I left it there. Ugh.
Fat Tire - New Belgium ditches classic recipe
- Thread starter DoctorDuvel
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This is my feeling exactly, this will be the last thing I ever buy from New Belgium. They used to be one of my favorites back in the day too. I also think Bell's is on the way down too, same owner...
BrewnWKopperKat
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meh.
With regard to home brewing, as of today, Bell's General Store (link) has for sale
- home brew kits for the beers they brew and sell
- their "house yeast": Imperial Yeast A62 Bell's House Yeast
- "Select Hops" : from the web site (link) "These are the same hand-selected hops we use to make our own beers in the brewery."
Have you used it? Just wondering how important it is since they basically say that US-05 is an acceptable substitute.
BrewnWKopperKat
ʘ‿ʘ
Not yet.
shifting the topic slightly:
I have brewed with their "Select" hops in the past and enjoyed the difference. For me, it's probably time to order from "them" (Bell's General Store) again.
YMMV.
So you've brewed their kit with their hops and US-05? Because that's what I'm thinking about doing soon.
I have, it's more of an English yeast than US-05, it's a good one too.
No idea about their home brewing store, the actual beer though, specifically 2 hearted has changed a bit this year, it's has that sweet malty thing going on all the time, I loathe to say oxidation but similar. Although that could be a hop year or even a distribution issue.
This was the same sentiment that was expressed about New Belgium after they were purchased that nothing would change and in fact be better. Huge misnomer it's only a matter of time for Bells better get it before things change.
Seeing the new Fat Tire for the first time today really broke my heart. I’m going to really focus on perfecting a clone now. It’s sad.
In silent protest, I’m drinking a screwdriver out of a Fat Tire shaker I bought at the brewery on a tour.
In silent protest, I’m drinking a screwdriver out of a Fat Tire shaker I bought at the brewery on a tour.
Is there spelling error in the thread title?
Didn't you mean to write Flat Tire [...]
BrewnWKopperKat
ʘ‿ʘ
meh.
Over the past 5+ years, I have order occasionally from Bells General Store.
When Bells was purchased, I saw a reduction in what was available to purchase at the General Store
Recently, at the General Store, there has been a return to much of what was available before the purchase.
And the web site "look and feel" appears to have been "refreshed".
To me, this suggests a continued commitment to home brewers.
Things are always changing.
Enjoy the moment.
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BrewnWKopperKat
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I have brewed with the "Select" hops (centennial, cascasde, golding), but not the kit.
Well that's a bummer. My next brew after getting back from vacation was going to be a Fat Tire clone. Now how am I going to know if it's close?
Gotta love 'carbon neutral' branding. Isn't that just recycling their CO2? What about the rest of their energy consumption? You can definitely tell they are trying to attract the younger crowd.
They might be referring to the solar power - see this article: New Belgium Brewing adds solar to North Carolina facility
It includes this: "New Belgium Brewing has a goal to become net-zero by 2030. It's flagship Fat Tire beer became America's first carbon-neutral beer in 2020, the company said."
redrocker652002
Well-Known Member
Very disappointing, just like when Lagunitas sold out to Heineken. I have also heard that Bear Republic has sold out to Drake's. I have not had many beers from Drake's so I am not sure what to expect, but damn Racer 5 was my go to. I still like RR Blind Pig, but the supply has been limited here. I am going to try and do a Racer 5 clone again and see if I can get close. Too bad, I wanted to go check out their brewery.
mashpaddled
Well-Known Member
I had the new recipe last week. It's...fine. It still has some of that biscuit malt taste but it's toned down and a less interesting beer. I tried it out of curiosity but I bet I'll buy it as often as I did the old recipes these days, which is once every few years. Fat Tire was one of the few craft beers I could find regularly for a long time when I first got into beer where I lived. I've drank a lot of it but don't tend to pick it up anymore.
I wonder if this is just a marketing move to try to get people excited about Fat Tire. According to their market research Fat Tire was still a huge seller before the recipe change. I could see them running this recipe for a year or so and then bringing back the old one like public outcry made them do it. NB tried to break out Fat Tire as a string of beers like Voodoo Ranger with a lot less success. I wonder if this is an attempt to refresh the whole brand concept.
I wonder if this is just a marketing move to try to get people excited about Fat Tire. According to their market research Fat Tire was still a huge seller before the recipe change. I could see them running this recipe for a year or so and then bringing back the old one like public outcry made them do it. NB tried to break out Fat Tire as a string of beers like Voodoo Ranger with a lot less success. I wonder if this is an attempt to refresh the whole brand concept.
I ordered the ingredients today for the fat tire clone, but I probably won’t get around to brewing it until late April.
I can't believe I have like 16 left to drink of both versions... They are just sitting in the back of the fridge like the 5 cans of sunny little thing and shiner holiday cheer. How do I get suckered into these things?
I tried it on Sunday, and this was my take: it's "fine." It's a very non-descript beer now. There's nothing that sets it apart.
I wonder if New Belgium is going to go "New Coke vs. Old Coke" on us in a year or two.
Sam Adams Boston Lager also got a recipe change.
https://www.americancraftbeer.com/samuel-adams-beer-remasters-its-iconic-boston-lager/
https://www.americancraftbeer.com/samuel-adams-beer-remasters-its-iconic-boston-lager/
Seems a bit better than what fat tire did.
And according to Boston Beer this beer’s revamp is more about the brewing process rather than a pronounced recipe change. Samuel Adams remastered Boston Lager still uses Founder and Brewer Jim Koch’s great-great grandfather’s mid-19th century original recipe, but they’ve added a process to reduce filtration using a traditional German practice of biological acidification, resulting in a brighter, easier-drinking beer.
The article does bring up a good point, are these beers just a name?
I am going to get a case of SN Pale right now just in case...
Does anyone understand what they mean by this?
rmr9
Well-Known Member
I’m wondering if they mean sauergut?
OP
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DoctorDuvel
Well-Known Member
I picked up a half case of Boston Lager, the old version. It's been a long time, and I think I like it more now than I ever have, really lovely brew.
I was unfamiliar with sauergut, but if that's all they're doing differently then I suppose it's an acceptable tweak - the change may not even be perceived by all, but it generates some new buzz for the beer. Clever.
I was unfamiliar with sauergut, but if that's all they're doing differently then I suppose it's an acceptable tweak - the change may not even be perceived by all, but it generates some new buzz for the beer. Clever.
I haven't tried the new version yet. I was at a restaurant last week and ordered 2 Sam Adams for my wife and me thinking they with bring us Boston Lager but they brought us Cold Snap. Still a good beer, but not was I was expecting.
Okay so I finally did pick up a six pack of remastered Boston Lager and it's very good. It's definitely brighter, cleaner tasting and very close to some of the better German lagers that I enjoy. I don't think this was a marketing gimmick or a way to appeal more to BMC drinkers, but likely a true improvement to an already good beer.
I'm finally about to brew my Fat Tire clone. I made some changes to accentuate the nuttiness (hopefully). Here goes round one.
https://www.brewersfriend.com/homebrew/recipe/view/1362780/fat-tire-clone
https://www.brewersfriend.com/homebrew/recipe/view/1362780/fat-tire-clone
I just recently started working at a bar/grill. I saw the new Fat Tire for the first time last night. It’s a truly sad sight to see. There’s no other way to put it.
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DoctorDuvel
Well-Known Member
Yeah, it's New Belgium in name only now. I'll never quite understand how people can sell out and allow what they've built to be transformed into something unrecognizable, but maybe i wouldn't be a good business person.
I had the "remastered" Sam Adams recently. That's another loss. For me, they've dulled it and removed the most enjoyable qualities, now it's something I don't care about. They say they didn't alter the recipe, but is a major change in process not altering the recipe? lol sure tastes like it.
And now Sierra Nevada just stopped producing their famous Stout, and Anchor is stopping distribution outside CA plus killing their Christmas Ale.
Well there are plenty of small and local breweries doing great things, so we can't be sad for too long.
I had the "remastered" Sam Adams recently. That's another loss. For me, they've dulled it and removed the most enjoyable qualities, now it's something I don't care about. They say they didn't alter the recipe, but is a major change in process not altering the recipe? lol sure tastes like it.
And now Sierra Nevada just stopped producing their famous Stout, and Anchor is stopping distribution outside CA plus killing their Christmas Ale.
Well there are plenty of small and local breweries doing great things, so we can't be sad for too long.
True, there’s so much available now, plus our own, that the loss is more in the nostalgia than anything else, but still. It sucks.
Fat Tire was my introduction to craft beer, at a monumental time in my life. Lots of memories around that beer. It just hits hard. I couldn’t even bring myself to try it.
Fat Tire was my introduction to craft beer, at a monumental time in my life. Lots of memories around that beer. It just hits hard. I couldn’t even bring myself to try it.
Reminds me of when Miller got their grubby hands on North American distribution for Löwenbräu back in the '70s. Miller imported it from Germany for a while, then started brewing it here and "adapted the recipe" for American tastes.
Like the old engineering trope: If you mess with something long enough, eventually you'll break it.
Like the old engineering trope: If you mess with something long enough, eventually you'll break it.
A question about the yeast for Fat Tire, as it’s brewed by New Belgium why does it use US yeasts rather than Belgian one?
Yeah, one of these things is not like the others if you know what I mean. Personally, I don't think I have a right to expect them to lose money just so I can buy a couple of six packs a year.
I remember finding some, maybe the late 80's, on a road trip. Was so excited. It sucked, and the bottles did say they were made in the US. I think that was about the point at which I decided lagers suck" and totally gave up on them for a few decades.
Well, hell. I really love Steam. It, and Pete's Wicked Ale, were the 2 beers that got me "into" beer in the late 80's, around the same time as the Lowenbrau fiasco mentioned above.
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DoctorDuvel
Well-Known Member
It's like the others in that it's a big change that people will probably be disappointed about. Steam is one of my all-time favorites and I loved the Christmas beer. Relieved they'll still be in business though...at first i thought they were folding.
mashpaddled
Well-Known Member
The two bolded statements have a lot to do with each other. The larger, legacy craft brewers are under attack from a lot of directions and smaller local brewers are one of the biggest collective assailants. They can brew beers that larger breweries just can't get into national distribution as easily. There has also been a long shift towards locavore that favors the local taproom.
Those legacy brewers fought mostly successfully in the mid to late 2010s to dominate shelf space and tap handles, but beer and especially craft beer is on the decline. A larger share of beer sales are from taproom sales--especially for local breweries--which is hurting those national distributors.
Additionally the core audience for those breweries are largely older craft beer drinkers who are falling back to cheaper mass produced beers and lighter beers in general. So those brewers, like New Belgium, Boston Beer, Sierra Nevada are trying to maintain a relationship with their core audience who might be crushing a couple lighter beers after mowing the yard instead of day drinking IPAs all afternoon. By making Fat Tire "new" they can lure that audience to buy a six pack instead of more Modelo and try to hold on to their former audience.
Also, just looking across the board, craft beer has either gone super sweet and boozy or lighter. Pilsners are huge sellers, west coast IPAs are coming back, etc. Just not a huge audience anymore for the ambers, spiced christmas beers, low abv stouts, brown ales, etc.
New Belgium is a US brewery, not Belgian.
Yup and owned by lion who's an Australian subsidiary of Kirin out of Japan.
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