what if ab and inbev started making quality brew

there's no reason to point out that craft brewers want to make money. of course they do; they need money to survive. but this is irrelevant to the discussion of whether BMC are unethical. the only conceivable reason to bring up that craft brewers need profits is some sort of apologist nonsense about cut throat capitalism.

edit: and of course, it downplays the clear motivations of the brewers who started and carried off the craft revolution. it was not just that they saw a niche to exploit.

 

I will wait and see what happens to Goose Island in the next year. I like their brews and hope this may be an awakening move by one if the big boys.

 

Let the record state that I dug Old Dominion Brewing Company up until Fordham (backed by AB) bought them out, and then they stopped making there best quality, small batch beers and just put out the crap pale ale and lager.

 

Was going to do a similar thing with the German & Beligan options.

 

Yes. Yes I do. When those companies combine to hold a stake in brews such as Eisenbahn Lust Prestige, Baden Baden Red Ale, La Fin du Monde, Paulaner Salvator, Affligem Noel, Zywiec Porter, and Ola Dubh 40 in their, it's very difficult to skip the "Big Boys" altogether.

 

I see what you're thrusting at, with the focus on marketing etc... but don't you think that in this brave new hipster world that drinking high end beer has become nouveau chic?

(Which, by the way, I support whole-heartedly.)

 

If I could find readily available alternatives to them, yes I certainly would boycott every company I felt was unethical, or practiced unsustainable business practices.

 

sure, but hipsters really aren't as common as they seem. plus most of them drink BMC like everybody else.

edit: i mean, sure, there's money to be made with craft, but it's hard to see how you'd make more doing that than just pressing the fizzy yellow beer money train further.

it's like within craft, you may "build your brand" with the specialty beers, but every time you devote ingredients and space to make a barrel aged beer or something (instead of just making that pale ale you're selling out when brewing at capacity) you take a loss.

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edit2: my posts suck. too many edits.

 

are you supporting people you could boycott, because there's other people you won't boycott but also disagree with? and if so, do you realize that that's totally irrational?

edit: if that sentence is too convoluted, suppose you could drink beer A (ethical), and beer B (funds murder or something). you also have to buy internet from one company C (funds murder) or company D (also funds murder). you can't not have internet (you need email for your job or something).

in that case, is it "silly" to boycott beer company B (the murder one) because you support a murderous cable company? why??

 

AB InBev is just a giant umbrella brand for 100 or whatever sub-brands that they've bought over the years. You specifically asked about AB InBev, so I'm not really sure what you're getting at here. AB InBev doesn't make any beers. They own a lot of brands that do make beers. So are you asking if, say, Budweiser suddenly started brewing a barrel aged imperial stout, would people start drinking it? Fair enough question, but very different from what you asked.

 

you're afraid they will come for you if they discover the boycott?

 

I wouldn't say that any of those are AB Inbev "made". Though they surely have their hands deep into the pockets of those breweries, the reason why those brands remain good is most likely the "lack" of creative involvement in them.

 

Their products are conveniently held in another aisle at the stores I frequent. I never walk down this shitty aisle, it just feels dirty. Not interested in supporting those companies for reasons already mentioned in the thread. Although, if they somehow brewed a beer that dethrones Pliny the Younger, I suppose I will try it.

 

To the op, if it's good beer I'll drink it. It just a matter of time before these shitheads realize that they can't survive on grade f product. The problem for me is that they'll never make the quality kind of beer that I personally seek out. It will always be second best(3rd,4th, or 5th). They'll only improve quality as lame attempt to appease the mediocre beer crowd. Similar to the type of beer we see from companies like Sam Adams or Sierra Nevada. Sorry for you folks kissing up to these mediocre beer companies but it true. It's mediocre garbage or entry level at best(noble pils,ovila saison, etc are exceptions). Unless the brewers from goose island have a really strong backbone you can expect to see their quality go downhill also. It's just the nature of the beast. The big dogs acquiring smaller companies always turn it into a big ole pile of shit. There just isn't a happy ending in the corporate world. People sell their souls for money and it's a disgrace.