Serious Eats: "5 Issues Craft Beer Drinkers Should Be Talking About "

Pretty good overall, and I agree on the safety issue. I just started working as a brewer and I'm now realizing just how big a deal it is; conveying this idea to customers would go a long way to maturing the image of craft beer. Many will disagree but as one of the only non-Caucasian brewers I've met thus far, I'd say diversity is a big issue; that's not to say discrimination is happening at all, but rather we need to think about why this culture doesn't appeal to a broader set of people. I thought it was interesting that last time I brought up race in the forums, lots of people showed how out of touch they were, it quickly devolved into an epic shitshow.

 

Great article.

I know the water issue came up here last week, and it's a scary one, really. My friends and I regularly discuss the "over-consumption issue," and the odd place craft drinking inhabits. Personally, hate getting drunk, but love drinking higher ABV beers. But just because you're not "drinking to get drunk" does that you're not exhibiting behaviors consistent with alcohol dependence, and/or actually getting drunk? Tough call, really. And one I personally try to avoid thinking about in relation to my craft beer hobby.

 

It's a shame to see things devolve like that. Ideally, for breweries looking to grow in a market or take advantage of a niche market, the first step would be research. How do tastes differ between typical beer consumers, minority beer consumers, female beer consumers, etc? How do those different groups react to different types of marketing? How can internal hiring practices encourage a more diverse pool of applicants? ... all considerations large companies make all the time. The industry could learn a bit from adopting some -- even if just the research portion to start (combining resources to get some industry-wide research on the topic could be both fruitful AND cost-effective).

 

I don't think the article addressed why us, as craft beer drinkers should be talking about these issues?

Brewery owners? sure. Not sure why I should really care about any of those.

 

I don't think that sexism/racism is an issue at all in the craft beer world. Probably better than any other industry. The foundation of consists of open minded, educated thinkers.

 

My only problem is the over-consumption issue. I've been without beer for three nights now and it's getting hard, my excuse to drink beer every other day is that I miss the hops but it might just be that my system misses the booze. The longest I've been without beer since 2012 has been 5 days straight.

 

As an enforcer of EO policies, I feel the "gender issue" should be a non-issue.

 

Mine was 21 days in June of 2012. I had annual Army Reserve training in CA, and alcohol was not authorized per higher command. First thing I did when I got home was buy a six pack of Anchor Steam. After three weeks in the desert of California, I deserved it.

 

all are good points.

gender one is spot on. if you don't think sexism is alive among consumers and beer label/name makers, it's just b/c sexism is invisible to you. educate yourself.

overconsumption one is as well. sorry guys/gals.

competition one... yes, but i'd also address things like market confusion and stuff. hop contracts important too but not that important. capital not important at the moment (hardly limited; lot of people ready to make money in the world).

environment one, sad they didn't talk about bauxite.

safety one, yeah. but i think craft beer has been extremely good about that.

not going to be surprised if history repeats. if we press the gender issue too much it will as well (in my mind it already has, but i'm particularly strict).

 

I've been on any number of so called "gender issue" courses.The word should be sex not gender by the way.I'm not aware of any chip on my shoulder, I've always considered men and women to be "people" which is precisely what my mother always taught me.Over quite a long lifetime I've come to accept that life is different for men and women.It has to be for pretty obvious reasons.I can never experience motherhood and what effect it has on how mothers think.It's quite nonsensical to treat men and women as being the same.Treating their needs and wishes in an equal way to those of men of course. But men are not women. If they were we wouldn't be able to tell them apart.

 

I wouldn't say it's an issue, but I'd sure like to see more diversity among brewery and business owners in the craft beer world.

 

Who is to say that a beer with a buxom blonde on it wouldn't entertain/titilate some women also?
Is wine specifically marketed to "mommies" or women something we should also "rise above", or should we just consider it "marketing".

There are about 50 commercials on tv for skin lotion, and 99% of them are marketed towards women. Only that one with Shaq in it is for me. Is that something we should rise above also?

Its advertising, and many women themselves find no problem with marketing a product (and it's labels/names) to a specific gender.

 

The only issue in that article that doesn't really hold true, to me, is the Consumption Issue.

Not because there aren't people who over-consume, but because that issue is ultimately an INDIVIDUAL problem. Not an industry problem. Aside from the fact that it's absurd to expect brewers to consider the fact that some individuals will over-consume in the production of their product, I'm not sure that anything the industry does will make a difference.

Think about the "Drink Responsibly" stuff that you'll see on the BMC commercials. They do this, not because it really has a meaningful impact on the habits of those who find themselves unable to consume alcohol in moderation, but to cover their asses. To say "look, we're doing what we can to 'combat' over-consumption and alcoholism!" so that they are less liable to lawsuits from people who fall victim to alcohol poisoning and/or alcohol related accidents.

In a very general sense, people should be aware that craft beer doesn't make one immune to over-consumption. Just because you aren't doing keg stands of Bud Light or polishing off cases of High Life doesn't mean you are incapable of over-consumption. But this is more about understanding alcoholism than it is a problem specific to the craft beer industry.

I did find it interesting that the author of the Serious Eats writeup cites the article about over-consumption that prompted a pretty lengthy discussion on this very site:

http://www.beeradvocate.com/communi...gh-functioning-craft-beer-and-alcohol.152700/

To me, looking at the number of low-ABV beers that breweries are putting out is sort of missing the entire point behind the problem of over-consumption. It's not about the availability of low-alcohol beers, it's about individual's choices and how they consume beer. You can over-consume on All Day IPA just as easily as you can over-consume on BCBS. People over-consume on the BMC beers all the time, and those are essentially session beers (4-5% abv).

So what's the answer? Personally, I don't think it's a question the industry can really answer. Information on packaging that warns people of over-consumption is a waste of time. Even cutting people off that get too schnockered at beer fests, while a good idea for pure safety issues, isn't really doing anything to curb alcoholism and over-consumption. And the industry coming out with more low ABV beers, while also a great thing, isn't really addressing over-consumption.

 

these are all non-issues to me.

 

I actually do. I have compunction with hardly dressed girls. "why are the men dressed and the women not so much?" It serves no purpose. I hate to be the wet blanket but darn you guys. Have you ever seen my eyes?

 

I have seen a St Pauli Girl, but I've never seen a St Pauli Dude posing for beer. Marketing for beer is slanted to men who are the highest demographic regardless of age, so I'm hardly surprised. Right, wrong or indifferent it's big money.

 

Imagine that everyone in the world was the same gender & same skin color. We'd find other ways to to prove that we're better than each other, it's human (and animal) nature. It's the same reason that women are mean to women, and men to men (albeit in different ways), and that lions fight lions in the wild.

Sexism is prevalent every day, every where and is not limited to certain industries. And it's not just men being sexist, women are just as guilty too. There will never be a point where sexism doesn't exist, just as it's impossible to remove racism completely. However, can we be more accepting and treat each other with respect? Sure. And that's what we should be open to.

 

Interestingly enough, I don't see how a woman would be concerned about the sexual appearance of models hawking beer when a magazine like Elle (my wife has a subscription) or Cosmopolitan is chalk full of near naked women (and men) hawking all types of clothing, makeup, and undergarments. Seems a bit of a double standard.

On a side note, I think one of my all time favorite commercials is a beer commercial with a beautiful model talking on a Bluetooth, while an average Joe thinks she's talking to him. Too funny.

 

agree on most points...

water is a huge issue right now. Brewing is intensely harsh on water supplies and the environment. There are a lot of breweries that are taking steps to improve, but a lot that aren't.

over consumption is an issue I believe, despite it being an individual choice. Despite craft being a very feel good story, it is an easy product to abuse.

I can understand the sexism but don't really see it on a daily basis, so I tend to think diversity is a bigger issue. Biggest hurdle facing craft in the future is the very singlemindednes of its core demographic. The industry really needs to diversify in order to continue its growth IMO