The craft beer bubble is busting.

[madscientist451]

Orange man bad.

They Don't look bad from here.....

 

[applescrap]

No. Life is too short to waste time, and liver capacity, drinking meh beer.

I agree with that. But out with friends or family life is too short to worry about all that, I am sure you get that. I am actually thrilled to see any, even just one quality beer at a restaurant or whatever sometimes. This place by us we go to has 120 taps and killer food. Another has boulder shake porter and one or two others and I am thrilled it's not bud only. Shake is a quality beer. Seriously thrilled. Haha, we went to the fancy restaurant in Fl and they said sorry all we have is chimay, duvel, and palm on tap. I said I would like a coach in the back.

 

[mongoose33]

No. Life is too short to waste time, and liver capacity, drinking meh beer.

I've been trying to explain why I don't constantly try new stuff in hopes (mostly vain) of finding an exceptional beer. The quote above says it all.

Since the odds of finding the next exceptional beer are low, for me to live in pursuit of it is nothing more than, to paraphrase @Bilsch , "wasting my time drinking meh beer."

THAT is why I prefer to drink things I know I like, as opposed to chasing what, to me, are unicorns. Others may have different goals, interests, and tastes, and that's fine. Good thing, in fact--imagine if we were all the same, how that would end up.

 

[Lefou]

Ah my apologies, I just realized I mis-understood the original point by njviking, which is why don't the craft brewers brew a beer similar to the big volume rice beers. I live in the hot, deep south where there are quite a few lighter lagers made.. so around here, there are some lighter beers that would appease the bud / miller fans. I assume that the cooler the climates up north, would likely produce less of the lighter lagers.

Some craft-ish brewers do market their versions of volume lager and ale although you may find distributors in your locale don't have it shipped in.
Founders in Michigan markets their Solid Gold Lager and their All Day IPA here in Jersey. Loooooove their stout but the lager is a cut above the BMC stuff as it has a different hop and slightly more flavor. I've bought enough of the Solid Gold to find it can differ from lot to lot. Some of what I've found has been more cloudy with yeast as opposed to the mildly hazy, but clean hoppy lager I like. In my opinion, it's still good beer and way beyond BMC equivalents.
Leinenkugel's is another brand I can find here in NJ and at home, but the one "kolsch-style" Canoe Paddler ale made with rye I'd buy in Indiana is non-existent in NJ. Go figure.

 

[grampamark]

A local brewpub, called Überbrew, offers a light lager called "Canü". Their beer list describes it as "...something for the light beer drinking friends that you dragged in here, kicking and screaming..." or words to that effect.

 

[papz]

-imagine if we were all the same, how that would end up.

If everyone drove "the same" as i do, traffic would flow much faster and travel times would be decreased. and 90% of all conversations would be about craft beer/cider.

 

[SEndorf]

I've been trying to explain why I don't constantly try new stuff in hopes (mostly vain) of finding an exceptional beer. The quote above says it all.

Since the odds of finding the next exceptional beer are low, for me to live in pursuit of it is nothing more than, to paraphrase @Bilsch , "wasting my time drinking meh beer."

THAT is why I prefer to drink things I know I like, as opposed to chasing what, to me, are unicorns. Others may have different goals, interests, and tastes, and that's fine. Good thing, in fact--imagine if we were all the same, how that would end up.

I totally agree..
Went to another "brew fest" this weekend. 14 local breweries sampling their various stuff. There's really nothing new under the sun. Like the mongoose, I like what I like. Some were OK. Some were ridiculously horrible. I came away from this event appreciating my own craft.

 

[Gravitysucks]

The craft beer industry is showing no signs of slowing down here in Maine. I think we're up to about 130 craft breweries now, up from 117 last year. This in a state with only 1.3 million people of which only about 900000 are even old enough to drink.

I used to make a point to try and support the new breweries that opened up but it got to the point that there was just too many and most seemed to be brewing the same basic things, mostly NEIPAs, a farmhouse/saison or two, maybe an American ale or west coast IPA, and a number of "just because you can doesn't mean you should" beers like oyster beer, mussel beer, lobster beer, seaweed beer, clamato beer, etc. I rarely found anything I would pay for a second time but most of the places seem to be doing just fine without my patronage and I think that's great.

The only problem I have with all these new breweries springing up is that the imported British beers that I really like have been losing shelf space to the point I can't find most of them locally anymore. And the few that I can find tend to be ridiculously expensive. But then I did originally start home brewing because British imports were hard to come by 30 years ago so things have kind of come full circle.

 

[Brooothru]

In MD we never had the bubble to begin with due to our archaic/insane/corrupt dem party controlled beer laws. Local brewery near me Baltimore County Brewing Company is always packed and its off the path in an industrial park.

Agree with the archaic "beer laws" we used to have in MD, but it wasn't due to political malfeasance of only one party. The distributers in the state owned the House of Delegates for years, and they were equal opportunity corrupters. You need to move west of Montgomery County or east of Annapolis. I can guarantee these parts of the state aren't under the control of Dems!

And speaking of craft brewers, how come nobody has mentioned the pride and joy of Frederick, MD, Flying Dog Brewing?

Brooo Brother

 

[Brooothru]

[THREAD_DERAIL] Good luck with that. I gave up golf for two reasons. 1) I sucked at it. 2) There are no decent beers on the roaming beer cart. YMMV.... [/THREAD_DERAIL]

Yeah. All that. Plus a torn rotator cuff trying to force a 4-iron out of a buried lie in knee high grass. (Hey, I saw Tiger do it once). Not to mention it got in the way of Saturday brew sessions. I find that watching wort gently boil while savoring a fine cigar to be much more calming than attempting a 3 foot putt on a breaking green after pushing a side bet for $20. I've only golfed twice in the last three years (used to play 2-3 times per week). OTOH, I've brewed four times in the last six weeks. Golf was anywhere from $35 to over $100 a round, depending on where and when I played. Brewing is $45 or less per session, and lasts for weeks rather than just 18 holes.

Brooo Brother

 

[kh54s10]

I've been trying to explain why I don't constantly try new stuff in hopes (mostly vain) of finding an exceptional beer. The quote above says it all.

Since the odds of finding the next exceptional beer are low, for me to live in pursuit of it is nothing more than, to paraphrase @Bilsch , "wasting my time drinking meh beer."

THAT is why I prefer to drink things I know I like, as opposed to chasing what, to me, are unicorns. Others may have different goals, interests, and tastes, and that's fine. Good thing, in fact--imagine if we were all the same, how that would end up.

It is the same as playing the lottery - If you don't play, you can't win.
If you never try beers because most of them are "meh" beers you will never find one that is exceptional.

I do it more by what I am looking to accomplish. If I want to have something good, I buy something I already know I like. If I am looking for something different, I try one that I haven't had before. I agree most are "meh" but none are bad and occasionally you get a new one to add to the "I know I like" list.

 

[kh54s10]

And speaking of craft brewers, how come nobody has mentioned the pride and joy of Frederick, MD, Flying Dog Brewing?

Brooo Brother

I guess I will have to give them another shot sometime, but a couple years ago I saw their beers appear in my liquor store. I bought 2 different beers. Absolutely the worst craft beers I ever tried..... YMMV.

 

[mongoose33]

It is the same as playing the lottery - If you don't play, you can't win.
If you never try beers because most of them are "meh" beers you will never find one that is exceptional.

It's almost as if you're trying to convince me your way is correct, and mine not.

You can get out of beer what you want, and I'll get out of it what I want. OK?

I do it more by what I am looking to accomplish. If I want to have something good, I buy something I already know I like. If I am looking for something different, I try one that I haven't had before. I agree most are "meh" but none are bad and occasionally you get a new one to add to the "I know I like" list.

I have had a lot of beers that are 'meh' and even some that are bad. I had one at an Asheville brewery a couple years ago that was the worst commercial tap beer I've ever had. Most don't even rise to the "meh" level.

Your way is your way, and if you enjoy it, more power to you. That doesn't make my way wrong.

 

[kh54s10]

It's almost as if you're trying to convince me your way is correct, and mine not.

You can get out of beer what you want, and I'll get out of it what I want. OK?



I have had a lot of beers that are 'meh' and even some that are bad. I had one at an Asheville brewery a couple years ago that was the worst commercial tap beer I've ever had. Most don't even rise to the "meh" level.

Your way is your way, and if you enjoy it, more power to you. That doesn't make my way wrong.

Convincing you of anything was not my intention. Only to point out that if you never try new beers you will never know if there is that really great beer among them.

Replied to another thread recently about Flying Dog Brewery. While drinkable I found the 2 of their beers that I tried, probably the worst 2 craft brews that I ever bought. I would give them another shot - maybe.

 

[LostHopper]

I have had a lot of beers that are 'meh' and even some that are bad. I had one at an Asheville brewery a couple years ago that was the worst commercial tap beer I've ever had. Most don't even rise to the "meh" level.

.

Pardon the interruption but I have had beer on tap that was awful and I'm positive it was due to poorly maintained lines at a restaurant or bar. Never at the brewery.
While I don't try many new beers/breweries I always get a can or bottle, or try a sample at their tap room if possible. Better chance of it being the beer that the brewery intended.

 

[LostHopper]

Correction: I see that mongoose was AT the brewery in Asheville. ouch

 

[bleme]

We have several 'craft' restaurants in the area and if we eat at one, I will usually grab something I haven't tried yet. If I've had everything on their taps, I will just get water. It's just not worth $6 to me. I'd rather pay $16/12-pack for the ones I know I like. I've found 2 restaurant's with pour-your-own taps, which are great because you can get as much or as little as you want and just pay by the ounce.

However, my favorite way to try beers are the beerfests. For a donated keg of something that cost me $15-$25 to make, I get 2 entries and I can try all the beers I want. When I get the 559 beer that tastes like they carbonated their CIP water, I don't feel any guilt at all dumping it and getting something better.

 

[Gameface]

Regarding the context and setting being important (the "great moments"), I generally agree with you. The right context can make poor beer better or good beer great. Or good beer bad.

Regarding the rest though...

You're either living in an unusually strong beer area, not exposed to enough, are really easy to please, or have low standards.

No offense. You're entitled to your opinion and to like whatever you like. But your opinion in this is very much a minority.

Because one thing that's almost universally agreed upon (regardless of one's position on the "bubble") is that there's a lot of substandard craft beer out there.

To the point that the Brewers Association had a committee/campaign/something I don't recall set up specifically to help combat the rampant quality problem by providing resources to BA members to up their quality game.

I drink a lot of "meh" beer, but to me that doesn't mean it's bad beer.

I guess where I'm making the comparison is that I also drink beer that is said to be great and I'm like, eh, yeah it's good, just like a lot of other beer. I can't say I've had much beer that I would say is so much better than good beer that I'd call it great. I also drink a lot of beer that is supposed to be good to really good and taste things that I would be very disappointed to taste in my own beer, yet the critics tell me it's really good beer. So I have a hard time when I drink a beer that isn't so much worse than "great" beer that I'd call it bad and have people saying that there is so much bad beer out there.

I'm confusing myself at this point, but all I'm saying is the separation between what people are telling me is great beer compared to what they're telling me is bad beer is small enough for me to say most beer I drink is good, none of it is great and some of it is bad.

 

[Imhoppy]

30 cent homebrew (pretty dam good too) vs $5+ for Craft! Not much competition. I'm part of the older crew and don't go to bars too often. Usually it is when travelling with the Company Credit Card, or a couple of drinks with meals, or after golf or a movie. Gone are the days when I'd spend an evening in the bar ........ how did I ever afford it when I was younger!

I may be wrong, but I really think there are too many craft breweries, and many of them are going to fail. The big boys are going to come in with cheaper versions, and unless you have something other than the beer to keep people coming in thru your doors, you are not going to survive because you will get the BudMiloor 'Craft' beers at all the 'regular' places.

It will be interesting to see how this plays out over time. I hope these entrepreneurs survive .... at least the ones who are producing good beer.

Another perspective on craft beer cost. At $40 for a 5-gallon home-brew kit, it would cost $1.00 USD per pint. At $5/pint at your local brew pub, instead you could afford a $200 kit and make your own for the same cost per pint. On the extreme end, at $12/pint, that would be a $480 home-brew kit. I'll sell these for 50% off and you could save BIG MONEY!!

 

[VirginiaHops1]

Another perspective on craft beer cost. At $40 for a 5-gallon home-brew kit, it would cost $1.00 USD per pint. At $5/pint at your local brew pub, instead you could afford a $200 kit and make your own for the same cost per pint. On the extreme end, at $12/pint, that would be a $480 home-brew kit. I'll sell these for 50% off and you could save BIG MONEY!!

Why not just do both? Before I brewed my beer purchases would consist of some fairly expensive stuff from the local bottle shop from smaller hard to get breweries, and some main stream less expensive but still good beer from the grocery store(Bells 2 Hearted, Dogfishhead 60 minutes, etc) to keep the total beer cost down somewhat. Now my homebrew is basically the less expensive good beer to keep cost down but I still enjoy occasionally going to my awesome local bottle shop or a brewery to check out what's out there. Call it research...

 

[papz]

Whoosh/

 

[JAReeves]

Beer isn't a race, it's an adventure.

This.

I love to make and taste different beers, but if i’m looking for notches in my bedpost...it’s for the books i’ve read, not beers and not for anything else.

Sometimes you want a random beer that potentially tastes like polecat+steer w/IBS and sometimes it’s just the thing you know. You know?

 

[Mutant]

Another perspective on craft beer cost. At $40 for a 5-gallon home-brew kit, it would cost $1.00 USD per pint. At $5/pint at your local brew pub, instead you could afford a $200 kit and make your own for the same cost per pint. On the extreme end, at $12/pint, that would be a $480 home-brew kit. I'll sell these for 50% off and you could save BIG MONEY!!

I've made beers from $0.35 a bottle (Cream Ale) to $1.35 a bottle for an Eisbock. Most decent beers I made are in the range of $0.75 a bottle. You'll have to do the conversion for 12ox to 16oz (pint). I cringe when I go to a local brew pub and pay over $5 for a drink that I wouldn't even submit for a competition.

 

[IanJ]

I cringe when I go to a local brew pub and pay over $5 for a drink that I wouldn't even submit for a competition.

But to those folks, anything with enough ingredient buzzwords is the best you'll ever try -- and totally worth charging $9 for a 10oz glass of.

At least in NYC where it's easy to get away with selling swill where money flows like water... or juicy NEIPA's that taste like toilet water... but, but but, my elite Untappd check-in stats, fellow finance bro's.

 

[beernutz]

I've been trying to explain why I don't constantly try new stuff in hopes (mostly vain) of finding an exceptional beer. The quote above says it all.

Since the odds of finding the next exceptional beer are low, for me to live in pursuit of it is nothing more than, to paraphrase @Bilsch , "wasting my time drinking meh beer."

THAT is why I prefer to drink things I know I like, as opposed to chasing what, to me, are unicorns. Others may have different goals, interests, and tastes, and that's fine. Good thing, in fact--imagine if we were all the same, how that would end up.

I am not much of a new beer finder either but thankfully the liquor store a half mile from my house has weekly beer tastings so I get to try a lot of different beers without forking over extravagant six pack prices in search of unicorn beers.

If I could just remember to make tasting notes every week my system would be flawless.