Etiquette for providing negative beer tasting comments

No, no no no no no no. Honesty is important otherwise they might think rot gut crap is something they should make again, thus polluting the craft beer market. If you think beer X really sucks (especially if it's a bad beer in style, don't be a dick and tell somebody their IPA sucks if you hate hops) the brewer needs to hear that feedback.

 

I tend to say "Thank you for the sample" and then I try to find a positive comment to make about the beer (I like the color for example) and then proceed to tell them what I don't like about it, usually softens the ground a little.

 

While it may seem like you don't want to hurt someone's feelings by criticizing the product, beer is a business too - just like any other business it's important to critique the product if there are flaws or it can be improved upon. I bet most brewers (at least the smart ones) would welcome constructive criticism. Don't be a jerk about it and everybody wins.

 

Just smile and say thank you.

 

In my experience most of the people manning the taps at events are volunteers who could care less what you say about a beer. Even when I notice an employee behind the table most of the time they are too busy to chat more than a few words with event goers anyway. I usually get my beer, thank the server, and move out of the way so the next person can fill their glass. If I do make a comment about the beer it is to my friends.

Anyway I doubt the brewer would be offended if you don't like a beer. I've been to brewery tours where brewers will encourage people to try different styles of beers in their tap room. If a person doesn't like it they have no problem pouring it out for the person and will usually offer them a new glass or sample that suits their style.

 

Sorry if I offended, but honestly there's nothing off-topic about it at all. As others mentioned, there's already enough coddling and homerism and such out there. Maybe my experience on these forums for a few years has been different than yours, and the same in person with friendly beer folks. Being PC, neutral, quiet, or even continuing to support mediocre (or worse) breweries is a big contributing set of factors for why there is so much mediocre stuff out there. For goodness sake, I wish more people would speak up with criticism, especially constructive criticism, when appropriate. And I wish more people would act on those criticisms and focus on buying what they think tastes best.

 

i always just nod my head and walk away you dont want to crap all over someones hard work

 

I would not go with either of these two options. The first is disingenuous. The second is insulting. It is better to be honest and specific about what you did not like. Otherwise your response will eat you up inside for days, until you end up starting a thread on beeradvocate to ask people what you should have done.

 

Give a left hand compliment "Hey, for a fat guy/girl, you don't sweat that much"

 

Be honest. Constructive criticism is far more valuable than a mealy mouthed compliment.

 

Exactly. If you familiar enough with the style, give some constructive criticism. If not, you may politely say "not sure, but not my favorite". Be honesty, but nice.

 

Be yourself, have fun, make jokes, ask questions, repeat things that are wrong, struggle against change, learn things that are right. Don't be afraid of color in life, don't be afraid of a mistake.

 

Hopefully part of the reason the brewers want to be at the event is so that they can both show off what they have done and receive some feedback from the tasters (who in some ways represent potential customers). If they don't want honest feedback they shouldn't be there at all and probably won't survive as a brewery all that much longer. But remember they also have ego and hard work invested in their beers. Many will think of those beers as being "their children," so harsh or unexplained negative comments (e.g., tastes like "shite") won't be well received and can have the effect of their tuning you out entirely as not being worth listening to at all.

One strategy is to do a critique of the beer (not a criticism but a balanced evaluation), and always start off by finding something postive to say about the beer (I like the way....) before identifying what you don't care for and why. In many ways its basically like reviewing beers on here, where readers of reviews want to know what you liked/disliked and why. Keep the critical comments constructive and focused on what you'd like to see improved about the beer.

Even if you don't expect to ever see them or their beers again simply assume that they are going to be your neighborhood brewery where you'd like to be able to enjoy beer once in a while and see their beers getting better and better with every batch.

 

It always baffles me the idea that a professional brewer wouldn't be aware that their beer has a technical flaw, is lifeless or unbalanced, or is just the result of a recipe formulation gone wrong.

I have a beer in my line-up that has a diacetyl situation, and brought it to the attention of my apprentice who tasted it and eventually came to agree with me. I was thinking of pulling it, but the fact is that almost nobody else could detect it, even after telling people what they should be tasting. I continued to sell it and people continued to buy the shit out of it when finally, after weeks, one of my servers came back and told me that there was a customer who detected diacetyl in one of my beers and wondered if the brewer was available. My eyes lit up and I practically ran out to the table to talk to this guy. Turns out it was a couple that are accomplished homebrewers of 20 years, and it was one of the best conversations I've had since I opened. They gave me great constructive criticisms of all of my beers (pretty much all of which I agreed with), I gave them a brewery tour, and a tasting of my upcoming release. Good times.

So I ask, how can a professional brewer be so out of touch with their own beer, AND how can they be insulted if someone is giving them constructive criticism in a non-dicky way? How can one improve without being humble and open to criticism? Bring it on BA's, I say!

 

Wow, that was a great response. I also believe in being honest with someone. If a person can't take criticism, that's too bad. Being honest is the best way to go. We live in a world where we are told to be polite, which in facts makes us dishonest at times and that shouldn't happen. Be straight forward. If the brewery can't handle criticism, they should put their ego aside. Every beer they make isn't going to be perfect.

 

Like others have mentioned - it depends on whether you simply don't like the flavor profile or if it's a technical issue.
I don't like dank or oniony tasting hops. That's just me. Some people don't taste that flavor in the same beers. I get that.
At the same time, things like diacetyl, acetaldhyde, DMS (which I only barely get), butyric acid, infections, etc. are a lot more troubling. Those things are 100% worth mentioning if you're certain about them.

 

It's good to hear a brewer's opinion on the topic. Thank you for that.

I've wondered that question too (how could a brewer not know) when I've experienced flawed beer (twice now it's been diacetyl that was at fault) while visiting brewpubs, and I've written it off to the newness of the brewery, which can translate into a brewer who doesn't have quite enough experience to realize a flaw, or the owner/brewer is so anxious to get some cash flow going that the flaw is ignored under the hope that no one will notice. Sadly, a lot of newcomer consumers don't know any better and think that diacetyl is a nice butterscotch flavor that they like.

 

I agree that there's nothing wrong with being straight with folks and more honesty would benefit us all. At the same time, I disagree that I have any responsibility whatsoever to make sure their business doesn't slowly go bankrupt. Don't get me wrong, I don't want their business to go bankrupt at all. In fact, I'm willing to spend my money on their beer to help prevent that. But I don't want to have to explain to every brewer in the room what specific things about their beers didn't appeal to me. I'm there to try new beers and figure out which I may want to buy more of. If you want more feedback from me then invite me to some kind of focus group or survey or something. I'm no business man, but just hoping that people give you honest feedback on your product is not a smart way to figure out why your beer isn't selling.

To the OP. I'd tell them what I like about it and move in. Same thing I did when I talk to bands that played the same night my band played (and probably the same thing they did to me). We were there to create, not make a career out of it. The brewers, presumably, are making a career out of it, so such feedback is likely not as valuable. But again, my desire to not engage in the finer points of my gripes (which are hard for me to explain, especially because I have limited knowledge and vocabulary of beer tasting when compared to actual brewers, not to mention my impression of the beer may change as the night goes on- ie, it tasted really good, but then I tried a few more of x style and realized that there were way better options) trumps my desire to make sure they get honest feedback from me.

I guess this all comes back to beer not being that serious for me. I mean, I love it, and I think about it and talk about it a lot more than most. But my life is focused on stuff that is more important to me. When I'm at a tasting event or a festival or something like that, I'm essentially at a "this isn't that important" type event. So I'm just not prioritizing the manner and structure of which I provide feedback to the brewers. Sorry to all the brewers out there, I'm sure I'm sounding like a dick. I do appreciate what you do and how you meld science and art. But in the grand scheme of thing I feel like if you don't brew something awesome for me, someone else probably will. And given how many great breweries are popping up plus how much people undervalue my profession (where I meld art and science too, only it's to end poverty) I feel fairly justified in that position (even though it admittedly is a selfish one).

 

-Dont be a dick
-Be honest (when/if questioned.)

I dont attend beer fests anymore but there is nothing worse than captain know it all holding up a line or telling someone his opinion when it wasnt asked for.

 

I have given negative feedback at breweries at times. When I'm asked for my opinion by an owner or a brewer I assume that they want the truth . As long as you have good reasons for not liking the beer they should find the feedback helpful.