Red Mosquito

run2death wrote:I hate to see the garbage they ship out of state.

Mr. Pineapple and HopShock are the only ones retailers around here stock regularly. Sex Panther comes once a year. Don't remember loving HopShock, but Mr. Pineapple has made it into my pool party cooler a time or two.

Man I hate the whole AB/InBev machine:

https://www.craftbrewingbusiness.com/bu ... 8-96700133

I don't think they're totally wrong, here. I'm biased though.

washing machine wrote:I don't think they're totally wrong, here. I'm biased though.

They are not wrong, but they do sometimes come off as d-bags.

Bi_3 wrote:

washing machine wrote:I don't think they're totally wrong, here. I'm biased though.

They are not wrong, but they do sometimes come off as d-bags.

I guess that's how I feel. They don't have anything to worry about here, so why be so concerned about it?

tragabigzanda wrote:As a beer lover, I only sort of get the anti-InBev hate, because A) I don't like adjuncts in my beer, B) I don't like most of the "experimental" brews made with coriander, orange peel, blueberry, etc, and C), I believe that most of those "limited release" runs, and other off-brand experiments like Sam Adams's Twisted Tea, are basically clever marketing ploys to sell experimental product and try to capture what has become a highly segmented marketplace. Or the TL,DR version is: Give me German-style beers that are made really well, and I'm a happy camper...

I don't fully follow what you're saying, here. I feel like with the exception of Elysian's Peach Ale, or Goose's Bourbon County series, most of what the High End brands are doing fits in line with classic styles or mainstream american styles. I see my smaller local craft brewers experimenting much more than High End breweries, and a lot of it sucks. Which brings me to this...

as a small business owner in the food world, with dreams of expansion, I have no problem with InBev and their ilk. They are enormous companies providing a product that a large number of people seem to enjoy; they often purchase the small craft breweries, which as a business owner, is basically your dream: To make a product so successful, and have a company so well-organized, that you can one day sell to the big boys and retire early.

I don't see InBev as a threat to my enjoyment of good German-style beers; and I do see companies like theirs as not direct competition, but rather something to aspire to. Outside of any environmental or labor concerns that come with any large conglomerate, I've got no problem with them, so I am curious to hear more specifically why so many people hate the big players in the beer market.

It's all about "drink local" around here when it comes to AB hate. I'm sure that's true of a lot of other communities across the states as well. Where I live, like I mentioned earlier, small craft breweries are at an extreme disadvantage when fighting for shelf space and tap handles because the AB machine and a few mega distributors are in bed with lobbyists who constantly come up with hurdles for local breweries. It's a three-tier system in this state, which means bars and retail stores must go through a distributor to purchase beer, but only if that brewery produces a certain amount per year (I think like 40k bbls.) I don't know if that's a normal state law or not, but it really hurts the small guys who have to distribute things themselves.

The flipside is that a lot of local things suck. They're small, they're new, and with their small production schedules they can afford to play around with things and be experimental without wasting much time and resources. They have small, fierce followings but overall not many people one want to drink a six-pack of watermelon wit or chai spiced blonde at a get together. I'm with you, I think - I have no problem giving a good brewery more money and a chance for wider distribution and force the local guys to get more in line with what the general market demands if that is in fact what's happening with this whole High End thing.

washing machine wrote:It's all about "drink local" around here when it comes to AB hate. I'm sure that's true of a lot of other communities across the states as well. Where I live, like I mentioned earlier, small craft breweries are at an extreme disadvantage when fighting for shelf space and tap handles because the AB machine and a few mega distributors are in bed with lobbyists who constantly come up with hurdles for local breweries. It's a three-tier system in this state, which means bars and retail stores must go through a distributor to purchase beer, but only if that brewery produces a certain amount per year (I think like 40k bbls.) I don't know if that's a normal state law or not, but it really hurts the small guys who have to distribute things themselves.

this x1000

washing machine wrote:The flipside is that a lot of local things suck. They're small, they're new, and with their small production schedules they can afford to play around with things and be experimental without wasting much time and resources. They have small, fierce followings but overall not many people one want to drink a six-pack of watermelon wit or chai spiced blonde at a get together.

and this is where i'm able to come at this with a little bit of a different perspective. living in chicago, we have a ridiculous number of offerings from which to choose involving all styles. even our suburban breweries like noon whistle, more brewing, mikerphone, etc., are giving others a run for their money in terms of innovations. hell, outside of treehouse or someone like weldwerks in colorado, those breweries (in addition to shops like corridor and forbidden root) are cornering the market on the hazy/ne ipa. but they wouldn't have been able to do that without pushing the envelope. it's little secret why someone like inbev eventually wanted a piece of the action with the goose island (read: bourbon county) transaction, and why they're targeting other, similar breweries across the country. the thing that sucks is that by employing their . . . shall we say "less than suitable" targeting techniques, it's just that much more difficult for the other breweries to find their audience. and that's what sucks.

I wouldn't swear off a beer b/c it's owned by Budweiser. But less than a quarter of the beer I buy is b/c I've had it before, and I liked it.

Usually, I'm at the store or the bar and thinking, "I want to try something new." And when that's the situation, I'm probably going to pick local, small breweries over something I recognize as a mega brewer 97% of the time. I don't hate InBev, and I'm sure they make some good beers, but I'm not going to bet my own money on InBev in a face off with a local brewery.

Not to mention, the whole ... shop local, help the local economy thing, support small entrepreneurs thing.

Speaking of local, B, have you had any of Front Street Brewing's offerings? We get to Wilmington all the time now, and they have some good stuff.

Anders wrote:My favourite American beer:

Would you guys recommend me some top quality American beer that I should try? Hopefully something that is possible to import to Norway.

E.H. Ruddock wrote:Speaking of local, B, have you had any of Front Street Brewing's offerings? We get to Wilmington all the time now, and they have some good stuff.

I haven't been there in years.

But, if you find yourself in Wilmington on a weekend, sign up for a Haunted Pub Crawl. I've done it twice, those tours are, without a doubt, the best time I've had drinking in North Carolina.

Chris_H_2 wrote:

washing machine wrote:The flipside is that a lot of local things suck. They're small, they're new, and with their small production schedules they can afford to play around with things and be experimental without wasting much time and resources. They have small, fierce followings but overall not many people one want to drink a six-pack of watermelon wit or chai spiced blonde at a get together.

and this is where i'm able to come at this with a little bit of a different perspective. living in chicago, we have a ridiculous number of offerings from which to choose involving all styles. even our suburban breweries like noon whistle, more brewing, mikerphone, etc., are giving others a run for their money in terms of innovations. hell, outside of treehouse or someone like weldwerks in colorado, those breweries (in addition to shops like corridor and forbidden root) are cornering the market on the hazy/ne ipa. but they wouldn't have been able to do that without pushing the envelope. it's little secret why someone like inbev eventually wanted a piece of the action with the goose island (read: bourbon county) transaction, and why they're targeting other, similar breweries across the country. the thing that sucks is that by employing their . . . shall we say "less than suitable" targeting techniques, it's just that much more difficult for the other breweries to find their audience. and that's what sucks.

Yeah, that's a very fair point. I love that everyone in this thread's discussion has a slightly different perspective on the subject. I really don't get that from my local craft community after the Karbach thing. I love my local breweries and I think they are all doing a great job finding their audiences. To illustrate your point about innovation and audiences, I think it was you or phatj asking me about Jester King a while back in this very thread. Total grassroots power.

That being said, beer nerds (of which I consider myself a card carrying member) lose me though when they make it more about "local" and "little guys" than beer or brewing. There's this feeling among the flock that when AB acquires a brewery, everything becomes machine-like and soulless, but that's just not true. The beer is still the beer and brewers still get to do cool shit that they are very good at. I'd rather talk about that stuff when talking about breweries than whether or not they sold. Beer lovers used to be more mellow, eh?

I still order a Goose Island sometimes.

I was in Asheville recently, and Wicked Weed was waaay better than the other beers I tried, and that was in a city known for beer. They just got bought out by InBev, but as far as I'm concerned, they have a long way to fall before their beer isn't still one of of the top beers in NC.

I've had that. Liked it.

The Roosevelts Imperial IPA from AZ Wilderness. Well-rounded with pine, grapefruit and pineapple. Bitter, crisp (refreshing) finish. Probably my 3rd favorite IPA they make.



https://www.ratebeer.com/beer/arizona-w ... ts/389097/

I love Prairie Artisan Ales.

PHATJ wrote:I love Prairie Artisan Ales.

I tapped a slim of that for 4th of July at my bar. I don't care how hot it is, that's good stuff.