How would the beer world be different without BeerAdvocate?

You would never see anything as astounding as this...

http://247wallst.com/2012/12/03/nine-beers-americans-no-longer-drink/

Remember, there was a first microbrewery bubble, which was beaten back, in part, because of a successful negative PR campaign by the macrobreweries. That can't happen anymore.

Now, such a campaign can't get traction because of the immediate dissemination of the truth--the free market of ideas represented by web sites like this one. Dollars can still buy advertising, but the previously narrow media channels have burst their banks, so consumer-to-consumer information flows freely.

 

People so concerned with the minutiae of how beer tastes might actually have time to look up how to spell 'palate' correctly.

 

Well the big release days, ie. Dark Lord Day, PtY, Parabola, etc. etc. would be limited to a pretty much local market. Brewery's would most likely be smaller than they are now. People would concentrate more on local brews than what they can't get. Trading would be close to nonexistant. Beer snobbery would be more prevalant than advocacy.

 

C'mon, don't be THAT guy brah, drink a beer.

 

If Beer Advocate didn't exist I could leave my room. I haven't seen the sun in weeks, my skin is getting pale. My fingers won't leave the keyboard. My roommates drop beer off in my room. It's my only source of nutrition. It hasn't become a problem yet but I can see a rough path up ahead i.e: laying down for good and letting my nurse inject me with beer inoculations and chastise her when she doesn't have new beers for me.

 

I would know much less about beer, and have a lot more money. I would also not have had the ability to drink alone at home and not feel alone/like an alcoholic.

 

I don't think success/fame has much to do with it. He has nothing to prove to the likes of us. His passion for Lambics is not based around exclusivity, but continually improving his craft. The good folk at Cantillon really do not understand (like a lot of other Belgians) what all the fuss is about. Its just beer at the end of the day. He just wants people to try and like his beers that he loves himself so much, in the same way as you may want a friend to like a particular song or album that you like. As for Cantillon going out of Business ? you make a valid point about shipping overseas. However the fact that some of his beers are very hard to find a fetch high prices is not his fault, and if he could change that then i'm sure he would, because that is not his mantra at all.

 

-my bold added

And unless Mr. Van Roy told you he would happily be a homebrewer for the rest of his life in preference to brewing for a living I believe the rest of my points sort of line up in validity behind it.

 

I use BA all the time to check beer quality before buying. Saves me from buying sub-par beers

 

I would have never found a new hobby, turned obsession.

I wouldn't have considered myself a beer geek.

I wouldn't have planned every trip I ever take around finding good beer stores.