Been reading some interesting posts on other blogs lately (here and here*) talking about Greg Koch at Stone Brewing and his efforts to turn more people on to craft beer in the face of corporate conglomerates selling Bud, Miller and Coors.
I think Greg’s overall point, which he attempted to make as a panelist on the recent Beer Wars live Q&A and during his speech at the Craft Brewers Conference in Boston, is that if people took a more active role in their consumer choices and considered the quality of the ingredients in their beer and the passion of the people behind the beer, that most would change their minds on drinking the macro stuff. This is the same general argument espoused by other highly respected craft brewers such as Garrett Oliver at Brooklyn Brewing (i.e. “real bread” vs. “bread in a bag” analogy).
However, some critics have called this message “elitist”, “insulated” and “self-absorbed,” largely based on Greg’s comments during the CBC speech that characterized BMC drinkers as “wusses” and the same kinds of people who prefer white bread, instant coffee and Kenny G.
Now, I’m not interested in engaging in some kind of character assassination of Mr. Koch as someone who is doing irreparable harm to the future success of the craft industry, as I am certain his intentions are good. Rather, what I have been wrestling with, in particular since my viewing of Beer Wars several weeks ago, is whether or not this approach really makes the most sense, assuming the goal is to get more people interested in craft beer.
I think one of the fatal flaws in Greg’s logic is the premise that if someone knew more about what goes into their beer they would instantly choose to drink craft beer. I know what a farmers market looks like, yet I generally choose to buy most of my vegetables and fruit from the local megagrocer. I’m the same way with cars…I own a Toyota Camry because it’s relatively inexpensive, fuel efficient and will hopefully get me from Point A to Point B. I’m not preoccupied with its overall performance and handling, or whether or not it was built by an expert mechanic in Germany who REALLY loves making fine cars. When it comes down to it, I frankly don’t care that much about that particular purchase (well, to a degree, until I’m stranded on the side of the road and late for work). But that’s me, and my consumer choice.
And like most people who drink BMC, I don’t really think they care much about the kinds of criteria Greg is talking about either. Perhaps beer is not an important enough portion of most people’s budget, diet, or daily thought process that they invest the time to truly consider the value of their purchase when compared to other life decisions such as, say, where to send your kids to school or which doctor to see. For folks like Greg, whose world is in large part defined by the craft industry, it’s clearly an important choice to make. And for me, a guy who bases my dining decisions on what kind of craft beer is on tap at a particular restaurant, it’s also an important choice. But not for most. The general population tends to drink what they know and are familiar with. For some, it takes too much brainpower, time and research to make a switch in beer preference.
The obvious argument here is that it’s somewhat of a self-fulfilling prophecy…the macro brewers have had such a strangle hold for years on both the three tier distribution system and the mass media channels to pump out their watered down message that there’s hardly a chance consumers would even know the difference. The broader consumer palate has been trained for years that bland is good, and they’re not interested in beers brewed on a smaller scale that tend to be a little more bitter than your average can of Bud. But even if we had a more level playing field, I think the vast majority of people walking into a liquor store still wouldn’t say to themselves “I’m going to select this beer because it’s produced locally and isn’t made with corn adjuncts.” Greg calls these people “dispassionate consumers,” but in today’s society (maybe to our detriment) that’s what seems to win out, convenience and familiarity.
I think it could be the same reason why chain restaurants like Applebees thrive on a larger scale while smaller independently-owned restaurants that only use locally produced ingredients are only going to have a niche appeal. Sure, there’s certainly going to be a market for these small establishments (and they base much of their differentiation on this point), but just like the craft industry, I don’t know that they’re ever going to enjoy broader appeal compared to dumbed down versions of their product. Maybe that’s a defeatist (or realistic) attitude, but when it comes down to it, the craft segment really is a specialty category, and will likely be that way for some time to come.
As a PR practitioner, I think it’s a matter of perception, positioning, and how you want to go about waging this “war” to get more people interested in craft beer. I look at Greg as someone who has incredibly noble intentions as a passionate advocate for the craft beer industry. However, some of his comments lead me to believe he is staunchly focused on the David vs. Goliath argument, making a bogeyman out of the macrobrewers and castigating BMC drinkers as “fizzy yellow beer drinkers” who have yet to be touched by the craft beer message. Sam Calagione at Dogfish Head, on the otherhand, who was portrayed in the recent Beer Wars film as an equally passionate advocate for craft beer**, seems to be more interested and content in just making a really good tasting sling shot and hoping more Davids fall in line behind him. Call it the “push” vs. “pull” strategy of the craft beer world.
So am I an advocate for BMC offerings? Absolutely not. It’s garbage made by people who are more interested in creating shareholder value versus brewing a quality product. I love craft beer, spend probably too much of my time drinking/homebrewing/thinking/reading/writing about it, and hope for its continued success in this country. But I’m also not going to rub my friends’ noses in their light lagers next time I’m at a bar with them because it was mass produced in a gigantic brewhouse in St. Louis or Milwaukee.
* By the way, very cool of Greg to comment on that post. I think he’s a guy genuinely interested in furthering the craft conversation, even if it means he takes a little flak in the process.
** I’m well aware that Sam has taken up that same mantle to some degree and made his own public remarks of disdain about BMC, I’m not picking on Greg.
May 6, 2009 at 7:04 pm
Point well taken: Greg is a well-intentioned guy. But, at the end of the day, there are “Beer Lovers” like you and Greg and there are “Beer Drinkers”. Greg won’t win any converts by casting the latter as the dupes of BMC. But what I can’t wrap my head around is what if Greg’s polemics do win converts? Are they drawn to the beer or the cause? I thought Stone beer was supposed to sell because it was good, not because it came with a great back story – complete with nemesis. Is he selling beer or He-Man action figures?
May 6, 2009 at 8:19 pm
Great point Steve, and I wonder the same thing about the implications of the story, which is something you and I have talked about before. Is Apple’s success more about the attitude/persona of Steve Jobs, or that his products are really that great (don’t answer that, I know you have an iPhone)? Not to get sociological, but for some, craft beer might serve as a cultural icon that helps convey more broadly that individual’s identity and beliefs. Independent, sustainable, discerning. For me, it’s more about the taste and the fact I love homebrewing and learning about the historical backstory of a particular style.
I promise when we start our own brewery I’ll refrain from making a Castle Greyskull Geuze.
May 6, 2009 at 10:23 pm
Thanks for linking to me amm002. You managed to convey many of my sentiments in a much more mature and kindly manner then I did. I wrote a clarification/apology to Mr. Stone after he sicked hiw twitter following on both mine and Jeff’s blog.
This “lifestyle” that Greg is selling has hurt my opinion of brewers and craft beer. In fact it’s one of the reasons I get more and more into homebrewing as time goes on. The less time I have to spend in the pub getting funny looks from the beer crowd because I don’t fit in then all the better.
May 6, 2009 at 11:33 pm
For what it’s worth, I wasn’t really commenting on the content of the vid, just the production. I think things are REALLY different on the east and west coasts. In Portland, where I live, craft beer has won. Forty percent of the draft beer sold in Oregon was brewed here. There’s good beer and crap beer, and it’s no longer a moral issue here. The east coast still has a beleaguered attitude of an industry under seige. I wish I had put a bit more thought into the post, but I often forget people outside Oregon can find my blog.
May 7, 2009 at 4:04 am
It’s great that Greg is agitating against BudMillerCoors nationally, but he seems to be advocating “quality” rather than “local.”
Is Sam Adams already the preferred, “standard beer” of Boston? It wasn’t the last time I visited.
May 7, 2009 at 8:32 am
[...] Captain’s Chair posts a craft beer versus macro brew think piece that must surely rank among one of the most thoughtful things written about beer this year (along [...]
May 7, 2009 at 9:09 am
Why do some petulant craft brewers feel like this is an ‘us vs. them’ issue and think that they need to prosletyze? Don’t they realize that they’re preaching to the choir? If you remember your first exposure to a better class of anything (food, beer, wine, music, etc.) you can recall how someone with more experience, knowledge, and more refined taste helped you out without making you feel like a hopeless novice. Then, you will also remember the elitist snobs who mocked your ignorance and made themselves feel smarter by making you look dumb. Which of these groups is actually trying to win converts?
You make a good point that not everyone is going to love craft beer. You can’t treat people like savages or children when they don’t immediately acknowledge a ‘superior’ product and mend their ways. Some people don’t care, they don’t want to be converted or enlightened. You can’t be an expert in everything, and you’ll never have the most refined taste in all matters. The best way to promote craft beer and expand the market is by being inclusive, not exclusive.
May 7, 2009 at 9:56 am
It seems the craft brewing world is reaching a crossroads of sorts. People are reflecting and standing on the outside looking in. I think it is very healthy to have these conversations and actually confront the big names and try not to be so inclusive and elitist.
Great post.
May 8, 2009 at 6:30 am
On the topic of “best way to promote…” I actually think that the most successful route is to talk less about *craft* beer and talk more about *local* beer.
You’ll get more converts by playing to people’s sense of pride in where they live, in their traditions, etc — than hoping they choose something that may or may not taste better to them.
In Germany (I’ve just returned after living there 2 years), all beer is local. When you walk into a bar and order a pils, you’re invariably served one of the local varieties.
May 8, 2009 at 8:50 am
Rob, since nearly all craft beer tends to be local/regional (and the most successful/nationally visible craft breweries such as Stone/Dogfish/Boston Brewing still have very strong local roots), I tend to agree with you on that front.
I was turned on to Surly because I walked into my local liquor store a couple years ago and the guy at the counter asked if I’d tried this little brewery from up the road in Brooklyn Center. Told him I’d never heard of it, but would give their stuff a shot, primarily because I wanted to support a local business trying to make a go of it. Turns out I love their stuff, and they’re continuing to have success in this region.
As much as BMC would like to act like your old familiar buddy from down the street who knows what it’s like living in [insert your city here], they can never ultimately compete with people that prefer to patronize local breweries. Only problem is the availability and convenience, ironically, which BMC is nearly always going to win out on, which gets us back to the three tier distribution issue. Distributors aren’t incentivized to cater to the crafts the same way they are BMC.
May 11, 2009 at 10:09 pm
[...] brewing practices certainly play a significant role in the craft movement. But I go back to my earlier post on the Greg Koch thing, and the discussion that ensued in the comments section, which I thought was a thoughtful [...]
May 13, 2009 at 11:26 am
Beer is a consumer product, not a sacrament. (Okay, in some places it may be a sacrament.) As such, consumer products rarely succeed in a broader market based upon an elitist approach that emphasizes the qualities of the product’s ingredients or the passions behind its manufacture. Craft beer is not and should not be an elitist product, but the video wishes to portray it that way. It makes it sound like the creation and consumption of craft beer is somehow an honorable and noble act that defies an evil empire of “industrial” brewing. The intentions behind it are honorable and it succeeds about half way. It fails when it starts calling on our inner brewer to understand or care about whether corn or rice are added to our beer. The video assumes we understand that the addition is during the mash, as opposed to . . .Well, you get my point.
I like the comments about local vs. craft beer. And, I believe that some people will enjoy a craft beer with flavor over an adjunct-riddled national (global?) product, but not everyone. I have close friends who simply prefer very light beers. And, having just returned from a visit to a hot, humid climate, my friends and family who would never touch a BMC product here were happily slurping fizzy, yellow Coronas/Sols/Tecates all afternoon.
For those who must produce these kinds of testimonials to their passions, please continue. It will not create many or any converts and it will perhaps rally the faithful much like a tent meeting. We owe you, the craft brewers, our thanks for creating interesting, exciting beers even if I we are not interested in joining the church of the true beer believer.
May 13, 2009 at 11:38 am
Well put, OBFGuy.