The craft beer industry: beer quality problems

Thanks zid. Just to clarify my original post may have been a bad attempt at humor in a thread where it doesnt belong but it wasn't a slam directed at anybody. What I got back was. Sure guys poor more good beer down the drain than I can afford but I don't need it put in my face.

 

To quote Pirsig from Zen and the Art if Motorcycle Maintenance, "What the hell is Quality? What is it?"
Obsessing on the question drove him batty, literally.

 

It really isn’t that difficult, but it is apparent that there is confusion among the general consumers. What we are talking about here is quality in reference to Quality Control, which you just touched upon. By industry definition, a quality beer is a beer that has been brewed using a very controlled process to yield a product free from defect (aspects of the beer that the industry agrees upon as flaws). It is completely objective in that regard. The average consumer might define a quality beer as one they personally enjoy more than others, meaning they equate quality with their own subjectivity. I do find that it is important to make the distinction when talking about such issues outside of industry circles.

 

I don't totally agree, but I can see your point. Rational people can disagree.

One point of clarification... no one is advocating for regulation in a heavy-handed government sense or as BA membership requirement. What is being discussed is a [hypothetical] voluntary quality certification program coordinated by the Brewer's Association for brewers who choose to opt-in. Similar to ISO 9000, ASTM, or other industry standard that survive because the private industry collectively agree they are good practices, not by gov't mandate.

 

What if the only way to stop old beer from being on store shelves is for the Brewers Association to tell X% of craft breweries that distribute beer, to stop? What if the fundamental problem is that the supply of widely distributed beer is greater than the demand?

 

Agreed. And considering the opportunity exists for the general consumer to easily confuse the subjective "quality" with the objective "quality control", would it be productive in this setting to dispense with the singular word quality and use adherence to Best Practices, defined industry standards or similar?

Is the text of the industry definition for a quality beer readily available? I found this by the American Council of Independent Laboratories, but am not sure if it's accepted as the bona fide industry standard/s or just a guide for good practices.

 

Thanks for that.
I guess that's BA's "20+ page brochure" mentioned a few times, which I presume is a BA production and not necessarily adopted by the brewing industry as a whole as the bible of QC . I was wondering if there is a document that describes/states the 'industry definition' of quality beer or Quality Control referenced here by @ryan1788a5.

 

Yes, but while the BA represents the interests of mostly smaller breweries vs. "big beer", their members are also competition against each other. They can't control how much individual breweries produce.

AB InBev can adjust/decrease their production volumes to meet changing demands. But if the market is already saturated here in Pennsylvania, the BA doesn't have the power to stop Craft Brewery X from another State from expanding their distribution here, or stop ten new local breweries from opening up next month. They aren't a cartel (nor do we want them to be).

The old beer problem is probably something that can only be solved by some breweries closing via market forces.

 

Pulled directly from the BA website:

What is Quality Beer?
A beer that is responsibly produced using wholesome ingredients, consistent brewing techniques and good manufacturing practices, which exhibits flavor characteristics that are consistently aligned with both the brewer’s and beer drinker’s expectations.

I would consider this an accepted ‘industry definition.’ Even breweries that are not BA members are very likely to agree on the core of it.

 

I did not know that. I wonder if the others (Import and Other Domestic) are members of different associations as well, to protect or enhance their interests?
According to BA, Craft has 12.7% of total market volume, Import 17.5% and Other Domestic 69.8%. It's likely the Other Domestics can fend for themselves and have clout commensurate with their market share.

I think that's the crux of the matter. One must name the attributes they want to be of high quality, have a consensus on what defines quality for those attributes, adopt practices (not principles) to meet the standards and then be open to outside resources measuring whether the product meets the agreed upon benchmarks for 'quality'.

Doesn't matter who penned that.
With the exception of "consistent brewing techniques and good manufacturing practices" (which must be defined in order to be adhered to) it's so ambiguously subjective that it comes across, to me, as pure-D marketing......unless they elsewhere stipulate concrete parameters for "wholesome" and "brewer’s and beer drinker’s expectations".

 

As is Terrapin in one of my sometimes states (other sometimes states are NC and confusion)

 

This's thread is a big reason why I don't buy very much beer from retailers, or at least a lot less than I used to. I'd rather drive to the brewery that produced the beer and buy directly from them and cut out the distributor. I'm guaranteed a fresh product and deal with the people that know their product. This is the hyper local mentality that seems to have really driven craft beer the last few year's which is consumers supprting truly local breweries, and with that, I'm far less concerned about stale dates, keeping the money local, and keeping the distributor out of the equation.

 

If you really, REALLY want to geek out, these books would give you a lot of clarity concerning the ambiguity you point out in that definition:

https://www.amazon.com/Quality-Management-Essential-Planning-Breweries/dp/1938469151

https://www.amazon.com/Standards-Brewing-Formulas-Consistency-Excellence/dp/0937381799

I’m almost positive both are approved of and recommended by the BA. The standards, practices, and procedures covered are quite extensive and flesh out the vagaries you question in the definition.

 

I have unfortunately come across old beer even in a tap room model brewery, though I agree with you that you are far more likely to avoid it by consuming at the source. However, there are still a slew of other quality issues that can and do affect beer even directly at the source. You are still just as likely to run into flawed beer at the brewery itself, if the brewery has not established a good Quality Control system.

 

Convincing homebrewers with no professional brewing experience to NOT to open up a new brewery! Most of the below average beer I've had is from those type of new small breweries.

The BA could make usage of their logo dependant on breweries certifying that their brewing staff have either attended brewing school or some other approved training that covers quality control aspects. Plenty of other fields have professional certifications, why not brewing?