Beer Wars: The Movie

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You can't compete with a product of superior quality (craft). You can't compete with a product of similar quality (Rhonda ). Put that torch and pitchfork away. :mug:

i'm still confused..... inbev products are better than craft offerings (actually, i'm sure some are)??


personally, i got the moonshot segment and while i didn't dig it much, i did understand why it was there....
 
Watching this movie on netflix right now! It's great of all the talks of craft breweries vs the evil BMC empire; but I do have some issues....
1) I love the little segment on home brewing; but wish it was larger. It does put the point across, slightly, that we brew at home to get a real BEER taste.
2) Marketing.. holy crap I never knew how much money was put into marketing for beer and how much market share BMC owns...
3) There is like 1400 breweries now? Well I know I never will attempt to make my own brewery after watching this movie.. unless I win the lotto and can market.
4) Sam at DogFish ale's SAMPLE rig pales in comparison of some of the great DIY brew rigs I seen on this forum.... funny

Fun movie and love the connection to our hobby. If you have netflix you better stream the movie and chime in on your thoughts!
 
I work in a grocery store, And i have noticed that BMC is starting to put more effort into "craft" brew. Bud has a new wheat beer. Like they are trying to say, Hey instead of going to your local brewery...Just go to the store and get ours...It will be cheaper " on ad"

Every year at our store, There is a report pulled on all the beer movement.. Whatever sells the best gets the most space. Its all about $$$$$ and earning your space. Dont sell hamms, It will get replaced by a new item or exspand out on a better seller.
Belive it or not, A good beer price in a store will generate more sales. But i work in idaho so we bunch of rednecks!

Reason BMC is going for more of the "craft" Brews lately... Every time a bar goes with a local brewery for even 1 tap handle BMC will loose $$$$
So it will allways be a challange for micro brewerys to get a good foothold in the market sadly enough :(
 
Okay the three tier system mentioned in the movie brings up one thing to me...

The beer distributors all look and sound like mafia. I know now by posting this I am probably going to be knocked off tomorrow.... but had to be said.

To winstofbeer post above.. yeah not only are they trying to go "crafty" but also they are buying big names in beer and producing the label. The movie mentions Rolling Rock and talks about how Bud bought up the label but now the brewery. It's like if Microsoft bought Apple and then changed it all to a mircorsoft product by phasing out the apple operating system.

And why do I have to capitalize microsoft without it being popped up on spellcheck ;)
 
Well at least you don't live in PA where we have to buy the beer directly from the distributor because you can't get it on the shelves. In fact, there's a distributor that distributes beer to "official" distributors who in turn jack the price up a few bucks.

The trick is to buy beer off the initial distributor instead of the official ones to save some bucks. So the three tier system doesn't apply to PA at all really especially since we have Liquor Control Board who dictates everything. It's a very confusing and retarded way of doing business.
 
I watched this last night on netflix. It was a good movie. Though, like many others here I don't get the point of why Rhonda was there. She is selling a product that is obvioulsy based on a gimmick, and should not really be considered a player at all in the "Beer Wars". Obviously BMC could care less about her. I had never seen Sam from DFH he seems like a great guy who obviously loves what he does. I like that he answered the customer hotline number.
 
Sam is an amazing guy. I cant wait to meet him at the Boston Extreme Beerfest. Also having breakfest with him the next morning.
 
I watched it a couple weeks ago. Still can't believe that Mike's hard doesn't have vodka in it in the USA. It was interesting to see DFH, wish there was a lot more segments on craft breweries. Moonshot just seems like a gimmick but I guess the focus was really not good beer vs not so good but big vs small.
 
Though, like many others here I don't get the point of why Rhonda was there. She is selling a product that is obvioulsy based on a gimmick, and should not really be considered a player at all in the "Beer Wars". Obviously BMC couldn't care less about her.

Well, BMC keeps trying to get Sparks legislated off the market, so I'd bet they actually are paying attention.
 
Anybody else think Anata is hot, just something about her, too bad she is allergic to alcohol. We do have distributors here in PA that we get our beer from but its just another name for retailer so the 3 tier system is in place here basically it goes brewer to distributor to retailer (another distributor here in PA) then to consumer but can only get cases and kegs. If we want to buy a six pack or 12 pack we have to go to a pizza shop or restaurant to get it.

I thought it was funny how they did the blind test taste and nobody could tell the difference. Also Rhonda was part owner of Sam Adams but it looks like she didn't get a lot of money by being bought out. A-B bought out a lot of brands including hoe garden which surpised me.
 
I watched it a couple weeks ago. Still can't believe that Mike's hard doesn't have vodka in it in the USA. It was interesting to see DFH, wish there was a lot more segments on craft breweries. Moonshot just seems like a gimmick but I guess the focus was really not good beer vs not so good but big vs small.

Exactly.

I think the majority of people who have seen Beer Wars view it as a good beer vs crap beer movie, and don't see why Rhonda is in it.
The movie is much more about small business vs big business, with the focus on it's impact on breweries.
 
Anybody else think Anata is hot, just something about her, too bad she is allergic to alcohol. We do have distributors here in PA that we get our beer from but its just another name for retailer so the 3 tier system is in place here basically it goes brewer to distributor to retailer (another distributor here in PA) then to consumer but can only get cases and kegs. If we want to buy a six pack or 12 pack we have to go to a pizza shop or restaurant to get it.

I thought it was funny how they did the blind test taste and nobody could tell the difference. Also Rhonda was part owner of Sam Adams but it looks like she didn't get a lot of money by being bought out. A-B bought out a lot of brands including hoe garden which surpised me.

Totally, she reminds me of a nerdy Daria. I swear she played the voice for her.
 
Just got done watching it on Netflix streaming. A decent movie overall. Rhonda did come off like a whore pimping her goods around. If I want caffeine in my beer, I'll put coffee, tea or chocolate in it ;)
 
Got it in my instant queue. I'll go ahead and say thought that I don't see BMC as evil (haven't seen the flick yet). BMC sells what we will buy in massive quantities. Granted it's not the best beer, but it's also something that very few of us could make if we wanted to. The majority of their products are so light that you can't hide any flaws...the process has to be perfect every time. BTW, I've got a 12'er of Mich Light in the fridge right now. Sometimes, after a days work it's just the ticket to pop a top on a Michelob light, sit at the table and me and the wife will decompress for a few. Don't lie to yourself, for what it is, it's a decent beer.

I'll go one step further and say that I'm hoping the Inbev/Anheiser giant will bring more of their european brands here. Some of those are pretty darn good for comercial beer.
 
It was interesting to see DFH, wish there was a lot more segments on craft breweries.

As mentioned earlier in this thread make sure you see this bockumentary: http://www.sixhundred.com/films/american_beer/

In June of 2002, five friends left New York City by minivan and traveled across the United States in search of good beer, visiting 38 breweries in 40 days.Very entertaining.
 
Got it in my instant queue. I'll go ahead and say thought that I don't see BMC as evil (haven't seen the flick yet). BMC sells what we will buy in massive quantities. Granted it's not the best beer, but it's also something that very few of us could make if we wanted to. The majority of their products are so light that you can't hide any flaws...the process has to be perfect every time. BTW, I've got a 12'er of Mich Light in the fridge right now. Sometimes, after a days work it's just the ticket to pop a top on a Michelob light, sit at the table and me and the wife will decompress for a few. Don't lie to yourself, for what it is, it's a decent beer.

I'll go one step further and say that I'm hoping the Inbev/Anheiser giant will bring more of their european brands here. Some of those are pretty darn good for comercial beer.

The film wasn't dissing on BMC in general (besides that it all tastes the same because it is all one style, e.g. light lager). It was about how hard it is for craft brewery's to make it with these huge corporations out there buying everything out and telling the people what they should drink. It's about big corporations overrunning little corporations and ruining the idea (american dream) that one can make a living doing something they love (e.g. making/selling their beer). I think anything that involves a group of people blindly following them is completely retarded and should not exist (e.g. patriotism, religion, etc.).
 
As mentioned earlier in this thread make sure you see this bockumentary: http://www.sixhundred.com/films/american_beer/

In June of 2002, five friends left New York City by minivan and traveled across the United States in search of good beer, visiting 38 breweries in 40 days.Very entertaining.

You know any place I can watch this in a bigger screen size? It's soooooooo small.

Edit: never mind, that was just a trailer sort of thing. I see...
 
The film wasn't dissing on BMC in general (besides that it all tastes the same because it is all one style, e.g. light lager). It was about how hard it is for craft brewery's to make it with these huge corporations out there buying everything out and telling the people what they should drink. It's about big corporations overrunning little corporations and ruining the idea (american dream) that one can make a living doing something they love (e.g. making/selling their beer). I think anything that involves a group of people blindly following them is completely retarded and should not exist (e.g. patriotism, religion, etc.).

I'm watching it now. I do not doubt that they have the power to dictate shelf space...but how is this different than any other producer? I'm not defending them I'm just saying how is this different than say Kraft saying if you carry brand X you'll pay more for our product or you can't carry brand Y of our product. It's business. It's not pretty but it's business. A lot of it falls back on the stores when they started looking for kickbacks to carry a certain product. That's why I visit smaller shops when I can since they don't have to deal with the economies that chains do and can carry what they damn well please.
 
I just watched the segment on shelf space..and I'm wondering who paid who off to get Carolina Blonde eye level shelf space in Food Lion...I'm not saying they don't have a point because they do. The big guys have ways to ensure that their products are on the shelf...but why is Carolina Blonde always top shelf in my Food Lion? Actually why are ALL the "craft" brews at the very front of the beer isle. I'd say that craft brews (including some AB brands) take up 1/4 of the total shelf space. This is a college town so that may have something to do with it.
 
I'm watching it now. I do not doubt that they have the power to dictate shelf space...but how is this different than any other producer? I'm not defending them I'm just saying how is this different than say Kraft saying if you carry brand X you'll pay more for our product or you can't carry brand Y of our product. It's business. It's not pretty but it's business. A lot of it falls back on the stores when they started looking for kickbacks to carry a certain product. That's why I visit smaller shops when I can since they don't have to deal with the economies that chains do and can carry what they damn well please.


Kraft doesn't have the advantage of working with a product that is as heavily controlled as alchohol. BMC have essentially managed to legislate most of their competition away.
 
If you think that Kraft cannot dictate what is on the shelf at your local store you are naive. I agree that the "system" can make it difficult to get beer on the shelf but it is not impossible. The bottom line is if the retailers think it will sell..they will carry it. If bcould get Leffe here on the shelf...I'm not sure I'd ever brew again ;) You know who owns Leffe now right?
 
If you think that Kraft cannot dictate what is on the shelf at your local store you are naive. I agree that the "system" can make it difficult to get beer on the shelf but it is not impossible. The bottom line is if the retailers think it will sell..they will carry it. If bcould get Leffe here on the shelf...I'm not sure I'd ever brew again ;) You know who owns Leffe now right?

Yeah AB InBev pretty much owns everything along with SABMiller and Carlsberg. What gets me is that people think they're drinking "American Beer" when it's owned by Belgian and South African companies.

Which brings another argument when AB brings imports and/or "micro breweries" that they own to the shelf to rope in people that are curious to try something different. They have all their bases covered to the point where they can do whatever they want when it comes to retail space.
 
Anyone else notice that Sam from DFH had a carboy fermenting in direct sunlight?

Yeah, that had me confused a bit. I heard Sam talking about homebrewing before and turns out he doesn't know much about all grain brewing and I didn't get the impression that he knew very much about brewing in general from what I seen. Totally threw me off. :confused:
 
Anyone else notice that Sam from DFH had a carboy fermenting in direct sunlight?

we talked about that and decided that we think it was put there so it would show in the movie that he still homebrews. we doubted that was left there to ferment.
 
ahh. That would make more sense. I know the man knows how to homebrew, that's how he started the company.
 
ahh. That would make more sense. I know the man knows how to homebrew, that's how he started the company.

Yeah, obviously lol. It's just in interviews when he is asked for advice on homebrewing, he was never really able to suggest anything and it always seemed that the person asking the question knew more than he did and kept correcting him on what they meant lol. Look up his name on youtube, he did some questions on a "google" type sponsor video.
 
Did I imagine it or did one shot in the movie indicate that InBev was also taking over Leffe? That's no good. But then again, Leffe on the beer racks at the local grocer doesn't sound too bad.
 
Did I imagine it or did one shot in the movie indicate that InBev was also taking over Leffe? That's no good. But then again, Leffe on the beer racks at the local grocer doesn't sound too bad.

I think Leffe's been owned by them for a while now.

I just got around to watching this, from a film stand point I thought she did a good job of not trying to be too biased while still showing that the bigger companies are definitely the enemy.

On another note, I loved the part where Sam Calagione talked about how BMC are committing "identity theft" in a way when they try to make more beers similar to craft brews (like blue moon, evil i tell you!)
 
Did I imagine it or did one shot in the movie indicate that InBev was also taking over Leffe? That's no good. But then again, Leffe on the beer racks at the local grocer doesn't sound too bad.

lets hope they don't change the recipe to use cheaper adjuncts etc.
 
according to wikipedia...

Harbin Lager
Tiger Beer
Kirin
Bass Ale
Boddingtons
Beck's
Hoegaarden
Leffe
Stella Artois
Löwenbräu
Tennent's Ale
Budvar Czechvar
Sedrin Beer
Land Shark Lager
Rolling Rock
Tequiza
Red Hook Brewing
Widmer Brothers Brewery
Grupo Modelo
Goose Island Brewery
Kona Brewing Company
Fordham Brewing Company
Old Dominion Brewing Company
Michelob

are all Anheuser–Busch owned
 
according to wikipedia...

Harbin Lager
Tiger Beer
Kirin
Bass Ale
Boddingtons
Beck's
Hoegaarden
Leffe
Stella Artois
Löwenbräu
Tennent's Ale
Budvar Czechvar
Sedrin Beer
Land Shark Lager
Rolling Rock
Tequiza
Red Hook Brewing
Widmer Brothers Brewery
Grupo Modelo
Goose Island Brewery
Kona Brewing Company
Fordham Brewing Company
Old Dominion Brewing Company
Michelob

are all Anheuser–Busch owned

Looks like I should stop buying any goose island (I liked their harvest ale when I tried it a year ago) and Kobra (when I'm low on money). Well then. Looks like PBR all the way for large gatherings.
 

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