Camra Vs Craft Beer

[brett mccluskey]

CAMRA's thoughts on 'craft beer' and beer bloggers,interesting... <_< http://www.beerbirrabier.com/

 

[peas_and_corn]

CAMRA rules are far too restrictive and arbitrary, like the reinheitsgebot.

 

[Thirsty Boy]

Regardless of his views on beer, if that is that bloggers idea of journalism or how to communicate via the written word... Then whatever he is arguing against is ok by me.

 

[Northside Novice]

between the accent and the reflection off those two bald heads i couldnt understand a word or see a thing but i do believe in what camra is trying to do and very much succeeding in doing . i think camra is fkn fantastic for the uk, only wish there were something similar over here . oh and dont worry i am very much balding too

whats wrong with sticking up for the traditions which have given us so many great beer styles?

 

[kevo]

Heard someone say at some point that CAMRA had set out to save Real Ale, and it's been saved.

Well done.

Now, let people experiement and build on that great tradition.

FFS - it's only beer.

 

[eamonnfoley]

There will always be the stubborn types. A lot of Germans are the same (fierly protective of their brewing history), we just dont hear about it because we dont speak German. Certainly no need to worry about it.

 

[michael_aussie]

i struggled to even understand him .. that accent was sooo thick .....
i think i need subtitles...

 

[Bribie G]

Och Ah understuid every wuid th' laddie said.

What they are referring to is the spread of American Style "Craft Beers" served from pressurised kegs via CO2 - I would imagine usually chilled to buggery and fizzy in the same way as Stone & Wood or Sunny Coast Brewery beers are here. Really CAMRA has no interest in promoting or supporting these beers as they are not real ale. They may well be interesting and high quality beers in their own right, but no way are they going to include pubs that serve them in the Good Beer Guide.


Wandering off topic here:
I actually totally agree with them. The creeping Americanisation of our own beers is an example - it would be terrific if more of our craft breweries were to develop a full flavoured traditional Aussie Lager or Ales like they would have been in the past - but the best they seem to come up with is the likes of Broo. <_< and generally the only alternative to megaswill is Frozen chill hazed orange coloured beer reeking of Cascade or Amarillo. You could argue that Galaxy etc are Aussie inventions - but I suspect they were developed to be used in American style craft beers.
I was very impressed with my trip to NZ last year - they not only do their own style of ales with the likes of Riwaka and Motueka but produce some cracking porters, stouts and lagers served under pressure as well as bitters and IPAs etc served on handpump. They seem to have a far more balanced selection than Australia



By all means offer similar beers in the UK, there is probably a market for them, but don't confuse them with UK real ale.

Put it this way, if there were a Campaign for Real Chardonnays they wouldn't be interested in promoting Sherry.

 

[MHB]

CAMRA is an historical preservation society, committed to keeping the past alive and well, no surprise they are a touch reactionary.
Personally I think they have done a wonderful job of keeping some of Britons great beers alive (for my drinking pleasure) doesnt mean there isnt room for new and interesting beer. Hell its a big industry room for all the players.
MHB

 

[kevo]

Have no dramas with CAMRA preserving the tradition - and good on them for doing it.

But supporting growth and interest in 'real beer' (as opposed to the bland keg lagers they were set up to fight against) can only help to further raise awareness and interest in 'real ale' and CAMRA's cause.

Lots of people here speak of brewing as 'art' artists are inspired and influenced by others - so it is with brewing.

Wonder if we'd have robust porter if someone hadn't played around with a porter recipe (or stuffed itup!) or Imperial anything?

No worries in supporting tradition, but to be blind to innovation is foolish, methinks.

Kev

 

[mje1980]

Won't be too long before the BJCP announces the following styles

1. ) Imperial bitter

2.) Cascadian special bitter

3. ) Double pale

 

[Bribie G]

What about Australian Bitter? Bloody ridiculous.

 

[mje1980]

What about Australian Bitter? Bloody ridiculous.

Haha, 20% cane sugar, lots of POR, and coopers yeast, mmmmm tasty!!.

I think the BJCP is a good thing, i just think adding new styles willy nilly kind of dilutes the rest of them, hence my dig. Just my .02c.

 

[eamonnfoley]

Wandering off topic here:
I actually totally agree with them. The creeping Americanisation of our own beers is an example - it would be terrific if more of our craft breweries were to develop a full flavoured traditional Aussie Lager or Ales like they would have been in the past

+1 An aussie lager, ale and stout can be absolutely outstanding if done well. And with the burden of excise on small breweries, and the expense of imported hops, I'm not sure why its not being pursued more actively? I love American beers as much as the next person, but we can't really do them properly here in Aust (with the rare exception, i.e. Feral, Murrays). This is possibly due in part to skimping on ingredients (i.e. US hops).

 

[felten]

You could argue that Galaxy etc are Aussie inventions - but I suspect they were developed to be used in American style craft beers.
I was very impressed with my trip to NZ last year - they not only do their own style of ales with the likes of Riwaka and Motueka but produce some cracking porters, stouts and lagers served under pressure as well as bitters and IPAs etc served on handpump. They seem to have a far more balanced selection than Australia

We grow a few different types of hops than just galaxy and topaz http://www.hops.com.au/products/australian_varieties.html you don't see alot of news about the others though <_<. Personally I'd like to try out the stella hop, never seen it mentioned anywhere.

 

[MHB]

In fact both Galaxy and Topaz were both developed for the extract market. Topaz has set all kinds of new records for yield both in Kgs and in Alpha (Kgs to the Hectare); it was being grown for several years before they decided (thankfully) to try both of them as kettle hops. Both are still mainly sold to the extract market.
MHB

 

[Jazzafish]

I think most Aussie hops will be geared towards the extract market. I mean if I wanted to grow hops for profit I'd tailor the core business to suit the monopoly breweries too.

I have read that growers are developing some aroma varieties, which is awesome! But it is by no means a change in the core business of essentially growing alpha acid that pays the bills.

I also suspect, and could be very wrong, that the climate we live in has the biggest say in the lack of purely aroma hops varieties grown

 

[Bribie G]

Extracts aren't all about the AA - well overseas they aren't. If you grab a slab of Oettinger for example the ingredients state "Water, Malted Barly, HopSextract " (did I get the capitalisation right there? ) and the good old Kraut $30 lifesaver has heaps of aroma. I guess there are different types of extracts depending on the style. For example I detect distinct hop fragrance from Melbourne Bitter that I don't get from VB.

Would be great if some of the megas were to introduce a bit of noble aroma into their beers - for example Cascade Premium Lager has a distinct hop nose if you drink some on a clean palate as first beer of the day (which I did recently at the Qld Performing Arts Centre bar) - although I suspect they are using real Saaz for the aroma and not sextract.

Edit: with Oettinger, Furstenburg, Uberbrau, Henninger etc marching out of the door You'd think the megas would consider stemming this blood loss by cranking out a 4.8% Pilsner with very similar characteristics and put it out there for $32 a slab. Or is that too simplistic?

VictoriaBrau? Kangaburg? DownUnterBier?

 

[brett mccluskey]

I did the Cascade Brewery tour a few years ago and they show the hop pellets they use, during the tour, unfortunately the hops they showcased were so aged and 'cheesy' they would have made a great Lambic :lol:

 

[Lord Raja Goomba I]

<snip>
I love American beers as much as the next person, but we can't really do them properly here in Aust (with the rare exception, i.e. Feral, Murrays). This is possibly due in part to skimping on ingredients (i.e. US hops).

I beg to differ. We (the home brewer) can do them properly in oz, as we don't have to skimp on ingredients to make a good beer at reasonable value. Even my most hoppiest APA (choc full of US and Euro hops) is still $2.50 a litre and I don't bulk buy grain (though I'd like to). If I bulk bought grain, it'd be closer to $1.50 per Litre.

However, the craft/micro/whatever brewers that have to sell them, pay excise and still try to make a profit, can't really do so without being a little underdone. It's not their fault, just competing with megaswill, whilst trying to make a profit without pricing themselves out of the market and not getting the same rate for bulk purchases is just so damn hard.

Goomba