Why is craft beer so hard?

Just because you didn't enjoy it then it's a bad beer and craft is going downhill? Maybe there are 100 other people who liked that same beer. Are you like the God of tasting that we didn't know about and only your opinion of a certain beer matters?

 

Thank you. That made my day. Drink a beer, don't like it, don't order it again. Order something else next time. Done.

 

It's a trial-and-error process to create that "great" beer, bud. The good companies adjust their recipes and work to better their brew each and every year until they feel they've nailed the flavor profile their aiming for. The bad ones will weed themselves out. Be patient, my son.

 

I get that, but that does not invalidate the rating scale. It just means I have to take that into account, which is why I give little value to a lot of BA ratings. A C+ in English carries the same value as a C+ in History.

 

No. In the US, in the last half of the 19th century the use of corn and rice as adjuncts became common among lager brewers who were attempting to brew so-called "Bohemian" style (aka "pilsners") lagers using the native North American 6-row barley malt.

Grain rationing in the US during WWII (so, post- Repeal/Depression) did decrease the amount of barley malt in the average malt/adjunct per barrel ratio - it bounced back somewhat in the post-WWII era but never recovered to pre-War levels. Post-Repeal, the average of all US beers were 78-83% malt, by the end of the War it had fallen to 56%. In the late 40's it had gone back up to 67% and went gradually down from then.

 

As much as I use the reviews/ratings here on BA, I tend to take them all with a huge grain of salt. I have had quite a few near-100's that I thought were just OK and plenty of 70-80's that I loved and were completely underrated. If it is not an IPA or something barrel aged, I need even more salt since those always tend to rate well regardless.

I use it as a quick check/guide, but that is all. If it comes from a respected brewery I will go for it. That is usually my criteria.

 

Because it is so easy to open a brewery these days,much easier than only 5 years ago. Can't tell you how many home brewers who make a great 5 gallon batch then try to replicate 300 gallons and it sucks I have had in this town. Non professional brewers trying to brew with no concept of simple things like recipe formulation, brewing, sanitation,etc. that is brewing 101.

 

@Bogforce

“I ordered a local lPA at a bar tonight and returned it because it was so bad and got a beer from Stone. Then I grabbed a six pack of Hop Hash from Sweetwater and felt like I wasted my money.” The majority of beers out there are average. It appears that you only want to drink above average beers?

“My point is, small breweries that focus on production need to produce better products.” That is true if they are having trouble selling their beers. It seems to me that there are plenty of beer consumers who are willing to purchase and drink average beers.

“And do I need to research every beer before I buy it and check the dates every time.” If your goal is to drink above average beer then yes, you personally do need to research your beer purchases and it is prudent to always check dates on beers.

“Why is craft beer so hard?” I personally would not choose the word “hard” but if you do not want to drink average beers you will indeed need to make an effort here.

“I feel like I am always negative on here but I feel like craft beer is going downhill.” You feel this way since you are a discriminating beer drinker. If you are willing to drink an average beer you would not feel this way.

Cheers!

 

i think it's complicated because some of us let it be or make it so. some put way too much emphasis & energy into tracking down beers to imaginatively enjoy as opposed to actually enjoying good beers readily available or hard to track down! there's a false illusion that good isn't good enough - we need to look for better than just good or rarer than just regular ole' good beer.

 

Well said! Hell, a LOT of times I want an average beer.

 

Craft beer isn't hard but understanding you is. Don't take this the wrong way- I'm sure you're making a point somewhere here but I honestly have no idea what it is. Is it that there's a lot of subpar craft out there riding the old hype train?

 

I personally like having the option to check beer ratings before trying something I've never heard of. At some point there will probably be too many breweries (who know when that will be). The bad ones will get weeded out one way or the other. The ratings will just accelerate the process.

 

It appears that the word "average" isn't fully understood.For example I have more legs than the average man.
Half the beer in the world is below average and half is above.If all beer was massively improved this would still apply.

 

in truth, i think the yardsticks have been moved quite a bit. what's currently considered "average" in many cases is GOOD/SOLID beer to most if they really evaluated things responsibly. the thing is - if there is NO availability issue or extremely limited quantity, the visible urge to fight over & act a fool about the product disappears. that lack of *shared* urgency then relegates many otherwise solid offerings to *average* or limited interest.

where i'm guilty of perhaps adding an unnecessary complicated layer for myself, i like/need variety. i'm not 1 to buy a 6er & sit there crushing the same iteration day after day. in that regard, i could easily make do but i can't say under my current routine i'd be thrilled with only 1 or 2 *solid* choices to get by on for any extended period of time.

 

It's The Hard Knock Life...embrace it...

 

I also differentiate between beers that suck and beers I don't like. Night Shift makes a Green Tea beer that is a perfect example of its type, I just don't care for it.

 

I think that is an aspect that a lot of people fail to make.

 

That's my key, too. I stopped giving my money to shitty breweries.

 

I ordered a local saison at the bar last weekend.
At first thought I really enjoyed it.
Then I looked at Beer Advocate and saw it was a 3.78.
After learning of this, I could no longer finish it and demanded a different beer.

 

I am of the same thinking. I used to BA every beer, but now I pick things up almost blindly, sometimes even ignoring the style, just to see if I will like it. My goal is to try 3 new beers a week that I have never had before. This allows me to find some wonderful new beers, and also refine on things I don't like as much.