Thoughts On Lagers Not Being Synonymous With Craft

One reason is that they take a ton of time to produce. Ales can be fermented and packaged in 1-2 weeks, but lagers take much longer to ferment and condition. Tanks are expensive, so if a lager takes twice as long, that's twice as many tanks you need to have for the same production.

 

I think it comes down to two things:

1. Lagers are synonymous with macro beers. Craft beer started as a rebellion against all things fizzy, yellow, and tasteless. Our current movement of bigger, badder, faster, more seems to be a direct result of that. Plus, it doesn't take much of a search to realize that even a fair number of beer geeks seem to think lagers are all either BMC or some mishmash of BMC, Heieneken, Corona, and (if we're lucky) Pilsner Urquell.

2. Lagers take longer to turn around and are easier to screw up.

 

This. /end thread

 

between the time and cost (time=$) plus they are way easier to screw up. or more appropriately ales are easier to mask bad beer w shit ton of hops these days...

 

I think the advent of the "IPL" is showing this… whether or not it actually mirrors the characters of IPA, it may be a sign that brewers are trying to jump-start some seriousness for lagers.

 

I suppose it's only logical that home brewers turned commercial brewers would focus on brewing ales, since I would imagine that a majority of the output of home brewers is top fermented in some shape or form. Combined with the other factors mentioned already I think this explains a large part of it.

 

One of the top two best-selling craft beers is a lager - Samuel Adams Boston Lager, which alone accounts for roughly 5% of all craft beer sales.

 

This true to a point, but many of the top Homebrewers I know make a fair amount of lagers. Making a high quality lagers is more challenging, because your process has to be dialed in, nothing to hide behind.right now my lager to ale production is equal.

 

When it comes to craft, I don't exclude Lagers. However, when I choose a lager, it is usually a German import. The Germans have had enough practice with making this style, they know what to do. I consider some of them to be the best beers in the world.

 

Good to see lagers getting more focus. Would just be nice if some of them tasted like lager, rather than an IPA.

 

I think Anchor's California Lager is truly top notch, have you tried it?

 

I love lagers. Gimme a nice Dopplebock and I'm good.

We need more Anchor Steams in this world as well

 

I haven't, but since it has a fairly average (3.68) rating I imagine it must be a good example of a lager.

 

You can cover a bunch of flaws in a beer with hops and/or sugar etc...
Making quality lagers takes extreme talent imo, and there are some breweries who are nailing it: Heater Allen, Upright, The Commons, not to mention myriad German breweries... I liken it to making a good espresso; it takes talent and good beans, but any monkey can cover up a bad espresso w sugar, syrup and milk.

Ive had a few Jacks Abby beers, good stuff, but I do not see the IPL as a pilsner at all. It is an ipa that happens to use lager yeast.

 

Brooklyn Lager will always be a standard for me.

 

Why is it the case? Lagers don't have enough "flavor" for the majority of BAs, so they don't waste valuable ticks on them. (Kinda ironic when you think of it, since lagers are more about actually showcasing the brewers' craft than about showcasing new and exotic flavors.)

Anyhow, as far as I'm concerned -- given the recent spectacle of things like Hunahpu's Day and the beer trader scene in general -- I hope it stays this way.

 

I consider myself a beer drinker moreso than I do a "craft beer drinker", and as such, you will find a nice balance of lagers and ales in my fridge. No shortage of imports either.