not the Jonny Depp one...the good Gene Wilder one but with the Primus soundtrack...

 

In my opinion, a great brewery is one that has a solid core lineup of beers, across multiple styles, with each being good. They can have a specialty they truly excel in, but if that is the only kind of beer they can brew at better than a mediocre level, I wouldn't call them wonderful examples of brewing expertise.

If they innovate, they do not believe that innovation means just using scads of new hop varietals, and/or adding scads of hops to styles that usually are not hoppy. If they do not innovate, it's because they continually produce amazing, world-class quality beer as their core lineup, which needs little to no refining.

They aren't arrogant or condescending to their customer base.

If they're local enough to visit, they offer an environment that is not like walking into a techno club or concert with the volume set to "none more 11", and preferably which doesn't involve multi-hour waits for seating every day of the week (I know, they don't have much control over that last part, and it's a "problem" everyone wishes they had - I'm just curmudgeonly about crowds).

That's about it.

 

Shitty beer = a beer that doesn't taste good, at all. It's great to try new things, but not many breweries can get away with selling a beer just because it was a good idea. It's also important to acknowledge that personal tastes differ. Maybe it has a little to do with the quality of the brewery's other beers, on average. I'd guess that brewers do tons of experimentation, but why release something that doesn't measure up?

I agree, kind of. Variety does give breweries an upper hand though, when it comes to audience. Everybody's different, so more variety might appeal to a larger audience. Producing one incredible beer seems limiting, unless everyone finds it incredible.

 

The problem with these new breweries is they are going in cold. They don't have a formula set.

To do it right, you need proper funding and a game plan of what your beer portfolio is going to be. Obviously this is dependent on what ingrediants you can obtain. That's why funding is so important.

Not everyone is going to be lucky enough to gain a city full of supporters from the getgo. (Ex: pipeworks)

Back on topic.

Be great at what you do. it's simple. Make great beer and people will find it.

 

Obviously, there hast to be a certain level of quality. I know I won't like all beers from a given place, but hopefully they can do more than just a 100 IBU hop-bomb. But I also look at the brewery experience..I don't have to go to a place where the servers/bartenders act as if you're bothering them when you order and otherwise treat you like crap. there are too many good places around Chicago these days to be dealing with that.

 

Absolutely agreed. Beer is about the quality. The more good beer, the better the brewery.

 

I can attest to that. Every IPA and saison I've had from them has been unbelievable.