Classic craft beer?

This. Ask Green Flash why they are liquidating assets?

Green Flash makes good beer but why would anyone in Virginia drink Green Flash with so many good local options? The next ten years will be very interesting in the craft beer market.

 

This is where beer conversations start to become pointless. If you like the beer and feel that the value is there, of course that’s where you should spend your money. This conversation is close to leading down the same rabbit hole that happened frequently on homebrewing forums where people share experiences with various ingredients and make comments like “I’ve never brewed a beer with diacetyl” or “I’ve never brewed a contaminated beer.” There’s just no way to know and more often than not, they have done so. I’ve never had a NEIPA where the brewer was able to get the beer on the shelves for $10 per four pack that I thought was a world class beer. Drinkable sure, but personally, I would rather spend a little extra money to get a great beer than save money and get one that is just good. I would rather drink a Sierra Nevada Pale Ale (and I do so frequently and love it every time) in that same price range rather than drink an OK NEIPA.

 

Dude, I'm talking about 2 comparable NEIPAs. Quit adding stuff.

You literally are saying you believe because a beer is priced higher that it is "world class".

You must be a brewer at a brewery or something.

The NEIPA I am referring to is Rusty Rail Fog Monster, which I feel is a great NEIPA.

 

I'm pretty much over pastry stouts and New England style everything. Just give me a well crafted saison and I'm a happy camper.

 

No, I am absolutely not saying that. I am saying I don’t see a way that a NEIPA priced that lowly at retail could be a world class example. If I saw a $15 and a $10 side by side, I would think the $15 example could potentially be world class while the $10 example doesn’t have that potential. The $15 example could just be over priced garbage, or be ridden with off flavors even if they used high quality ingredients. In which case I would be disappointed with either option.

And yes, if you read any of my other posts I don’t try to hide the fact that I am the brewmaster at Tombstone Brewing Company.

 

Read what the guy is saying. I don’t think anyone with a brain is going to buy the more expensive beer with all else being equal. His point is that he doesn’t think a great example of the style can exist at that price point. Just an opinion like everyone else, but interesting to hear given he makes beer for a living and most of us don’t.

 

Modern Times just put out Fraxos for $10.99 a 4-pack. Comes to $8.80 with a coupon. Positive it could stand up to anything you're talking about.

 

I’ll have to see if anyone up near Phoenix has some that I can get ahold of. Thanks for the heads up!

 

I am not a brewer, can someone what is intrinsically more costly about brewing a New England style IPA than a regular IPA ? Why should I not be able to expect great tasting NEIPA for the same price I pay for great tasting other kinds of beer ?

 

Eye of the Hawk was a classic. IPA? Strong Ale? Don’t know. Unfortunately gone now. Anderson Valley’s lineup, always a classic if you can find some. But not to forget Lagunitas IPA, there’s a classic American “craft” beer and of course S.N. Pale ale.

 

I'm also interested in this answer, although I'm betting part of the increased cost for NEIPA is that many breweries who specialize in this style are smaller than traditional craft and therefore ingredients simply cost more for them (as previously mentioned in this thread).

 

I'm not a brewer, but the general consensus I've heard on this question over the years is the sheer volume of hops that go into a NE IPA vs. a regular IPA. Trendy, or in-vogue hops are pricey, and then when you start adding two to three times the amount per beer, your costs go up dramatically.

@jcos

 

Yes, hops are expensive. Just ask my wife.

 

I'd wager the less-than-inititated considered them local as they had an actual brewery here (well, up until a few days ago)

 

Love the new styles and the old, love em subtle, love em bold, love em classic, love em wild, love em funky, love em mild, love em malty, love the hops, love innovation, hope it never stops. Cheers!

 

Just like the music...

 

And, herein, lies the question, "Can a beer that's just as tasty be made with less costly ingredients?"

 

When discussing the cost of beer, is there an inclusion of allocated fixed cost? A larger firmer which is spreading fixed cost over a much larger production base will have much lower fixed cost per unit.

Hence, the 4-pack discussed at $17 doesn't necessarily have more expensive ingredients or other production costs, it may have just higher allocated costs. More expense due to higher fixed cost isn't better.

 

Vermont breweries have been brewing hoppy, unfiltered IPA's for years.
I've always enjoyed them, and never had an issue with their pricing.

 

Here's where the Devil's Advocate in me can't help itself. If said brewery used "better" ingredients and charged $14 for a 4-pack, would said beer still interest you if it was demonstrably, yet marginally, better?