Any bad/average breweries at start eventually become excellent?

Old Hickory started out pretty good & slipped quite a bit, then started bottling. From that point on they started turning out more consistent & better beer. Mind you, there was some sort of change in ownership/management id memory serves me correctly...

 

Still waiting on Flying Dog

 

Quite a few breweries which in the past didn't impress me seem to have pulled up their socks. I've noticed in beer festivals that there are far fewer technically poor beers than in the past.

 

Founders is in that category. They were going bankrupt early in their history until they changed their brewing focus to 'brew beers that we want to drink.'

 

I'm pleased to report after years of waiting myself, I actually found a FD beer that I thought was very good. If you haven't yet tried Bloodline Blood Orange IPA, then I'd recommend it. The blood orange is just prevalent enough to confuse your palate into thinking it's a hops-only citrus taste.

But like you, I've tried many of their misses in the past.

 

Great South Bay comes to mind.

 

I certainly hope so. While I am in driving distance of some great breweries, I am in walking distance of a bunch of mediocre breweries that I hope, as I grow old, get better.

 

I think Otter Creek should be posted some where in this thread.

 

The Brew Gentlemen in the Pittsburgh area started off kind of bumpy but have been putting out some very good beers lately. After being well off my radar, they are now very much on it.

 

Good thread. Many breweries become better, more adept at brewing skills, in particular. Some start to release a broader range as well. Those which don't improve are fated to remain small or disappear. THis is why I am not deterred when a new brewery fails to impress, I'll wait 6 months and try it later, often with much better results. I can't count the beers from new breweries which were half-sour, slightly infected, redolent of cleaning fluids of some kind, etc. It takes time to brew to a good commercial standard, often.

 

Half-Acre's initial too offerings a blonde (i think gossamer now) and the over ale were okay but relatively unremarkable. Their offerings kick ass now.

 

Add Bell's to that list.

Edit - just about every brewery in Michigan can be put on the list. There are a few that started out making OK to good beer, but they were smart enough to hire experienced professional brewers.

 

They made the cookie cutter beers that eveyone had in the 90s. A blonde, an Amber, an ESB and so on. I was only at the old bewery once, the main memories were that the beers were nothing to get excited about and it was so smokey in there we could not wait to get out.

 

Crooked Stave. Some of those early beers were scary, but they've been churning out gold over the last few years.

 

It seems like only recently that Fiddlehead has been on the map in Vermont- I don't know how they were in the past, though.

An example of the reverse in New York would be Ithaca Beer Co- they used to put out crazy good stuff (before I was into craft, unfortunately) like Super Friends, Brute, LeBleu, and the original Flower Power- now they're a shell of their former self.

 

As Mothergoose03 noted Founders is a great example but many craft brewers has quality issues initially and like musicians, brewers can also have problems finding their voice. Some never make the grade, some are one hit wonders and occasionally we get a brewer who learns how to hit it out of the park and we are all the better for it.

 

unfortunately i think it usually goes the other way, breweries that start off great and then expand/ get acquired and slip on quality.