What is the next step for craft beer?

Next summer some rap guy will rap about Pliny or Cantillon in some rap song or whatever they do and all the little rap guy fans will be lookin for the beers because of the rap song. Thanks rap.

 

Everything is cyclical - eventually craft beer growth rates will slow, media will declare craft beer dead - again, cider or some other alcoholic beverage will be the darling of trendy 20somethings which will gravitate away from craft beer for the hot new drink of the day. This will cause brewery growth rates to fall - one of the bigger players will cut prices in an attempt to keep market share which will put the whole segment into a tail spin and we will be left with many mega craft breweries and fewer smaller regionals after consolidation/buyouts. As far as the beer itself, I think you will see less high priced specialty beers and more lagers from larger breweries in attempt to capture the macro crowd in order to continue growth. This in turn will cause more tiny startups and local breweries who specialize in higher end products and the cycle starts over again.

 

Good assesment. In some parts of the country, cider is already the next big thing. There was a cider maker at the Michigan Summer Beerfest. As I said, many breweries are making mead and/or cider. Bells makes mead for example. Smaller breweries have a wine license (cheap here) to take advantage of the apple crop on the west side of the state.

Cider might be limited by the number of heritage cider apples available for quality cider. Mead will always be a nich due to not enough honey to displace beer or wine.

Edit - one trend here in Michigan is the lower ABV IPAs with drinkability. Founder's All Day IPA, North Peak the Wanderer, and Shorts Prolonged Enjoyment (this one is <4% with big hop flavor and aroma).

 

Btw I didnt say or imply stagnation. Mine was a point about rising prices which is due to many causes.

 

How 'bout neighborhood tappies getting a craft on?

 

I have to agree. It's compounded by smaller breweries being forced to sell something that may or may not be good because they can't afford to dump it DFH style. Infected/flawed releases are too common.
I think consistency and fine detail will have to be key in the future for the small to mid size breweries.

 

As a craft beer enthusiast, I can only hope that the same thing that happened with vodka and tequila over the last 7-8 years in terms of making them popular will happen with craft/import beer

 

There was a post recently that told the story of one BAs meeting with Shaun Hill. Shaun was stated to have said he has never let a bad beer leave his brewery, and that is difficult with a couple grand in the bank. I can tell you more stories of other very small, very new breweries who have dumped batches due to quality issues even if they cannot afford it. It is all about commitment to quality, knowingly releasing a bad beer will ultimately cost you more than dumping it.