Monday beer links: Business & craft; technology & craft

MONDAY BEER & WINE LINKS, MUSING 09.25.17

– I expect that this already fascinating conversation with the co-founders of Scofflaw Brewing (yeah, the middle finger guys) may be equally fascinating to look back on in one, three, maybe five, years.

– In explaining the evolution of buyouts Jeff Alworth concludes that “in buying minority stakes in Redhook and Widmer, AB got a front row seat at the craft show.” That would be true, but I’d suggest what they learned after buying Goose Island had a greater impact. It is important to remember AB InBev bought GI after InBev took over AB, bringing with it quite a bit of, shall we say, acquisition history. AB InBev acquired Goose Island in March of 2011 and it was almost three years before it bought Blue Point Brewing, then 10 Barrel Brewing, Elysian Brewing, and so on.

Hamm's bear
– “Value drinkers” are buying more “economy brands” (don’t you love those code words?). Why? “Increased investment in those brands, a thirst for nostalgia and authenticity and, perhaps, continued evidence of a growing income gap in the U.S. that has more consumers seeking value.” Plus, of course, the Hamm’s bear and his animal friends.

– The commercial that didn’t happen: The most interesting man in the world looking into a camera, holding a beer not Dos Equis and saying, “I once made a mistake.”

– My prediction five years ago about how many breweries we’d have today was about 100% wrong. Derrick Peterman tallied the results. Related: Trends, Hot Hands, and Patterns and The Media Has A Probability Problem.

– Brewery Ommegang president Doug Campbell’s description of what he does is straightforward: “My role is to cultivate an atmosphere of creativity and ambition while minding the shop.” Few of the 2,500 or so breweries I didn’t anticipate being in business in 2017 are going to follow Ommegang’s 20-year path, but they’ll still need someobody minding the shop.

AND THESE THREE TOGETHER

How Far Can Beer Science Go? Leading to the question of how far is too far.

– Perhaps using lasers?

– Or “beerbots”? Is Tech Taking The Craft Out Of Homebrewing? (Because it must be serious when NPR takes note.)

WINE

Pinot wants to be loved; gamay wants to f**k.

FROM TWITTER

2 thoughts on “Monday beer links: Business & craft; technology & craft”

    • Thanks for letting me ramble on. Astonishing that I could talk that long and fail to suggest listeners sign up for the Hop Queries newsletter.

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