Should brewers read BeerAdvocate reviews?

Some breweries do read reviews on here....

 

Ignore mine, since I can't taste a dog's ass from a peach, and I enjoy and rate highly most every beer I drink. But I've seen some folks reviews on here that are well thought out and put together, and I know if I were a brewer, I'd be listening with both ears to those who know their beer.

 

I think they should, yes. But should they also take any and all reviews/kind words/harsh words with a grain of salt? Absolutely. If they are simply looking for favorable ratings, they should probably change industries and follow their hearts to being newscasters.

 

When you consider BA is the easiest customer survey engine a brewer can have for their products it makes sense for them to see the trends. They can choose to discard them or not, but like Yelp for restaurants, it is a way to get feedback without having to pay for it.

 

I don't think they should be swayed by public opinion. I like that brewers have their own creative ideas. I don't always like the results, but I don't want them stifled by negative reviews.

 

Undoubtedly they should.

 

absolutely. free feedback / surveys. in fact, most BAs have probably PAID to give them a survey.

and even outside of their own beer, brewers/breweries can spot trends on this site that would be valuable for future endeavors. such as, it may be wise to invest in technology/equipment to start barrel aging beers or to start making wild ales. also, focus on making a really great IPA instead of 10 mediocre ones. The "american palate" is ever changing and this site more than any other gives you a real time look at what is becoming more popular and even as detailed as what parts of the country like/dislike (or what parts are seriously lacking in craft beer overall).

 

While many brewers do look at reviews on this site, I don't think they base their decisions on what is said on here, which I like. If they did, everyone would brew just barrel aged stouts and big hoppy IPA's. I enjoy the many varieties of beers that are being brewed and hope that doesn't change.

 

If I were a commercial brewer, I would factor BA and RateBeer ratings into my overall feedback picture, along with what I overheard when people didn't know I was listening and what people who come into my brewery say.

If I were living in a perfect world where I could just make what I want without needing to sell anything, I would ignore feedback and just brew for myself (which I do now as a homebrewer). The only feedback I need now is whether or not the beer strikes the fancy of drinkers I share it with for free.

I would hope a successful commercial brewer would already be aware of whatever people had to say regarding quality control or packaging issues, but when it comes to taste, I would be all ears for feedback from every direction.

 

I think BA reviews are informative (although some of the charm is lost on the fact that the enjoyment of a beer is entirely subjective), but I do not think that BA represents the "be all, end all" of the craft beer community. Many successful smaller breweries have established great local followings of people who do not check BA, ratebeer, Untappd, etc. at all and simply enjoy supporting a local business that makes a good product. I think a dedicated local customer is far more important than the opinion of a person on the internet who lives on the other side of the country and is posting about a brewery based on one beer they've traded for or what they've read about that brewery on the internet without actually having the beer themselves. I think that happens a lot here.

 

If you're trying to sell something, you are a fool not to use every piece of information available about your customers. If you're a craft brewer and you don't read reviews, you are wasting a valuable resource.

There is a local brewer in my area that consistently gets bad reviews that say the same thing. I pointed it out to the brewmaster, and he insisted that his beer is great and lots of people like it, and then told me to find some other brewery. He also told me that he religiously reads reviews. In 5 years he won't be brewing beer, because he uses farm house yeast in all of his beers and labels them IPAs. Nobody who knows beer will buy his crap twice, but every local store stocks it. They brewery is in the next town over so I really want to like it.

 

Depends on their target market. A brewery that brews subtle, gateway beers that lack bold character probably won't take much away from reviews here. Their target market (new or casual craft beer drinkers) would probably rave about their product while BA members would rate it subpar.

Also, I think brewers have their own vision of what they want their beers to be and a refined palate for adjusting their recipes. I think BA is helpful to those brewers who target this "craft beer enthusiast" market and use it to trend and predict market demand in the form of palate evolution. Hey, America didn't always have a palate for hop bombs!

 

I would wish that brewers look at the reviews on this site. Not unless they're in it for profit. Beer Brewing is an Art/Craft. You as an Artist, wouldn't you be interested on what Yay and Naysayers' opinions are on an offering you put your time and money into?

 

They do read some, if not all reviews or opinions. I've had replies from brewers that I didn't necessarily
Need to hear from, but they felt the need to reply back. I do appreciate it since I try not to get personal. I think beer people, in general, tend to be down to earth and do care to try to better the whole craft beer experience. That being said. It is a world full of personalities and opinions. CHEERS!

 

Reading the reviews may be helpful, to a degree, but they should ignore the scores. Grade inflation is rampant here (and RB is worse). I recently saw a score where the poster drain-poured the beer, but still gave the beer a 2.5 score. If the beer was so bad that you wouldn't drink it, how could it be an almost average example of the style?

 

While I think it is good for brewers to check out reviews and responses to their beers, I don't think a brewer should make or change a beer soley based on what is said on this site. I think we all forget that the BA community is still a very small percentage of the total beer buying community. If you think about it, some of the best selling beers in the US are considered terrible by BA standards. (#9, Blue Moon, Leine's Summer Shandy, Shiner Bock etc.)

Brewers are artists and should not sacrafice or change themselves or thier artistic vision just because a small group of negative people don't like what they are doing. Thats why we have over 2700 breweries in the US, if you don't like what one brewery is doing, check out the other 2700+ breweries.

 

I don't see why a Brewer wouldn't look at a site like this or ratebeer, but they should take it just like they do when someone is in their tasting room. Not everyone one is gonna like your beers, but if the majority of people like em, then you're doing a good job. Plus I sometimes find that people just like to complain on the internet so some of those who don't like a beer are just bitching to bitch.

 

A real artist would not give a flying eff as to what the general public would think. How many paintings did Van Gough sell in his lifetime? Judged on that he was a failure.