Beer Wars: The Movie

[dontman]

moooooooooooot.

Apparently you didn't watch "Friends". This was a pretty funny bit from that show.

OR - Joey Tribbiani has joined HBT. In which case welcome Joey.

 

[TheBeerNerd]

This has just been released on DVD today.

I found out through my good longtime friend, Dave Stone, who did the animation for the film.
Can't wait to get my hands on a copy!

 

[DavidSteel]

Looks like people are reading too deep into it. They just want to educate the people that there is more beer out there other than BMC.

Edit: just watched it; good watch. The idea that Busch could potentially buy out Coors and Miller is very frightening. I'll stick to drinking my homebrew and buying only craft beers.

 

[BlueSunshine]

I saw this months ago and I really enjoyed it.

It just goes to show you the power that corporations have and how they can squash their competitors. The way AB is operating is simply monopolistic. When you have the money to make the rules, the free market goes out the window. They pretty much dictate how beer is distributed, they have a nearly infinite marketing budget, they bully small craft brewers and other competition, and most importantly they control the retail shelf space.

Also, I will agree that they spent too much time with the Moonshot lady. She was pushing a product that no one wanted purely for financial gain and that was it.

 

[DavidSteel]

Also, I will agree that they spent too much time with the Moonshot lady. She was pushing a product that no one wanted purely for financial gain and that was it.

Totally. It demonstrates that competition is hard first hand, but they didn't need to spend that much time on it. They should have focused on more micro-breweries and nano-breweries. The movie was attempting to pass the message that part of the American dream is to do what you are passionate about and make a living out of it. That lady didn't seem to have much passion in anything besides trying to make the next big thing by considering the people. A better message would have been showing the passion of brewers and the love that goes in to the beer.

 

[olllllo]

You can't compete with Inbev on quality or marketing, that was my Takeaway. Rhonda was the marketing side of the equation.

This never was a story solely about craft beer.

 

[olllllo]

You can't compete with Inbev on quality or marketing, that was my Takeaway. Rhonda was the marketing side of the equation.

This never was a story solely about craft beer.

 

[deepsouth]

You can't compete with Inbev on quality

quality in terms of what???

 

[jhobson]

I believe the word he was looking for was quantity.

 

[olllllo]

quality in terms of what???

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.

 

[deepsouth]

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.

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....

 

[olllllo]

Craft > Inbev, p=99%.

 

[Sedge]

The film maker Anat Baron has said Beer Wars will be in Netflix streaming as well as iTunes.

 

[Pivzavod]

I'm getting it tomorrow from Netflix :0

 

[Synovia]

That said, F that Moonshot lady. That product was a marketing gimmick and just that.

So is 2/3s of DFH's beer. They make some good beer, but most of it is just OMG, LOTS OF HOPS IN AN UNHOPPY STYLE!

 

[deepsouth]

Craft > Inbev, p=99%.

gotcha, cheers.

 

[Dalarast]

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!

 

[winstonofbeer]

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

 

[Dalarast]

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

 

[BlueSunshine]

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.

 

[imprez25]

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.

 

[BrianTheBrewer]

Sam is an amazing guy. I cant wait to meet him at the Boston Extreme Beerfest. Also having breakfest with him the next morning.

 

[ruffdeezy]

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.

 

[Synovia]

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.

 

[kryolla]

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.

 

[HVBrewtality]

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.

 

[DavidSteel]

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.

 

[deepsouth]

Also Rhonda was part owner of Sam Adams but it looks like she didn't get a lot of money by being bought out.

this is what i didn't understand. how can you be half of sam adams and not have bank?

 

[ArcaneXor]

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

 

[kidsmakeyoucrazy]

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.