"Does American craft brewing have a quality problem?"

De gustibus non est disputandum....and ouch...that response stung a little...

 

I stopped buying craft beer in any quantity a long time ago. I have my "go-to" brands, but part of the fun of enjoying beer is trying new ones. But the sky-high prices and spotty quality has taken the joy out of cracking a new brew.

A case in point: I just opened a bomber last night that was $15. I had a few sips and poured the rest down the drain. I brew my own, and if I made swill like that, I would have not served it to my friends! A few incidents like that and the Craft Brewing Industry has lost another patron.

Is there a quality problem in the industry? Talk to me in five years, when 2/3 of them are shuttered..... It's the 80's all over again.

 

No Kulmbacher, Ayinger, Mahr's, Andech's, Lammsbrau, Einbecker, Weihenstephan....etc. your way?

I think some people think if you're a lager fan you hate hops barrel-aging for some reason. In the last two weeks I enjoyed the hell out of a Heady Topper and a Kentucky Breakfast Stout

 

Are you saying you eschew craft beer for macro brands? Are you saying you eschew craft beer for homebrew? What I heard you say in the opening lines your post is that you still have "go-to" brands, which would imply, in fact, the craft brew industry hasn't lost a patron. I guess I'm just unclear.

And if 2/3 of craft breweries are making bad beer, then I hope 2/3 of them are shuttered too. Or start making better beer.

 

We get all of those. Problem is, U.S. beer geeks have caught on to them, and the prices now reflect that. $7 for a bottle of Mahr's U (with questionable freshness)? No thanks. I'll just wait until my next trip over with the family to drink it fresh, Bayerischer Anstich style. Plus U is one of those beers that continues to develop -- and get better -- the more you drink of it. So 4 bottles for $28 to get that effect? Double no thanks. Spaten/Franziskaner, although generally what I'd consider a 2nd-tier Helles/Hefeweizen for German standards, are actually very good takes on those styles.

 

I said I stopped buying craft beer "in any quantity". On the rare occasions that I do purchase beer, it's usually one of my "go-to" brands. I got really tired of $10-$15 mistakes, so I just stopped experimenting. I doubt I spend $100 annually on store-bought craft beer. And maybe $200 in pubs per year.

 

I do. I now stick pretty much to Spaten products -- after literally 100s of disappointments with the new-wave "craft" brews.

 

Gotcha. So, do you still drink beer? If so, what kind of beer do you drink -- craft, macro, homebrew?

I'm surprised you ran into so many disappointments, as the growth of American craft beer would seem to indicate a lot of folks are finding stuff they like. Do you think it has to do with American craft brewers not brewing more (and better) examples of the styles you enjoy?

Certainly don't mean to imply you're wrong -- you should drink whatever you enjoy. I'm just surprised American craft has failed so miserably for you. For me, it's been a definite net positive experience.

 

You mean you don't like "Imperial Kolsch" or "Blackened IPA" (How's that for an oxymoron?) or (my favorite) Voodoo Donut Beer? What's next? Blonde Stout?

 

Already been done: http://www.jpbrewery.com/casper.html
http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/88/109444/

 

All kidding aside, I drink mostly my homebrew. I have a 3 tap kegerator in my garage/brewery that I usually stock with an IPA (very mild compared to most West Coast Hop Bombs), a darker beer like a stout or a porter, and a crowd pleaser beer like a Kolsch or a cream ale for my Coors Light fans. I love alll the classic styles, and try to avoid any of the trendy stuff. I tend to buy Belgian styles, especially the Abbey beers and lambics, because they are so difficult and time consuming to make.

 

That's certainly a big part of it. The other big part is that I now homebrew to get what I want. But I am a pretty big perfectionist, so truly getting what I want has taken now 3 years with my Koelsch and is still in-process with my Bamberg style Rauchbier and Kellerbier.

When I do drink U.S. craft, it's generally the more establish brands: SN, Bells, Founders. I haven't found many newer entrants to the scene who have raised the bar much from where those places set it. That said, there have been some real diamonds in the rough: @OldeMeckbrew with their Copper, a number of New Glarus beers, as well as some local (D)IPAs that -- as a result of distribution and freshness -- can rival some of the fan favorites like Heady Topper (thinking specifically of Noda's Hop, Drop 'n Roll and Raleigh Brewing's House of Clay). I have yet to try Hill Farmstead's stuff, but I anticipate liking it quite a bit, based on what I have seen/read. Still, not worth fighting the trading scene fanboys at this point. for me to actively seek it out.

As to the 100s of other entrants I have spent 1,000s of dollars on in the past few years, no, none have particularly impressed enough to inspire either a degree of brand loyalty or a shift away from the established U.S. -- and tried and trusted German -- versions.

 

Definitely could see how homebrew, once "perfected", could drown out craft beer purchases for those who are into it. One of the things keeping me away from homebrew is my penchant for variety, but maybe even that obstacle is surmountable -- I'm not especially knowledgeable about homebrew.

I think that developing brand loyalty is a more challenging endeavor for a brewery than just hitting one or two homerun (or even extra base hit) brews. Being out west, Firestone Walker, Deschutes, Bear Republic...these are my go-tos. Because of my aforementioned need for variety, I end up drinking a lot of other stuff too, some not up my alley, some decently tasty, some quite good. Definitely rarer for me to stumble across a newer entrant that does a lot of different styles well. But, in any case, I can appreciate wanting to know you're getting something you're going to enjoy and focusing on the breweries that do it for you.

 

“One of the things keeping me away from homebrew is my penchant for variety ….”

That can be easily fixed if you are willing to homebrew on a consistent basis. The homebrewed beers I have on hand at the moment:

· Grodziskie

· Cranberry Belgian Pale Ale

· Galaxy IPA

· Oatmeal Stout

· Kolsch

· Bohemian Pilsner

· Tmavy Lezak (Czech Dark Lager)

· Classic American Pilsner

· Porter

· Northern English Brown Ale

· Bourbon Barrel Porter

· Dubbel

· Traditional Saison

· Hoppy Saison

· Wit

· English Bitter Ale

· Quad

Even with the above stock in hand I am very happy to purchase craft (and non-craft) beers. Recent purchases Troegs Nugget Nectar, Victory Dirtwolf, Troegs Cultivator (Helles Bock), Otter Creek Fresh Slice, Genesee Bock, etc.

Variety is the spice of life!

Cheers!

 

If only 80% of the newer craft brewers are actually crap brewers, that's not a bad percentage if you go by the late author Theodore Sturgeon's standards, to wit: "90% of everything is crap."

 

I don;t think so. For example, tonight I have a beer called Total Eclipse Breakfast Stout, by a small brewing company in the Toledo area called Maumee Bay Brewing. Quite possibly one of the best beers I have ever had. I hear it even gives Founders Breakfast Stout a run for its money although I haven't tried it yet. This is just one small example, but small breweries all over the U.S. are brewing fantastic

 

In this era of economic turmoil, you're crazy to think any poorly run business will last. All the folks "trying to make a few bucks" will end up losing their shirts faster than they would in a robust economy

 

Blue hills brewery has the same problem in every beer they brew. But guys like this are a small minority in my opinion.

 

It seems every week a new brewery or brewpub opens up here in the Twin Cities and that most pretty much suck. Just a few dudes that have spent their lives doing something else but were able to get financing to build some piece of shit with urban industrial decor at a good location. Watery kolsch, too sweet brown ales, and lame ass IPAs all around!

 

Just an outsider looking in, but as a homebrewer I ALWAYS can and will have room for improvement. Any brewer who thinks they don't is complacent. Just saying.