(Why) Are imports overlooked?

If you are lucky enough to get fresh well treated imports, more power to you. I can get great American beer in the $12 a sixer range around here; the price you would just pay for run of the mill imports around here. If I could get what I got in Europe for close that price point, it might be a debate. There are some exceptions. I loved cask beer when I was in the UK, most offerings from there in bottle or can just depress me here & now.

 

There are many, many great beers from all over the world. But I would argue that the US makes THE best beer in the world, as a whole. Yes, Westy and Franziskaner and all the others...the US has no ingrained, old-school beer tradition, no purity laws or anything like that holding back innovation. Sorry, but when I think of beer innovation, the place I think of is Germany or Belgium. The US is free to go wild with beer, and we've made new styles, re-imagined old styles, have mix n matched and we've made some of the greatest beers in history.

Imports are overlooked for the same way people go to car shows; we want to see the new stuff, the next generations. We want the same for our beers; we still love a German pils or Belgian tripel like we still gawk at an old Toyota 2000GT, cuz there's a reason they're classics. But we will always prefer the next new thing, and America's beer scene in delivering that and that's what people are talking about. How many times can you talk about how great Weihenstephaner is? Old-world breweries do what they do, and do it well and that's about it.

If this makes no sense and is rambling, I am really high right now.

 

For me:
1. freshness
2. not much new is showing up on the import shelves

I would get some German and Czech pilsners and wheat beers, but I can't remember the last time I saw one that wasn't at least six months old. I do buy Orval, St. Bernardus 12, and Aventinus from time to time since they don't need to be fresh and they make me happy.

 

They are not overlooked.

 

For a non-BA that doesn't know what is good and what is bad/average, grabbing a random import from UK, Belgium or Germany off the store shelf will probably be better than grabbing the random 6'er of an American craft offering. For experienced craft beer advocates, you know how to weed through most of the average American offerings to find the great stuff hiding in bombers or 6packs, and what is fresh and what is shelf turd.

So for an average Joe, imports will probably be the safer bet for a quality beer
For the BA, US options are probably better most of the time for all reasons previously mentioned.

 

I don't overlook them I love them... but they are often hard to find, and sometimes when you do, they are old.

When in Rome as they say sometimes too..

 

I agree that imports really are overlooked and I'm going to guess it's only partially due to the lack of catchy marketing. another reason is that imports usually end up being way more expensive than their domestic counterparts. For example, why spend nearly fifteen bucks for a Celebrator Dopplebock when the Troegenator is nearly half that?

 

I am a HUGE fan of Celebrator but I personally refuse to pay 15 bucks for a 4-pack of that beer. I have had a couple of draft pints of Celebrator though. My sole purchase of packaged Doppelbock so far has been 4-packs of Troegenator 16 ounce cans; that beer does indeed win the 'bang for the buck' award IMO.

Cheers!

 

I'm guilty of not trying import craft more. I have before, I think I'm just so used to the big flavored/hop beers from a lot of US breweries that I have a difficult time appreciating some of the more subtle styles Europe or other countries. Taddy's Porter, for example, just seems incredibly thin and flat to me compared to Smuttynose or Founders.

 

Before the growth of the first microbrews and now the explosive growth of craft beer, imports were the only alternative to bland American macro lagers. Now that there are a plethora of alternatives to macros, the imports have slowly but surely faded to the back of the pack/store/bar. And with the proliferation of experimentation by American brewers with ingredients never thought to be beer-friendly, the imports have also been left behind due to the restrictive laws about what goes into them. But it can also be your perception. There may be as much interest in imports as there always was, but since there's so much out there about American craft beer, it may just seem like imports have been overlooked.

 

Other than Belgians of course I just prefer American Beer. Also ive had fresh samuel smiths while on a rugby tour and stuff stateside doesnt compare. Same with why I wont drink guiness in the states anymore.

 

because they aren't local -- and local is best in almost every corner of the country right now.

 

Those German names are hard to pronounce. You like at them and are like what why should I buy this

 

Almost every corner maybe, but certainly not where I live. Most of the local brews here range from 'nothing to write home about' at best, to 'pretty amateurish' at worst.
To add insult to injury, at least a few of them actually sell for prices higher than some imports.

 

I will gladly take an Aventinus Eisbock over any IPA available, luckily it's on tap right now so I could care less about the whole hop-forward, fresh-centric universe that seems to rule over this website.

 

Glad you're high - that goes some way to explaining the post.

Tell me a legitimately "new" style that was invented in the USA. What are we talking here? "The Sour"?

And from the three breweries you've listed, one is a beer geek no-brainer ("I mean Europe has some great brews dude, like Cantillon, Westy 12 and you know... Nogne and Denmark - wait is one of them a country?"), and the other two (and I'm not making a comparison of quality here, simply their reach) is like saying Sierra Nevada and Goose Island (but imagining GI didn't make BCBS - the beer geek get-out-of-jail card for buying AB Inbev products).

Comparing two major German / Belgian styles to an old Toyota 2000GT - gee how generous.

If people haven't had a chance to travel extensively outside of the USA, that's cool (and I can only make the assumption that that's the case here). But I just don't understand the parochial viewpoints that get floated around so much when that's the case.

"I prefer the beer I get locally in the US a lot more than the old Franziskaner I find on the shelves" - totally cool and I agree

"After trying Franziskaner, Weihenstephaner and Westy 12, I can objectively say - MURICA f**king rocks and is the hands down best country in the world for beer" - no

 

Change "this website" to "craft beer in the US". Hoppy beers have been the most popular type of beer for the entire "revolution" and it's probably not changing any time soon. Luckily for you and everyone who enjoys variety, there are myriad other options for us out there.

 

From the 70's to sometime in the 90's imports were more interesting and often better and I spent a lot of effort seeking them out. By the mid-90s things started evening out. Right now I think brewers here are doing a lot more interesting things, and, as several people have pointed out, the domestic beer is fresher and probably less abused between the brewery and your glass. Within the past 5 years the number of new brands and breweries has expanded so fast I don't think it matters where you are, there is probably somebody nearby doing something interesting and worth checking out.

 

I do have a tendency to overlook imported beers. The primary reason is freshness. The second reason is all the imported styles are also made here in the USA. Beer made in the USA is fantastic, it supports our economy, it's fresher and often times much less expensive. Our brewers are not constrained by archaic laws (Just so we're clear, I'm talking about YOU Germany with your Bavarian Purity Law of 1516). Why don't you just tie your brewers hands behind their backs or just hire chimpanzee's to brew the beer since there are no decisions to be made? American brewers can experiment and create new, exciting and delicious innovative beers. If brewing beer were an Olympic sport America would own the Gold medal. USA! USA! USA!

 

I was thinking more in 'overall' terms, but I would have to agree on that one especially. I notice it in particular with the Schlenkerla beers, both bottles and draught, which have never been available in better shape than the last few years.