Discovery Cancels Brewmasters

[Yooper]

Are you guys going to kick me out of the club if I make a confession? I didn't really get into Brewmasters. Watched most of the first episode, got bored. Don't really like DFH or Sam Calagione. Don't even really know what turned me off from the show... just didn't click for me.

I'm with the_Bird. I'll confess- I have a HUGE crush on Sam- he's very hot. Unless he speaks.

But I didn't even make it all the way through episode 1. It was just kind of "blah". I love beer, brewing, a couple of DFH beers, and Sam. But Brewmaster's? Nope. Boring, silly, and dull.

I'm not much of a TV watcher, though. I bet my TV is only on about two hours a week total (usually the local news, if I remember to turn it on). I have no idea who "celebrities" are, and don't know a thing about reality TV.

 

[wildwest450]

I'm with the_Bird. I'll confess- I have a HUGE crush on Sam- he's very hot. Unless he speaks.

That's funny, I thought he was hot too.......

Seriously, I thought he was the kinda guy I would love to sit at a bar with. To each his own.


_

 

[JohnTheBrewist]

Unfortunately, all of these shows follow the same formula to create false drama by setting some stupid arbitrary deadline they have to meet. They lack any actual creativity.

I'm with Yooper on this, I watched the first episode, was bored with it, and didn't watch again.

I think a better beer concept show would be along the lines of Diners, drive-ins, and dives on the food network. The host would travel the country visiting craft brewers, show you the brewery, give you some bios on the staff, walk you through the process of making their signature beer, and talk with their customers about their beers. With a proper host, on the right channel, it could be successful.

 

[the_bird]

Yeah, just a little show on the Travel Channel or something, not a show that they try to force into being a crossover hit. Most brewers are incredibly passionate about what they do, that's generally going to translate into good TV if you've got a host with ANY charisma.

Cripes, imagine Charlie Papazian travelling around the country in a motorhome, stopping in various places around the country to check out the local beer scene. Just a simple, low cost little show.

 

[bighoss]

I honestly have to admit Brewmasters is what sparked my interest in craft brewing. I probably would never have started researching it if not for the show. But since then I've found this site, and I've been addicted to learning everything I can since.

 

[robertjm]

One of the things that was funny is that out of the five episodes they did air, they had two "near" catastrophies (stuck Chateau Jihau and twist off bottles). Not a good forward facing example for a brewery.

 

[ScubaSuds]

I think a better beer concept show would be along the lines of Diners, drive-ins, and dives on the food network. The host would travel the country visiting craft brewers, show you the brewery, give you some bios on the staff, walk you through the process of making their signature beer, and talk with their customers about their beers. With a proper host, on the right channel, it could be successful.

I just recently caught a show on History chnl that is somewhat like that Drinking Made Easy kinda different, the characters are a little strange and not as funny as I think they think they are, but the different drinks are interesting, as well as the places they go. Not exactly beer only, but beer is a main character. Only caught a couple of episodes, but apparently this is season 2.

 

[DBbrewing]

I just recently caught a show on History chnl that is somewhat like that Drinking Made Easy kinda different, the characters are a little strange and not as funny as I think they think they are, but the different drinks are interesting, as well as the places they go. Not exactly beer only, but beer is a main character. Only caught a couple of episodes, but apparently this is season 2.

Ya I have caught a few episodes of Drinking made easy and it is kind of lame, I usually watch anything to do with beer so I will DVR it and fast forward through the crappy parts.

 

[pezcraig]

This is a group consensus (7 to 10 people that agreed-believe it or not)...
The problem is the show was called Brewmasters. Where were all the other players? This show was an hour long commercial for Dogfish. If it would have been 22 mins that would have rocked, but 1 hour too long.

side note: It was cool and all but after the 3rd episode I could repeat what brewing was at the same time as the show.

 

[Bulls Beers]

I agree the first episode was mediocre at best, but it did get better. You should of hung in there for a couple of weeks. The last few episodes were pretty good.

 

[kinison_fan]

I watched all five episodes over the weekend (on demand).
Overall, I enjoyed them:
-A peek into where some of their "wild" beers come from.
-Some of the issues they face on a daily basis-yeast monitoring, stuck fermentation, bottling issues, batch not up to snuff, etc. (Similar issues that we as homebrewers may face, but on a much larger scale).
-Also interesting to see them dump a batch, and the retail cost associated with that decision, and the hit everyone takes on profit-sharing. (I have never dumped a batch, but I have choked one or two down. But at the same time, my reputation is not out in the public over a bad batch.)
-Sam is an enthusiastic, energetic guy-looks like he loves his job (and that makes him lucky).

A couple of years ago, I was at Victory, and overheard a few brewers from DFH were there. I ended up talking to one guy, (thinking how cool to be a "pro" brewer) and asked him several questions like--
-Do you homebrew as well, since that is what you do for a job?
-Do you always do all-grain at home?
-What is your home set up like?

Later, I overheard him tell his friend "I hate homebrewers, they think they know everything".

I thought, what a deek (or even an EAC).
Watching the show, I remembered/recognized the dude as head brewer Bryan. He seems like a cool, laid back guy on the show, but maybe I met him on a bad day.

I hope they do a second season.
It's not too technical about brewing (for general viewers), but gives us a glimpse of large scale brewing. (It also looks like a fun place to work).

 

[Homercidal]

To be fair, he probably talks to a lot of homebrewers, and again, to be fair, he probably knows a lot more about brewing then most of them. The vast majority of homebrewers never learn the detailed science, and I'm sure a fair portion of pro brewers learn at least a bit of it.

Then again, there's not a whole ton of difference between brewing at home and brewing at a brewery, except for some of the equipment and methods, but mostly no. And some of the most respected brewers in the industry started out as homebrewers, so hating homebrewers is somewhat ****** IMO.

I'm wondering if he hates homebrewers discussions more than the average Joe discussions, and what would the average Joe talk about anyway...

 

[BaldManBrew]

I'll miss the show, but I have a feeling it did wonders for DFH. My local fine beer store just told me to buy whatever DFH that I might want, because he is not going to be getting anytime soon. He said the brewery has a high demand and he will not be able to get it for awhile.

As far as the show (I know it's the beer geek in my saying this) but I wished they focused more on the brewing, business management, marketing, and less on the other stuff.

 

[motobrewer]

drinking made easy is the dumbest show i've ever seen.

and why is it when a travel/food/drinking show comes to milwaukee they go to AJ Bombers? That bar has been around for just over a year, and it sucks. how about going to an established milwaukee tavern??

 

[GilaMinumBeer]

I never watched a single episode.

 

[weirdboy]

I'm wondering if he hates homebrewers discussions more than the average Joe discussions, and what would the average Joe talk about anyway...

I gotta be honest, it depends on the individual. It can sometimes be frustrating to have a casual conversation with a n00b when you're an expert in that field, because some n00bs *think* they know a lot more than they actually do. It grates on my nerves to hear people state fundamental facts that are completely wrong and then put on blinders you when you try to politely improve their understanding. People like that don't want to talk to you to learn more or even have a conversation so much as just validate their own opinions.

 

[j1laskey]

This is a group consensus (7 to 10 people that agreed-believe it or not)...
The problem is the show was called Brewmasters. Where were all the other players? This show was an hour long commercial for Dogfish. If it would have been 22 mins that would have rocked, but 1 hour too long.

I cannot agree more. It's also gotta be is tough to try to "introduce" the general beer drinking public to craft beer, or more precisely to DFH products, when the sticker price can be pretty steep for their stuff. People who are accustomed to purchasing BMC products might find DFH a wee bit over priced, then translating that into beer snobery, then in turn tuning out the show.

 

[r8rphan]

I just recently caught a show on History chnl that is somewhat like that Drinking Made Easy kinda different, the characters are a little strange and not as funny as I think they think they are, but the different drinks are interesting, as well as the places they go. Not exactly beer only, but beer is a main character. Only caught a couple of episodes, but apparently this is season 2.

That show is 'very' lame.. Watched half of one episode of brewmasters and fell asleep.. both shows were a waste of time...

They should just expand the Art Mann series to include brew pubs as a regular feature... maybe 'Brewpub tuesday".. That guy would find a way to make it interesting with unusual characters... (and an occasional **** flash here and there.. )

Yeah, the spin off thing is weak.. DIY used to have lots of episodes of yard crashers and man cave, but now it's almost all renovation reality type stuff.. or real estate... Discovery hardly ever shows monster garage anymore, and American Chopper has turned into a public display of the destruction of a family.. (Is money really worth televising all your dirty laundry like that?)

ESPN is 90% 'poker'.. (When the hell did poker become a sport anyways?)... TLC, Discovery, and 90% of the other learning and special interest channels are selling half their time to infomercials..

It's getting really bad... It seems they keep adding more channels, increasing the price, and lowering the quality and quantity of content... more and more, I'm turning back to 'reading'...

 

[weirdboy]

I cannot agree more. It's also gotta be is tough to try to "introduce" the general beer drinking public to craft beer, or more precisely to DFH products, when the sticker price can be pretty steep for their stuff. People who are accustomed to purchasing BMC products might find DFH a wee bit over priced, then translating that into beer snobery, then in turn tuning out the show.

Holy crap was in the store yesterday looking at buying a six pack of IPA.
Stone IPA $9
Lagunita IPA $9
Sierra Nevada Torpedo $9
DFH 60min $11 ?????

And it's my least favorite of the the bunch to boot.

 

[r8rphan]

drinking made easy is the dumbest show i've ever seen.

Hey, I agree with moto! Stop the presses!

 

[KingBrianI]

Three Sheets was a really good show. Too bad Zane couldn't have styled Drinking Made Easy a bit more after that show. Instead it seems very quickly put together without much if any planning and kind of fails to deliver. I still watch it if I've got nothing else to do, but I'd much rather it had been a new season of Three Sheets.

 

[vitrael]

I'll miss the show, but I have a feeling it did wonders for DFH. My local fine beer store just told me to buy whatever DFH that I might want, because he is not going to be getting anytime soon. He said the brewery has a high demand and he will not be able to get it for awhile.

Yeah. My favorite liquor store is having the same problem, DFH flies off the shelves. They got six bottles of Bitch's Brew and it was gone in less than an hour (with some help from me). Since then they have had trouble keeping anything in stock besides the 60 and 90 minute IPAs.

 

[shoestealer17]

Three Sheets was a really good show. Too bad Zane couldn't have styled Drinking Made Easy a bit more after that show. Instead it seems very quickly put together without much if any planning and kind of fails to deliver. I still watch it if I've got nothing else to do, but I'd much rather it had been a new season of Three Sheets.

I 2nd that, but ive never seen drinking made easy, three sheets was pretty good

 

[motobrewer]

Holy crap was in the store yesterday looking at buying a six pack of IPA.
Stone IPA $9
Lagunita IPA $9
Sierra Nevada Torpedo $9
DFH 60min $11 ?????

And it's my least favorite of the the bunch to boot.

hahaha, what?

Local IPA $9
Local IPA $9
Local IPA $9
IPA from the other side of the freaking country $11

hm....i'm no business major, but.....

 

[motobrewer]

It's getting really bad... It seems they keep adding more channels, increasing the price, and lowering the quality and quantity of content... more and more, I'm turning back to 'reading'...

with hulu, it makes it a harder case to keep the cable.

Hey, I agree with moto! Stop the presses!

lol

 

[shamrockdoc]

That show was the Point Break/21 Jump Street of beer shows. With a little Spicoli sprinked in for bittering.

End Transmission.

 

[jbrookeiv]

hahaha, what?

Local ipa $9
local ipa $9
local ipa $9
ipa from the other side of the freaking country $11

hm....i'm no business major, but.....

:d

 

[brew2enjoy]

Not sure if this has been released yet, but a buddy of mine went on a tour at the DFH brewery last weekend. They said that they have already filmed 6 new episodes of Brewmasters. There must be some truth to it if they are telling people at the tours.

 

[gr8shandini]

While I'll certainly watch another season, for a show called Brewmasters I think they should have went with someone else this time around. Jetting off to Egypt to capture wild yeast is pretty cool, but I would be just as interested (if not moreso) to see how a newer micro/nano/brewpub makes it through the growing pains.

 

[Acoma]

While I'll certainly watch another season, for a show called Brewmasters I think they should have went with someone else this time around. Jetting off to Egypt to capture wild yeast is pretty cool, but I would be just as interested (if not moreso) to see how a newer micro/nano/brewpub makes it through the growing pains.

+1 Almost any show about brewing is interesting to me. At least worthy of the DVR so I can skim thru the bla parts. DFH has had enough press off the first season. It would be nice to see another brewery in the mix and see glimpse in their behind the scenes action.

However, if they are doing another season I am still happy about it. Any press on craft brews is good. Sometimes people need to be spoon fed for their own good. Kind of like how Dana White pushed the UFC into everyones living rooms by starting the Ultimate Fighter on Spike.