Disclaimer: I am specifically personalizing this with no intention to persuade you (the reader) to agree with me or to do what I do. I am simply using myself as an example.

I’ve been pondering about how craft beer drinkers make decisions on which beers they drink and which beers they won’t. The reasons are likely more numerous to count so I thought I would talk about five reasons. These are based on Twitter interactions with hundreds of people who drink craft beer.

I will attempt to turn the heat down on some of those reasons. I’m doing this to propose how my second look at beers I enjoyed in the past, no longer drank, and rethinking that choice and reversing my decision.

The five reasons I’ve chosen are:

Big Beer

Sellouts

Independent Only

Local Support Only

Politics

Big Beer

Doesn’t That Look Tasty





When I say ‘Big Beer’ I am talking about the major corporations (ABInBev, Molson-Coors, Miller-Coors, Sapporo, etc.). I completely understand why craft beer drinkers would want to eliminate drinking any beer that would put money in the pockets of these mega-beer producers.

In my opinion most craft beer drinkers do not buy these beers. But what about those of us who still believe some of Big Beer producers that make Imported beers such as ‘Mexican Lagers’ are still making really good beer? I personally enjoy Modelo Especial, Modelo Negra, and Tecate. I believe these beers taste great with a lime and go well with Mexican food. Not only that, they tend to be a couple of bucks cheaper than many of the craft Mexican Lagers out there. I also don’t mind having a Foster’s Lager or Ale especially when they’re being sold at 2-25 oz cans for $5.00. Saving money is a good thing especially if the Big Beer choice isn’t a noticeable impact on the beer drinking experience.

Zeus Would Probably like that with a Fish Burrito

Sellouts

For the purpose of this section I am defining ‘Sellouts’ as Craft Beer Brewers who through opportunity or necessity chose to sell all of their holdings to those I previously discussed as Big Beer. There are multiple emotions many may have had when a Local Craft Beer Brewery that you supported for years, seemed to out of nowhere, sold out to Big Beer. I know I did with Ballast Point when they sold out three or four years ago.

I must admit hindsight is 20/20. If someone offered a billion dollars to me for something, it wouldn’t be prudent or smart to at least listen to the offer. This specific sellout led me stop spending my craft beer money at Ballast Point. After a couple of years, I began to miss drinking my favorite Ballast Point beer, Victory at Sea.

This beer is not only one of my favorites; it is also liked by many of the people in the Twitter beer thread. So, I started periodically going back to Ballast Point and found that they are continuing to make very good craft beer. I recently went to Ballast Point and tried a beer called Oki Sumo. A Japanese Lager that has the typically sweet flavor in Japanese Lagers with a kicker of being 8.7% ABV. It not only was fantastic, it was a headknocker. Additionally, an improvement was made to Victory at Sea. They now have a barrel aged version of it and I have become very attached to it.

Barrel Aged Victory At Sea

Ballast Point is not the only brewery that I initially stopped supporting and returned to drinking their beer. Lagunitas Brewing makes two beers I really enjoy and purchase those beers when they are available. Saint Archer makes an outstanding Blonde Ale and an excellent DIPA. I don’t see anything wrong with my intermittent support of these breweries.

Independent Only

Part of the Brewers Association’s definition of an Independent Craft Brewer includes, the Brewery must be locally owned, with no more than a 25% interest sold to non-local entities. Therefore, breweries that sell a major portion of their company, for whatever reason, are no longer independent. There are many people who believe the only craft beer is Independent Craft Beer. That’s not the case. There is a group called the Craft Brewers Alliance which includes breweries such as Kona Brewing Company, Red Hook, Widmer Brothers, Omission Brewing, and Wynwood Brewing. These breweries have sold 31.4% of their companies to ABInBev.

If any craft beer drinker considers themselves Independent Craft Beer drinkers only than you would stay away from drinking any of these beers. In my case, I continue to drink Longboard Lager, Pipeline Porter, and other beers from Kona Brewing. I was drinking their beers long before they joined the alliance and to be honest, I really like Longboard Lager.

Living in San Diego I have always loved the surf culture here. One thing I am not is a surfer. So, most surfers would refer to me as being a Hodad. So, I really like the “One Life”, “Mahalo”, culture of Kona Brewing. For me Longboard Lager is the sh$t. Kona was in the alliance for quite a while before I knew ABInBev owned 31.4% of their company. This is another subset of craft beer brewers, at least in Kona’s case, that I will continue to support.

No Pic of Longboard Lager, This is next best Kona Beer

Local Support Only

I’m coming at this category from a different angle. “Drink Local” has been a thing for long time before I became a craft beer drinker. I think it’s right to support the locality and the people who are your friends and neighbors. Including the brewers. Small breweries that have not or do not intend to can or bottle their beer are some of the best places to go. In my specific instance there are somewhere between 20-30 Breweries or Taprooms within 10 miles of my home. There are two breweries within 3 miles of my home. Both Breweries do not can or bottle their beer. Their taprooms and the bars who purchase kegs are the only places to taste their brews. So, the questions I have is what defines local?

Is local defined by your distance from the brewery?

For perspective, I live in San Diego. There are between 175-200 breweries in the city. There are 200-250 in San Diego County. San Diego County is 4526 sq. miles. That’s larger than each of these states; Rhode Island, Delaware, and Connecticut.

I would love to go to Novo Brazil Brewing, which is in Chula Vista near the Mexican Border (in San Diego County). That’s a long haul to go for one or two beers to ensure I could get home safely. So, is Novo Brazil local? It sure is for people in Chula Vista. It’s not for me, or is it? Now Novo Brazil cans their beer. If it’s brewed in my city or county, and I can get it at the package store; am I supporting a local brewery I may not have an opportunity to visit? The brewery is in my city, I drink their beers. Am I drinking local? I’d say yes.

Is local defined by specific location?

My personal experience leads me to believe that any person born in Texas, is a Texan no matter where they are living. I know from Texans in the beer thread I’m in, with very few exceptions, consider any beer brewed in Texas is Texas beer and is therefore local. I would say craft beer drinkers whether they’re driving from Midland to Odessa or flying from Dallas to Amarillo; if they’re drinking Texas beer no matter where it’s brewed, they are drinking local. I wouldn’t bet my condo on it. I would bet it’s similar in every state. A rhetorical question to answer a question. Do you think anyone in Delaware doesn’t consider Dogfish Head Brewery, local?

Finally Obtained One of My Whales

Does location really define local?

My answer to this is simple. With larger Independent Breweries expanding their footprint, the word ‘Local’ doesn’t mean a location or distance. It has more to do with the ownership. If the requirement in the Brewers Association definition of ‘Independent’ is met by the brewer I believe this. In my opinion if a Twitter follower I have named Carlos, who lives in Brazil, in some way, shape, or form received a Booming Rollers by Modern Times Brewing in San Diego. He’s drinking local.

Politics

I’m going to be careful here. The Twitter beer thread I’ve mentioned several times has a rule. No mixing politics with beer. Unfortunately, in a world of Social Media, Beer Blogs, and 24 hours per day news cycles; mixing politics and beer was bound to happen.

There was a recent issue that occurred in the Craft Beer industry. I’m sure most Craft Beer drinkers will know of what I’m speaking.

A Brewery employee was treated unprofessionally at work and subsequently filed a claim against the Brewery. A subsequent Beer Blog post wrote a damning depiction of the Brewery specifically. Furthermore, the writer of the post wrote a factual, historical, and generational rebuke of society in general, when it comes to these types of work place actions.

In coming up with this article I was fully prepared to state that politics should have nothing to do with the beer. Making the choice to boycott the brewery or to drink that brewery’s beer because I like it; I would choose the latter.

Then I read the article.

The right to choose is fundamental in our society. Whether its life or choice, morality or corruption, guns or gun control, Republican, Democrat, or Independent, or boycott or pleasure. I truly believe my one voice will do little to change the working environment in this brewery. It would be like the wolf howling at the moon. I do know this about myself. I do not know if I could continue to truly enjoy this Brewery’s beer knowing that Brewery’s stance was something antithetical to my belief system. I don’t think my soul could stay in tact if I did. In this instance I choose; I like a beer, I’m not going to drink it.

In conclusion, my goal was to provide my decision process allowing me to expand my beer portfolio, if you will. Yes, I drink Big Beer products periodically. As I do all the other categories with exception of the one political case I cited. Bottom line is simply the title of this article. If I like a beer, I drink it.

I really do like beer. So, If I like it, I drink it.

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