All the mainstream brands did was start buying up craft breweries to lessen their competition. Goose Island was halfway decent before Anheiser Busch bought them out...Now if I have just one, it gives me a massive headache the next day. (which I won't anymore, learned my lesson).
I remember in the early 90's there was a witbier out of Austin Tx called Celis White. It is, to this day, the finest example of a witbier I have ever tasted.
I disagree with this. Goose Island had an average at best core before the buyout. They were hyped bc of their fantastic barrel program that was at the forefront. People just like to say it was better before the buyout bc they sold out or misremember how good it was bc of that. Also, the reality of the situation is they gained access to better and more consistent ingredients bc of ABI’s malt/hops contracts and peoples palates change over time.
I think Heady has become really, really, really inconsistent. And hasn't been as good as it was before The Alchemist opened their place in Stowe. Focal Banger remains excellent.
You know I just can’t get into Grimm. I buy a solo can from time to time and I just don’t think their IPAs are as good most the other places you listed.
I was absolutely flabbergasted. He handled it all with grace though.
I don't see it this way. When you say "regular brands" I assume you me the ABs and MCs. Those guys don't need to up their game because they have three things:
While I don't like their beer or their practices of buying up smaller breweries and cheaping out on ingredients to lessen the quality of those acquired beers, I will say that Anheuser Busch is extremely generous to bars.
I agree. Lately I've been getting 4 packs from Beer Tree. They always have something new out and it's usually pretty good.
So they don’t actually cheap out on the ingredients. That’s a major misconception. That goes for any of the craft breweries that AB, MC, Constellation, etc buyout. They typically supply them with better malts/hops due to their contracts and sheer buying power. That’s actually what a lot of the smaller breweries rail against is their lack of access to the best quality materials.
new englands are the worst of the ipas. they just taste like bitter juice.
Grimm and Equilibrium did a cross beer earlier this year. I just seem to always like what Grimm is on draft, am like 4/4 now.
This makes sense to me. While they’re always looking to improve efficiency and value, I think the big brewers want to improve the quality and flavor likewise. It may not be a desperate scramble but just naturally they’re getting better. At least, anecdotally, that’s what I find here in Japan. The standard brews from the big four - Asahi, Kirin, Sapporo, Suntory - have all improved as far as I can tell over the past 20 years or so. Not to mention the seasonal and limited editions they all offer now. At least here I think they’re trying to keep up with the joneses as well as having big buying power.
Kirin and Asahi have beautiful facilities and I always liked Minho and hitachino nest while I lived over there. The main issue is just the limitation of the beer style itself. I think that’s part of the problem with quality perception. Comparing an adjunct lager to a marzen or ipa just isn’t a fair comparison.
Absolutely true there is a very narrow range of styles here. But if you like a lager or a Pilsner this is a pretty good place. And getting better.
New Glarus Brewing Company outside of Milwaukee is where it's at.A long time ago, I was an Assistant Manager at this bar in Chicago. I set up a promotion with a brewery out of Milwaukee called Leinenkugel - their beer is .0000002% better than Bud/Miller etc. I figure we'll drum up a little extra business on a slow-ish night.
The brewery owner comes down for the promotion. Nice guy, probably mid 50's, a little chubby - would not look out of place in a Coen brothers film.
Imagine my shock when all of a sudden, the bar looks like the Rolling Stones are playing there. The place is MOBBED. Young women literally pulling their tops up and asking this guy to sign their boobs with a sharpie.
I'm certainly not going to argue with your experience in the field. And I admit, my subjective experiences could be completely psychological, but as an example I feel like Hoogaarden tastes completely different since they were taken over by AB. Essentially, we're talking about "eye test" vs. "advanced stats" but for beer instead of hockey.
The funny thing is Hoogaarden was bought by InBev before InBev bought AB. It could be a couple of things. You could have been getting it from one facility and then it got moved to another so it tastes slightly different or more likely your palate has just changed over time. Or hell they could have tweaked the recipe. New Belgium and Cigar City have tweaked their hop blends over time.I'm certainly not going to argue with your experience in the field. And I admit, my subjective experiences could be completely psychological, but as an example I feel like Hoogaarden tastes completely different since they were taken over by AB. Essentially, we're talking about "eye test" vs. "advanced stats" but for beer instead of hockey.
Makes sense. Deschutes hasn’t sold though. They’re still independent, so feel free to pick that back up guilt free if you like their beers. Maybe you’re thinking of them acquiring Boneyard? Or New Belgium/Bells selling to Kirin?
