We saw a similar thing happen in the early ’90s. Armed with some savings, entrepreneurs who had virtually no interest in beer–aside from it’s ability to make money–started contract brewed brands that tasted awful and featured marketing that ranged from insipid to offensive. Others went to the trouble of actually building breweries, but seemed largely unconcerned with the quality of the beer. A few, sensing the impending doom on their balance sheets, changed direction and started brewing better beer, allowing them to survive the downturn.
But many shut down for good, along with the contract brewed brands, most of which simply disappeared from sight, only to be remembered in satirical blog posts and BeerAdvocate threads. These closings deeply hurt many legitimately great craft breweries and the reputation of the entire industry. (How, you ask? Greg told me that after the bubble burst, with Stone fighting for its life, bar and restaurant owners would to tell him the “microbrew” fad was over and that he shouldn’t bother trying to sell them his oddly bitter Pale Ale.)
All of this is to say that intent matters a great deal. I think there is lots of room left for breweries trying to make truly excellent, top 10% craft beer, and I believe those breweries will help expand craft’s market share significantly. Simultaneously, I think there are people getting into the industry because they see dollar signs and/or want a fun “lifestyle business.” Consequently, they are putting poor to mediocre beer on the shelves while utilizing deceptive/tacky/tired marketing that undermines one of craft beer’s major strengths: authenticity. When these brands turn-off consumers or go down in flames, they inevitably hurt the entire industry’s growth and its valuable image.
Where does this leave me, hopefully the owner of a new craft brewery? I take comfort in the fact that I’m a huge freakin’ nerd for beer. Perhaps it’s naive, but I really believe that if my brewery can make beer that’s worth seeking out, people will. Sure, having nice labels, a decent website, an active Twitter feed, yada yada yada, will all help, but mostly I’m going to do those things because they’re fun and that’s who I am.
So if you’re thinking of starting a brewery, I would just ask that you reflect on your reasons for doing it. Does it sound like a way to make your first million? Or are you totally obsessed with making world class beer, the kind of beer that people spontaneously tell their friends about, the kind of beer that breaks new ground, that converts the unconverted, that truly is a party in your mouth? If you answered yes to the second question, then I say: jump in, the water’s warm.
Well put Jacob! I’m looking forward to your contributions to the field.
Great post, dudes. Well thought-out, painfully honest and something many of us in the industry have been saying to each other on many bar stools across this country.
I love his comparison of bad contract brewed beer to bad mortgages and loans. It erodes the faith, stability and credibility of the whole industry.
There is a lot of sub par beer going around this days. I think newcomers to the craft brew industry are confused by all the choices available to them. There are too many fake microbreweries out there and they need to be called out for what they are. This brewery will be a success if it focuses on great beer and less hype. The beer will sell itself. Congrats!
Thanks for the comments and feedback, folks. My hope is that articles like this one bring some of these issues into the realm of public discussion. As Andrew said, these issues get discussed with some regularity between friends at industry events, but I think it’s time the entire craft beer community chime in. The democratic quality of craft beer culture is its biggest asset, and I’d like to see beer drinkers have a say in the industry’s future. Sometimes that requires calling shenanigans when things go astray, but ultimately that leads to a stronger industry as a whole.
While I absolutely do agree with much of what you have to say, I believe that the desire to create an excellent product is not nearly adequate in maintaining a sustainable business model in the craft brewing industry. I would even be so bold as to say its secondary to sustaining profit margins and feeding growth. It would not take a world class brewer to produce a quality beer with an infinite budget. However, it takes an adaptable and business-first mentality to create a great product within the constraints of a start-up brewery. Now, if you deem that an excellent product is a necessity in creating a profitable company, then that in itself is a business fueled decision. (And I do agree that now an excellent beer is a necessity)
best of luck to you. i hope your brewery make beer that matters.
Fair point Josh, but I never claimed that making great beer is all it takes to run a successful brewery. My point is that making great beer should be what motivates people to get into the business.
And in my experience, size and budget have nothing to do with the quality of beer. I’ve had beer made on basic home brewing equipment that was much better than some beer made by well-financed commercial operations. That’s not a common experience, but the point is that anyone can choose to make great beer. They just have to make it a priority.
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Jacob,
Congratulations on taking that VERY scary step of moving down the path of opening your own brewery. I applaud your passion for quality craft beer. That comes out strongly in your article. However, after having walked this path for almost two decades (working in several micros and brewpubs before opening my own production brewery), it is my professional opinion that strong marketing (labels, twitter, product stories, etc) is as important as a high-quality beer. If the consumer is not excited by your marketing on the outside of the bottle, why would they give the beer inside a chance? Don’t get me wrong, brewing quality beer is also key but you need to hook them to show them how great your beers are.
Any commercial brewery is a business. It is started (or should be) to make money; for the owner, the investors, the bank, etc. If a brewery is opened to “just make great beer” without a fierce eye always on the financial bottom line, that brewery will not be around long enough to make a positive impact on the local beer scene never mind the industry as a whole. Breweries are capital eating monsters: like a wild horse with a tapeworm!
Again, very good article. I enjoyed reading it.
Best of luck to you, keep pushing that boulder up the hill!
Prost!
Dave Ayers
Dave,
Thanks for kind words. I don’t disagree with you for the most part. As the guy who used to run the social media for Stone, I’m keenly aware of the value of marketing. It’s huge, no doubt. But I suspect a lot of people would agree with me when I say that I would buy Pliny the Elder even if it were sold in zip lock bags with a label hand written in sharpie. Same goes for anything from Cantillon; neither brewery does any marketing. My point is not that marketing doesn’t matter, only that beer quality has to come first.
And yes, good business decisions and financial management are essential, as they are for any business. Simply being passionate for beer won’t make you a good accountant. So we agree 100% there.
Cheers & thanks again,
Jacob McKean
@ModernTimesBeer
Jacob,
I truly appreciate hearing from you. If you are ever in northwest Montana, please stop into my brewery, Glacier Brewing, in Polson. I would love to buy you a beer!
Prost!
Dave
Glacier Brewing Company
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I don’t know if I agree re: contract brewing. Contract brewing, done as “gypsy brewing,” seems to be working out rather well in Copenhagen and Baltimore for the time being. It might even make sense from an environmental stand point. I don’t see them as any less passionate about craft beer than yourself.
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