Hop valley is now miller coors. Oregon is losing the battle to a monopolist stronghold. How many other breweries will sell out and will it effect the integrity of the beer and company. Its sad to say that what once was sacred has been a hot commodity. Microbrews are the future but are exploited by people who dont understand that its a lifestyle and culture. I only drink micro brews because of the taste and quality. Ever since high school I acquired a taste for the pure greatness that is micro brews. Sierra nevada was the first. Once I moved to Oregon I was really hooked and now I cant turn back. The question is that what once was a society of beer loving enthusiast has become a trend to cash in on??
No reason to worry. There are still hundreds of other breweries in Oregon that have not sold out, many of which are producing better than Hop Valley anyway.
http://beerblog.genx40.com/archive/2016/april/thisis a decent read for anyone needing a refresher about how much money is in the industry. i'm sure we'll continue to see a flood of brewery purchases, and we'll be okay.
Disappointed, but have to say Hop Valley and their style lend themselves well to a big company like SAB/Miller. I did drink there stuff, good 6 pack beer. But i can find the same easily from other brewers, I also mourn the death of the "lifestyle". I think its almost dead in many areas of the nation but still alive here in the PNW. But for how long?
A little melodramatic, no? If one of the few local choices gets assimilated and you can't keep drinking after the borg, that's a dilemma. But we're not anywhere near that point. Assuming we can agree on what you mean by "lifestyle," we're still talking about 3 NW breweries (Elysian, 10 Barrel, and Hop Valley, please correct me if I'm forgetting someone) of more than 500. I suspect many of us were drinking, at most, 1 of those 3 semi-regularly so I don't think anyone reading this had to make a major adjustment in their drinking patterns in the last 2 years. Things still seem pretty sweet around here.
No not exactly what i meant by "lifestyle". Maybe its because i am over 50 now and remember the start of of this crazy ride, It was never because "well beer is beer", there was a difference in attitude etc. Well it got bigger and the newer "kids" dont seem to really know or care about what made it special in the first place..its "just good beer". I hear that all the time as if t his came about by magic. and if all were taken over by IN-Bev it would be A-OK. Like i said the attitude is still in this area but the amount of discussions i have had with people from other areas of the country lead me to believe they really dont care, Hay maybe they are correct..i hope not because it will be long past my lifetime before another beer revolution takes place.
