Does adequate v excellent craft beer cost more to make?

IMO the difference at a brewpub between mediocre beer and high quality beer is a function of (in the order of importance):

· The brewer

· Brewing process

· Ingredient selection

I have had beer from existing brewpubs that varied from poor to mediocre to very good/excellent based upon who the brewer was making the beer.

Based upon my above sentence I would ‘vote’ that a likely ‘answer’ to why the brewpub you mention has mediocre beer is because the brewer is not highly skilled (or is not conscientious in his brewing process).

Cheers!

 

There could be costs besides what just goes into the kettle? Maybe the great brewers always perfect pilot batches first and the mediocre ones go straight to the 20bbl? The great brewers dump out a bad batch and the mediocre ones hope no one notices? The great brewers spend time and effort tinkering with the recipe each time and the mediocre ones get it good enough, then leave it alone?

 

I would expand the term brewing process to include sanitation and good manufacturing practices. I've been in brewpubs that rival, well, my plants for cleanliness and GMPs (as far as I can witness, anyway). I've been in brewpubs and even a few breweries (very briefly, leaving thirsty, I assure you) where conditions border from just plain stupid to outright dangerous. Completely agree, Jack - have had the gamut from swill to sublime with both beer and food in brewpubs.

Admittedly I am hypercritical about this coming from the food business, but the same principles apply. I understand not everyone can afford top shelf, shiney-new gear, but there is a major, major difference between old/used and well-maintained versus rode hard and put away wet. I've seen crumbling floors, falling ceilings, peeling paint over open kettles, ingredients stored on wet floors, general filth and dirt, disgusting hoses, chemicals unsecured and in close proximity to products - all sorts of unacceptable conditions. If you can't take reasonable care of your physical plant, why should I trust your product?

Equipment is one thing, but everyone CAN afford to store cleaning chemicals and ingredients properly and develop good practices/procedures. I'd wager everyone can run a successful sanitation program with a little thought and a little help. That is where I see the greater shortfall - developing the knowledge to maintain consistent procedures/processes/practices. If someone can't afford or doesn't care to do that, they shouldn't be selling product to people IMO.

 

There's no point in putting the functions in order of importance since any one of them being deficient can screw up the process. But the cost to make a beer is largely a function of the cost of ingredients and how much of them you are buying, IMO. Obviously, Sierra Nevada can commit to buying more raw materials than the start-up so that is a factor, no matter how good the actual raw materials might be. Most of the other costs are more a product of a brewer's business sense, where the brewery is located and whether the brewery is properly capitalized. But yes, excellence comes at a price.

 

actually other than the raw mats. ITS THE skill and art of the BREWER, and knowing about water, yeast, etc make all the difference in the world.

Lets be honest here, how many start up main brewers have been to a good brewing school and worked under some great beer makers? out OF 3k plus micro's ? 10% or less I bet?

none here have and they all make middle of the road or worse beer.

its no real surprise.

also I been to some lambic beer makers places that you be scared how dirty everything is and yet the beer is truly great!

 

Generally, yes, it costs more in ingredients to make a very good beer in comparison to an average beer, but a lousy brewer can screw up a beer even when using higher-cost ingredients. If the OP's local brewpub is getting good ratings for the pub but not for the beer, then I'd say the 'experts' are rating the beers and the 'rookies' are rating the pub. I'll also say that if the pub's beers are the only alcoholic beverages that are available, then you can count the days before this pub will fail.

 

No. Berliners are cheap (sans fruit) and can be better than BA Stouts. Though the risk of brewery wide infection scares a lot of brewers away.

 

Obviously raw materials are a large factor. Depending on the variety/amount of malt and hops used for a particular style of beer, the lower or higher the material cost. Check out the range of material costs of all-grain homebrew kits from NB - they range from $20 to $50 for a 5 gallon kit, depending on the style of beer - based on types of malt, the original gravity, amount of hops, etc. A Pale Ale will cost less than an Imperial Stout no matter whether it is "adequate" or "excellent". So if one brewpub focuses on certain styles of beer vs. others, that will effect the costs.

But say two brewpubs have the same basic styles. For a style like IPA, chances are an "excellent" IPA will use more flavor/aroma hops than an "adequate" IPA, and therefore cost more. But the difference between an "excellent" Porter and a "adequate" Porter may just come down to recipe and quality control. Getting into things like barrel aging or wild yeasts then there are more moving parts.

 

“I have had beer from existing brewpubs that varied from poor to mediocre to very good/excellent based upon who the brewer was making the beer.”

The above sentence was unclear per what I intended to get across: The same existing Brewpub would have different brewers over a period of time (e.g., 5 years). A regular lineup beer would taste poor to mediocre to very good/excellent depending who the brewer was. Same beer recipe, same brewing equipment but the beer quality would vary since a different person was brewing the beer.

Cheers!