Random Beer Thoughts

[JulianB1]

why is everyone so offended that Bud/Miller exists and is successful?

90% of people want easy, non-offensive and routine lives. they know what they're getting. they're comfortable with the price. they don't want to stand in the liquor store for 30 minutes trying to decide. they aren't in to chasing trucks. they don't want to spend $14 on a 6-pack that may or may not be good. they don't want to spend time considering how delicious it will be to get drunk after work on Friday. they just want.... beer.

i'm starting to wonder if 90% of the people here really want Bud/Miller because all they do is bitch about how much beer sucks anyways. want beer not to be inconsistent? want to know that you're going to get beer that tastes how the brewer intended? want to not worry about infections and off-flavors and blowing $60 on a single bottle after you waited 12 hours on line for it? buy a Budweiser.

you know what i don't like, religion. so i don't go to church. i spend 0 time thinking about it. worrying about people who do go to church. posting about how ridiculous it is. no carrying on and on and on about how dumb people are for believing. because it doesn't matter to me. it's everywhere. great. means **** all to me.

people eat Cheerios. people shop at Target. people drive Ford. America is all about mass produced, cheaply made and easily accessible. that's why there are 4 McDonald's per square mile.

you want artisan.... everything..... fine. just realize that nobody really, really, really wants to work 100 hours a week making beer. some are making it for the love of the science, or art, but most are *gasp* in it for the money. they're trying to make enough money to make their process more automated, more consistent and less labor intensive so that they can work less, enjoy the fruits of their labor and retire. like the rest of us.

i'm sure there's some Latvian guys making beer the right way out of their 9th generation farmhouse. odds are half of it is probably ******* terrible, infected or, once it catches on people will talk about how it used to be great but now sucks... but at least it's artisan and not mass-produced, consistent and cheap!

I think a lot of the opposition to ABInBev/MillerCoors/etc is not about direct dislike or opposition to their flagship beers, but rather the tangential effects these corporations have on the industry as a whole.

Your religion comparison is actually a pretty good one, but maybe not for the reasons you think. Like you, I don't go to church. I have absolutely zero ill will or thoughts towards those who do. Some of my best friends are quite religious, and I support their right to practice their religions unequivocally. And yet, when I can't buy beer on a Sunday around here, I recognize that's at least in part due to the residual legacy and influence of -certain- religious institutions on the regional culture.

Same thing with ABinBev. I don't care if people purchase, drink, and enjoy Bud Light. Heck, I buy BCBS and other products from breweries owned by ABI. But I still get frustrated by the fact that the biggest cracks in the insipid 3-tier system are only to the benefit of companies such as ABI and MC, in the sense that they own/influence distributors to push their products at the expense of others those distributors own. The worst distributors in this state with regards to cleaning their tap lines are all the Bud houses - is that just a coincidence? How about the fact that beer bars are basically forced to carry a Bud Light tap if they want a decent selection from Stone and other totally independent breweries that happen to be carried by the ABI distributors? There's a lot more examples along these lines about how these companies negatively influence those of us who don't drink/buy their core products and don't care if others do or not.

 

[steimie]

why is everyone so offended that Bud/Miller exists and is successful?

90% of people want easy, non-offensive and routine lives. they know what they're getting. they're comfortable with the price. they don't want to stand in the liquor store for 30 minutes trying to decide. they aren't in to chasing trucks. they don't want to spend $14 on a 6-pack that may or may not be good. they don't want to spend time considering how delicious it will be to get drunk after work on Friday. they just want.... beer.

i'm starting to wonder if 90% of the people here really want Bud/Miller because all they do is bitch about how much beer sucks anyways. want beer not to be inconsistent? want to know that you're going to get beer that tastes how the brewer intended? want to not worry about infections and off-flavors and blowing $60 on a single bottle after you waited 12 hours on line for it? buy a Budweiser.

you know what i don't like, religion. so i don't go to church. i spend 0 time thinking about it. worrying about people who do go to church. posting about how ridiculous it is. no carrying on and on and on about how dumb people are for believing. because it doesn't matter to me. it's everywhere. great. means **** all to me.

people eat Cheerios. people shop at Target. people drive Ford. America is all about mass produced, cheaply made and easily accessible. that's why there are 4 McDonald's per square mile.

you want artisan.... everything..... fine. just realize that nobody really, really, really wants to work 100 hours a week making beer. some are making it for the love of the science, or art, but most are *gasp* in it for the money. they're trying to make enough money to make their process more automated, more consistent and less labor intensive so that they can work less, enjoy the fruits of their labor and retire. like the rest of us.

i'm sure there's some Latvian guys making beer the right way out of their 9th generation farmhouse. odds are half of it is probably ******* terrible, infected or, once it catches on people will talk about how it used to be great but now sucks... but at least it's artisan and not mass-produced, consistent and cheap!

Tell us where the bad man touched you.

 

[trickytunadicky]

Well, yeah, but it's more complicated than that, especially why some (like say FX Matt and Yeungling) stayed truer to their roots than others. I've read a bit about this (in Ambitious Brew), but it's hard to tell the whole story.

Yeah it's been a while since I read that. Bland palates is the easy answer and explains a lot about why people my parents age are afraid of food.

 

[MarcatGSB1]

People used to trade for Coors in the 70s.

My business partner (started our place in 1980) would drive his GMC Jimmy out to Colorado every winter when they closed the business, ski patrol for the winter, and then load that bitch up with Coors. Supposedly he was first person in the U.P. with Coors Banquet Beer for sale. No proof presented yet, but cool story.

 

[trickytunadicky]

Boston Beer Co. I'm not ashamed to admit that I made a nice profit from stock of theirs...

That was the third brewery in my essay. I needed to pick three companies in the same industry, and the one I work in is all private/employee owned. So I picked beer. Thanks goodness I didn't decide to write about janky beer websites. ;-)

 

[Arbitrator]

Arbitrator please read harrymel's link.

Huh, that's weird why didn't the tag work...

Patrick, err, housepants do you know anything about this?

I just opened an Agave Maria from (I think) late 2015. A friend returning from San Diego gave it to me in December.

I remember enjoying it once before, but this one is quite clearly infected; it tastes far more tart than memory, and it is insanely carbonated. I did a search to see if there were any threads on this. I missed your tag last year, but I thought it was worth bumping it and saying that, yes, Lost Abbey QC remains a crapshoot.

I am Jack's complete lack of surprise.

 

[JulianB1]

I just opened an Agave Maria from (I think) late 2015. A friend returning from San Diego gave it to me in December.

I remember enjoying it once before, but this one is quite clearly infected; it tastes far more tart than memory, and it is insanely carbonated. I did a search to see if there were any threads on this. I missed your tag last year, but I thought it was worth bumping it and saying that, yes, Lost Abbey QC remains a crapshoot.

I am Jack's complete lack of surprise.

This tag was more of a joke based on your name change at that time than anything else, I was wondering why I got a like on a post that was buried 400 pages deep.

I actually forgot what this was even about.

 

[Snarf1]

What's interesting is that it didn't start that way. The reason AB, Miller, and all them got big was that they were some of the few breweries in the 19th century that cared about quality. It would be interesting to do a more longitudinal study and see how the cultures were maintained and why/how they were lost. (A lot of them were lost the way all money is lost, lazy-ass, ****** heirs.)

Actually AB got big because of refrigerated rail cars. Thankfully, those who have born the name Adolphus Busch have always been and continue to be reaponsible heirs.

 

[trickytunadicky]

Actually AB got big because of refrigerated rail cars. Thankfully, those who have born the name Adolphus Busch have always been and continue to be reaponsible heirs.

The Blue Ribbon in Pabst Blue Ribbon was over a World's Fair exhibit that technically AB won. Has nothing to do with the beer itself.

 

[furley]

You got two other publicly traded breweries I can write about? Or were my random beer thoughts so random I didn't post my full assignment where it says I have to read annual reports. Anything else you want to say about my assignment?

none of what i wrote was about you

 

[furley]

People used to trade for Coors in the 70s.

my dad loves to tell the story of bring Coors back from Colorado to Wisconsin by the trunk full in the 70s

 

[furley]

Yes, it clearly means **** all to you since you just went on an unprovoked tirade.

it's possible to not care about Budweiser/Miller and be tired enough of hearing about it... constantly.. on this site to post about it in Random Beer Thoughts

the two are not mutually exclusive

if you've got a friend/friends who are constantly, every time you see them, moaning and groaning and bitching about macrame', even though they aren't in to macrame', you might get sick of it after a while

maybe it's just me who gets tired of the same old, same old.. then i look around at all the BA refugees here that lament that BA is just the same old thread/post/question over and over again and i seriously doubt that it's just me.

 

[trickytunadicky]

it's possible to not care about Budweiser/Miller and be tired enough of hearing about it... constantly.. on this site to post about it in Random Beer Thoughts

the two are not mutually exclusive

if you've got a friend/friends who are constantly, every time you see them, moaning and groaning and bitching about macrame', even though they aren't in to macrame', you might get sick of it after a while

maybe it's just me who gets tired of the same old, same old.. then i look around at all the BA refugees here that lament that BA is just the same old thread/post/question over and over again and i seriously doubt that it's just me.

Sorry for not bitching about them and getting your knickers in a twist anyway?

 

[trickytunadicky]

Anyway, potential toxoc topic/unpopular belief: after doing my research, of the three, Molson Coors seems like the best company to work for of AB InBev/ Boston Beer and Molson Coors. Dat Canadian/Colorado work ethic.

 

[lb304854]

Permit reads for 560 gallons of wastewater per day.


There are different criterias set up for the type of business you have.
For instance, estimates for wasterwater per person served in a fine dining restaurant are 10 gallons. So they take into account toilet flushes, washing the dishes, glasses, etc.
Hotel rooms have their own standard. 40 gallons per bed...

For very well draining soil (course/medium sand) you're looking at 1 gallon per hour filtering. And that can go to .25 gallons per hour for more heavy clay soils. And they want a square foot per gallon.
It's all very interesting.

You and I have very different definitions of interesting.

 

[MarcatGSB1]

You and I have very different definitions of interesting.

Just one of the many reasons we are friends.

 

[RyanG1]

Waxed Double Barrel Derivation

 

[arren]

why is everyone so offended that Bud/Miller exists and is successful?

90% of people want easy, non-offensive and routine lives. they know what they're getting. they're comfortable with the price. they don't want to stand in the liquor store for 30 minutes trying to decide. they aren't in to chasing trucks. they don't want to spend $14 on a 6-pack that may or may not be good. they don't want to spend time considering how delicious it will be to get drunk after work on Friday. they just want.... beer.

i'm starting to wonder if 90% of the people here really want Bud/Miller because all they do is bitch about how much beer sucks anyways. want beer not to be inconsistent? want to know that you're going to get beer that tastes how the brewer intended? want to not worry about infections and off-flavors and blowing $60 on a single bottle after you waited 12 hours on line for it? buy a Budweiser.

you know what i don't like, religion. so i don't go to church. i spend 0 time thinking about it. worrying about people who do go to church. posting about how ridiculous it is. no carrying on and on and on about how dumb people are for believing. because it doesn't matter to me. it's everywhere. great. means **** all to me.

people eat Cheerios. people shop at Target. people drive Ford. America is all about mass produced, cheaply made and easily accessible. that's why there are 4 McDonald's per square mile.

you want artisan.... everything..... fine. just realize that nobody really, really, really wants to work 100 hours a week making beer. some are making it for the love of the science, or art, but most are *gasp* in it for the money. they're trying to make enough money to make their process more automated, more consistent and less labor intensive so that they can work less, enjoy the fruits of their labor and retire. like the rest of us.

i'm sure there's some Latvian guys making beer the right way out of their 9th generation farmhouse. odds are half of it is probably ******* terrible, infected or, once it catches on people will talk about how it used to be great but now sucks... but at least it's artisan and not mass-produced, consistent and cheap!

ISO: Latvian olde saison

 

[BadJustin]

Waxed Double Barrel Derivation

Dear 8lb 5oz golden fleecy baby Jesus:

Please let it be on-site only. Please.


Signed,

All of us

 

[arren]

I just saw some FullPint article about Cascade expanding their distro, and it made me wonder: when's the last time any of you actually bought Cascade beer?

I honestly would buy more bottles of their stuff if they weren't $40 a pop.

 

[jivex5k1]

I just saw some FullPint article about Cascade expanding their distro, and it made me wonder: when's the last time any of you actually bought Cascade beer?

I honestly would buy more bottles of their stuff if they weren't $40 a pop.

Damn, and I thought 30 bucks a pop was bad.

Don't they know you can buy vinegar for way less than that? Seems like they are pricing themselves too high above their competition.

 

[BadJustin]

I just saw some FullPint article about Cascade expanding their distro, and it made me wonder: when's the last time any of you actually bought Cascade beer?

I honestly would buy more bottles of their stuff if they weren't $40 a pop.

When they stopped shipping it. Right around the last time I had an Upland as well, neither of which I miss.

 

[2plums4one]

I just saw some FullPint article about Cascade expanding their distro, and it made me wonder: when's the last time any of you actually bought Cascade beer?

I honestly would buy more bottles of their stuff if they weren't $40 a pop.

I do think that some of their beer is good. That said, I haven't had one bottle from them that was worth the price tag. I'd buy sang royal at $20.

 

[RyanG1]

I just saw some FullPint article about Cascade expanding their distro, and it made me wonder: when's the last time any of you actually bought Cascade beer?

I honestly would buy more bottles of their stuff if they weren't $40 a pop.

Not for a few years.

Always enjoyed visiting the brewery in Portland. They have great happy hour and non happy hour prices, location is comfortable and big, and their in house/tap only stuff is really good, like Honey Ginger Lime.

 

[JulianB1]

I just saw some FullPint article about Cascade expanding their distro, and it made me wonder: when's the last time any of you actually bought Cascade beer?

I honestly would buy more bottles of their stuff if they weren't $40 a pop.

It's been a while. Apricot used to be in the low 20s in North Carolina. I'd be a relatively frequent customer at that price. The current 30+ not so much.

 

[litheum94]

I just saw some FullPint article about Cascade expanding their distro, and it made me wonder: when's the last time any of you actually bought Cascade beer?

I honestly would buy more bottles of their stuff if they weren't $40 a pop.

In this case, "expanding distro" means moving dusty bottles from point A to point B.

 

[litheum94]

Not for a few years.

Always enjoyed visiting the brewery in Portland. They have great happy hour and non happy hour prices, location is comfortable and big, and their in house/tap only stuff is really good, like Honey Ginger Lime.

Eh, I'm going to have to disagree on the great in house prices part. Sure, it's cheaper to get a taster or a pour of one of their beers than a bottle, but I still walk out of there spending a crap ton of money.

Honey Ginger Lime is the truth, though.

 

[PHBoiler]

I wonder what makes it "cool" or "ok" for craft beer bar/brewery owners/staff to drink beer during or before work. I don't see distillers or cocktail bars posting stuff like that essentially every day. I don't see winemakers or wine bars posting it either. Nobody really ever bats an eye at it though. Just another one of those quirky things about the beer industry that I think people outside of it would be confused by.

 

[ISO Valeric]

I wonder what makes it "cool" or "ok" for craft beer bar/brewery owners/staff to drink beer during or before work. I don't see distillers or cocktail bars posting stuff like that essentially every day. I don't see winemakers or wine bars posting it either. Nobody really ever bats an eye at it though. Just another one of those quirky things about the beer industry that I think people outside of it would be confused by.

cocktails and wine are a lot stronger and get you way drunker.

 

[Shakedwnst]

I wonder what makes it "cool" or "ok" for craft beer bar/brewery owners/staff to drink beer during or before work. I don't see distillers or cocktail bars posting stuff like that essentially every day. I don't see winemakers or wine bars posting it either. Nobody really ever bats an eye at it though. Just another one of those quirky things about the beer industry that I think people outside of it would be confused by.

My friend was a wine maker in California for a while and it sounded like as long as they were moving barrels they were sampling them.

Not sure why beer guys need to tell everyone about it