Post-Haze Craze Era

The breweries that make the best beer and have authentic branding will be successful.

The haze craze has brought another sensory perspective to beer that really didn’t exist before, the visual perspective. Thanks to social media platforms it was able to blossom and even reconfigure the consumer’s perception of beer. If it looked a certain way consumers were already forming an option before they drank it. Then when if done well the aroma hit you in the face it almost didn’t matter that the beer was chalky, thick, sweet, and intensely bitter due to too much hop matter in suspension and often yeast as well.

The number of times I’ve seen crazy high scores and the somewhere in the comments the words “hop burn” were used. No beer should burn when you drink it, sorry.

This will fade with time. People will “hopefully” realize that what they’re drinking is actually not enjoyable and will probably move onto spirits and wine anyway.

The best breweries will continue to crush it regardless of what the beers look like. Everyone just chasing trends with very little authenticity will eventually cease to exist although social media will continue to prop them up longer than ever thought possible.

 

I don't know, I feel like I've heard that before when West Coast IPAs became popular.

"How can these insanely bitter beers be taken to the 'next level' from where they are now?"

And then BAM, the style took a sharp left turn towards juicy.

 

I completely agree. But craft beer is an industry and industries evolve. Once new styles become more and more popular this cycle will repeat itself which is my point.

 

While it certainly wasn't ubiquitous, there were lines like this for beers in the past. Kate the Great at the Portsmouth Brewery for example.

 

I agree with you the FOMO madness at places like Trill and Tree House probably won't happen again. Way too many options for the hazy NE style on the shelves and on tap everywhere for it to be the unique, hard to find thing it used to be. I also agree with you it was fun while it lasted. There was a thrill waiting for TH to announce on Wednesday mornings and then driving down to Monson like a madman to get in line for 10 cans. The fun of driving out for the day to get some Trillium, etc. cans is what got me fully into New England craft beer and while I don't wait in lines or drive out far for just cans/a few pints anymore, my love for the scene remains.

 

ha! I'm a Phish guy too and I definitely see the connections you point out. I actually see a lot of similarities between band/genre fandom and beer geekism in general and tend to see things through that lens a bit (honestly, it's probably just that all geeked out hobbies follow fairly similar trajectories when you get down to it).

Speaking of FOMO, did you manage tix to Mohegan?

 

See you there. Hopefully the lines for beer won't be too long

 

Haze will fade into just being called NEIPA and just be a regular part of the style selection. The top dogs will stay around and a lot of the pop up spots will have to change styles or will just fail altogether when the next thing becomes popular.

There was this huge injection of people getting into the craft beer scene thanks to "Haze hype" but those numbers aren't sustainable (see bitcoin) and it eventually has to level off.

The one good thing is that alcohol never goes out of style, just ways to consume it.

 

I dunno, there's almost 10,000 wineries in the US.

 

"Everybody's talkin' bout the new sound, funny but it's still rock and roll to me"....in the end, we all like what we like. I have my favorite new and small places that I am happy to buy over Treehouse and/or Trillium. As well as my old favorites (Alchemist!). I am sure we all do. Things will change and things will stay the same. As Dr. Ian Malcolm said, "Life finds a way".

 

I sure didn't go to 30 some odd Dead shows due to FOMO. Hate that term. It's called trying to enjoy life in our short time on this earth...IMHO. But that wouldn't always yield a popular post on FB, IG, etc etc for all my buddies to `like`.

 

Chris Berman, is that you?