Words have consequences. Even if those words are as obtuse as “that’s not craft,” they can damage friendships, and that kind of thing is ripping up the American brewing industry. It’s time to consider the potential damage. I remember a lot of nasty stuff being said about beer over my lifetime. In the early years... View Article
Every worthwhile human endeavor has a genre of written criticism attached to it: music, theater and film, sports, painting and sculpture, dance, certainly food, and writing itself. Why do we want to write about these things, and why do people eagerly read about them? Why do we write about beer? Why do you read about... View Article
Tear your mind and attention away from IPAs and imperial stouts and kettle sours for a moment, and consider the mega-merger of mega-brewers that’s currently being evaluated by the U.S. Department of Justice. Consider the names that are involved, directly and indirectly: Anheuser-Busch InBev (AB InBev). SABMiller. MolsonCoors. These are already products of the mergers... View Article
American brewing has a problem, and New Belgium Brewing Co. has put together a 12-pack of it. I like New Belgium. I like the beers they do, I like the folks from there that I’ve met—hell, some of them I flat out admire—their business model is worthy of emulation and always has been, and their... View Article
Why do you drink craft beer? Back when I started drinking beer, in 1978, things were simple: I drank beer. Cold beer, free beer, dark beer, cream ale, even malt liquor, I grabbed it and loved it. Then I had my epiphany in 1981 with a flip-top bottle of German pilsner, and realized that I... View Article
I’ve been reading that one of the hot new stars on the better beer circuit is … wait for it … lager! Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.’s Nooner, Firestone-Walker Brewing Co.’s Pivo, Left Hand Brewing Co.’s Polestar, and Lagunitas Brewing Co.’s Pils were all mentioned in stories all over the beer web in the past year... View Article
D.G. Yuengling & Son is America’s oldest brewery, established by David Yuengling in 1829 in Pottsville, Pennsylvania. Within less than a year, the brewery burned and was rebuilt on the side of the hill over town, where it still is today, still run by a Yuengling. Surprisingly, at this point it is also the largest... View Article
