Craft Beer Industry Concerns - what is and isn't craft beer

[Mardoo]

Here's a pretty interesting talk by Tony Magee, owner/originator of Lagunitas Brewing in the States. It's a talk he gave at a major-brewer marketing conference about the difference between craft and major breweries. He all but raises the finger at them

http://www.craftbeer.com/wp-content/uploads/Tony_Magee_Final.pdf

 

[yankinoz]

Whatever the definition.of craft beer, if the ACCC takes action against exclusionary contracts, as the article indicates might happen, it's good news.

 

[Mardoo]

We also need a beer equivalent of the WET.

 

[wide eyed and legless]

Good article, read one of Tony Magee's books, 'Can't shove a great life into a small dream'

 

[Mardoo]

His "So You Want to Start A Brewery" is a great read. Just finished it

 

[crowmanz]

Here it is again - hottest 100 sparks customary debate what is craft beer?

 

[LAGERFRENZY]

At around four bucks a stubby at Uncles Dan's maybe it should be called Crafty beer?

 

[good4whatAlesU]

craft

krɑːft/

noun

1. 
   
   1.
   
   
   an activity involving skill in making things by hand.
   "the craft of cobbling"
   
   
   
   

Generally, unless your doing it by hand (grinding, mashing, boiling) .. . it ain't craft.

Hardly any breweries out there that don't use some kind of automated gear these days I would have thought.

edit: Boutique is probably the word that is wanted. But us burly beer drinking types don't want to be labelled as "boutique'

boutique

noun
1.
a small shop or a small specialty department within a larger store,especially one that sells fashionable clothes and accessories or aspecial selection of other merchandise.

2.
any small, exclusive business offering customized service:
Our advertising is handled by a new Madison Avenue boutique.


3.
Informal. a small business, department, etc., specializing in one aspect of a larger industry:

4.
of, designating, or characteristic of a small, exclusive producer or business:

 

[Killer Brew]

craft

krɑːft/

noun

1. 
   
   1.
   
   
   an activity involving skill in making things by hand.
   "the craft of cobbling"
   
   
   
   

Generally, unless your doing it by hand (grinding, mashing, boiling) .. . it ain't craft.

Hardly any breweries out there that don't use some kind of automated gear these days I would have thought.

edit: Boutique is probably the word that is wanted. But us burly beer drinking types don't want to be labelled as "boutique'

boutique

noun
1.
a small shop or a small specialty department within a larger store,especially one that sells fashionable clothes and accessories or aspecial selection of other merchandise.

2.
any small, exclusive business offering customized service:
Our advertising is handled by a new Madison Avenue boutique.


3.
Informal. a small business, department, etc., specializing in one aspect of a larger industry:

4.
of, designating, or characteristic of a small, exclusive producer or business:

FFS, so you have finished going on about what defines an ale and have now turned to craft?? Wouldn't be many craft breweries that are fully automated for a start so there is an element of doing it by hand involved. Aside from that and you have selected one very limited definition of the term to make your case. Try the following from Cambridge Dictionary for size.


craft


noun
UK /krɑːft/ US /kræft/

• 
  
  craft noun (SKILL)
  

B2 [C or U] plural crafts skill and experience, especially inrelation to making objects; a job or activity that needsskill and experience, or something produced using skill andexperience:the craft of furniture making/sewing/glassblowingpolitical/literary craftrural/ancient/traditional craftscraft workers (= skilled workers)

 

[rude]

Wow this post is long haven't read the lot so apologies if this has already been said

Way out West here south of the river we have an LHBS called TWOC run owned by ROY

Started out as a craft shop by his wife Tina's World of Craft

Roy & co have muscled in & transformed it into a ripper craft brew shop

Now that's what I call crafty

 

[good4whatAlesU]

FFS, so you have finished going on about what defines an ale and have now turned to craft?? Wouldn't be many craft breweries that are fully automated for a start so there is an element of doing it by hand involved. Aside from that and you have selected one very limited definition of the term to make your case. Try the following from Cambridge Dictionary for size.


craft
noun UK /krɑːft/ US /kræft/

• craft noun (SKILL)

B2 [C or U] plural crafts skill and experience, especially inrelation to making objects; a job or activity that needsskill and experience, or something produced using skill andexperience:the craft of furniture making/sewing/glassblowingpolitical/literary craftrural/ancient/traditional craftscraft workers (= skilled workers)

Dueling dictionaries at 10 paces?

 

[good4whatAlesU]

It's sort of like going down to the local markets to buy "craft products" to find out that many of them have driven up from Sydney with a lot of crap they ordered from China on eBay.

Craft generally means hand made locally. That's my interpretation (opinion). You may have another and your entitled to it.

If a so called "craft brewery" is putting out a couple hundred thousand litres a year, with automated machinery - that can hardly be called craft, can it?

 

[sp0rk]

It's sort of like going down to the local markets to buy "craft products" to find out that many of them have driven up from Sydney with a lot of crap they ordered from China on eBay.

Craft generally means hand made locally. That's my interpretation (opinion). You may have another and your entitled to it.

If a so called "craft brewery" is putting out a couple hundred thousand litres a year, with automated machinery - that can hardly be called craft, can it?

The generally accepted term in the US is based on a brewery's output, being independent and using traditional brewing methods
Australia hasn't really had a set definition for "craft beer" until CBIA came along in 2011, and their definition is a brewer who outputs under 40 million litres per year

 

[Killer Brew]

It's sort of like going down to the local markets to buy "craft products" to find out that many of them have driven up from Sydney with a lot of crap they ordered from China on eBay.

Craft generally means hand made locally. That's my interpretation (opinion). You may have another and your entitled to it.

If a so called "craft brewery" is putting out a couple hundred thousand litres a year, with automated machinery - that can hardly be called craft, can it?

What craft beer has to do with China and Ebay I have no idea. A couple of hundred thousand litres per year is nothing. Barely possible to be profitable at that level unless you are selling it all at retail margins rather than distributing. As such fairly much every brewery worthy of the name has some degree of automation. Hell, most of the homebrewers here use a degree of automation.

 

[good4whatAlesU]

I suppose if they are all using Australian bottles, Australian paper, Australian cardboard, Australian crown caps, Australian glue, Australian machinery, Australian metal, Australian Ink, Australian vacuums, Australian broom to sweep with.

Then yes, there is nothing to do with China.

True though. I do use a chinese made esky as a mash tun at home. Guilty.

 

[good4whatAlesU]

Getting of topic though .. it is truly a skillful thing to brew beer well and that is a true 'craft' granted. I wish I could do it.

But a brewery that cost several million dollars and is pumping out hundreds of thousands of litres of beer a year. That's pushing the definition IMO.

 

[Killer Brew]

Getting of topic though .. it is truly a skillful thing to brew beer well and that is a true 'craft' granted. I wish I could do it.

But a brewery that cost several million dollars and is pumping out hundreds of thousands of litres of beer a year. That's pushing the definition IMO.

But that is the point. If you use a definition that craft beer is only that which comes from a brewery doing less than 100,000L p.a. then it is just as well that you are brewing for yourself as you will have very little to choose from at any retail outlet.

 

[good4whatAlesU]

There's no reason they can't call them boutique beers or just 'beers'.
'Craft' is essentially just a misplaced marketing term.

it's like free range chooks. How many chooks in a shed is free range? ... Answer: none, because that's not 'free range.

 

[sp0rk]

I would dare say boutique is a misplaced marketing term...
All the big boys were calling their beers boutique before the craft craze came along

 

[Vini2ton]

It's probably been said earlier in the thread, I can't remember. But isn't CRAFT an acronym for a condition that happens when one over-imbibes.