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23-09-2013, 10:47
Visit the Woolpack Dave's Beer and Stuff site (http://hardknott.blogspot.com/2013/09/a-philosophical-view-of-craft-beer.html)
I was sent an email containing a scanned copy of an interesting article the other day. The friend who sent it knows my interest in the question of Craft Beer, what it is, and whether it is relevant or not. I actually think my friend is fairly ambivalent about the subject, generally declaring he just likes beer. None-the-less, the article obviously fired a level of recognition of something that he did like.
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-B5JQO1C0XM0/UjwcWMvscRI/AAAAAAAABbs/6Iqx-TcPKVc/s320/what-is-critical-thinking+copy.jpg (http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-B5JQO1C0XM0/UjwcWMvscRI/AAAAAAAABbs/6Iqx-TcPKVc/s1600/what-is-critical-thinking+copy.jpg)
The article in question appeared in Brewing and Distilling International (http://www.ibd.org.uk/publications/brewer-and-distiller-international/601/bdi-overview/) - I'm not a member of the IBD so I don't get a copy. The article is called "Craft Beer - A Philosopher's Perspective". I liked it a lot. As I can't link to the article, as it seems to only be available in print, I shall explain what it talks about.
It talks about direction of fit. It talks about whether a beer is produced to appeal to a large potential customer base, or if the beer is made to appeal to the brewer, or perhaps a brewer and his mates, and then an attempt to try and find enough people, or convert enough people into liking it.
This is exactly, to me, what most true craft brewers are doing. Making beer they believe in and then attempting to convince people to like their approach to beer. These brewers truly believe they make something that people should like, but perhaps it doesn't conform to the staid conformist beers on general sale.
"If you want to make a successful, high-
selling beer, brewing a beer tailored to suit
people’s tastes, the beer-to-public direction-of-
fit is the rational approach"And actually, more recently, as we've grown from where we were three years ago, we've made some beers deliberately to have broader appeal. There are many breweries who only ever do that. Moreover, and I think this is very important, it's got nothing to do with dispense format.
The other day I found myself in a London pub, with a series of about 6 handpulls. I tried most of the beers, and frankly, they were all the same in everything but name. All quite refreshing, balanced and very competently brewed, but to my palate quite bland and watery and with very little hop character. Obviously all brewed to fit the tastes of the wider1 cask beer drinker.
I still believe we stand by, and will continue to stand by the basic principle outlined in the article.
"Craft brewers are crazy about beer in the
sense that their desire to brew good beer has a
public-to-beer direction of fit. They try to
make a product which fulfils their conception
of the perfect beer and try to bring the public
over to it. As such, they’re personally invested
in the product. This is why craft beer has the
kind integrity and authenticity characteristic of
old-fashioned craft." The article was written by Andrew Jorgensen and published June 2013.
-------------------
1 "Wider cask beer drinker" - what am I talking about? The width of the drinker has got nothing to do with it I expect.
More... (http://hardknott.blogspot.com/2013/09/a-philosophical-view-of-craft-beer.html)
I was sent an email containing a scanned copy of an interesting article the other day. The friend who sent it knows my interest in the question of Craft Beer, what it is, and whether it is relevant or not. I actually think my friend is fairly ambivalent about the subject, generally declaring he just likes beer. None-the-less, the article obviously fired a level of recognition of something that he did like.
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-B5JQO1C0XM0/UjwcWMvscRI/AAAAAAAABbs/6Iqx-TcPKVc/s320/what-is-critical-thinking+copy.jpg (http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-B5JQO1C0XM0/UjwcWMvscRI/AAAAAAAABbs/6Iqx-TcPKVc/s1600/what-is-critical-thinking+copy.jpg)
The article in question appeared in Brewing and Distilling International (http://www.ibd.org.uk/publications/brewer-and-distiller-international/601/bdi-overview/) - I'm not a member of the IBD so I don't get a copy. The article is called "Craft Beer - A Philosopher's Perspective". I liked it a lot. As I can't link to the article, as it seems to only be available in print, I shall explain what it talks about.
It talks about direction of fit. It talks about whether a beer is produced to appeal to a large potential customer base, or if the beer is made to appeal to the brewer, or perhaps a brewer and his mates, and then an attempt to try and find enough people, or convert enough people into liking it.
This is exactly, to me, what most true craft brewers are doing. Making beer they believe in and then attempting to convince people to like their approach to beer. These brewers truly believe they make something that people should like, but perhaps it doesn't conform to the staid conformist beers on general sale.
"If you want to make a successful, high-
selling beer, brewing a beer tailored to suit
people’s tastes, the beer-to-public direction-of-
fit is the rational approach"And actually, more recently, as we've grown from where we were three years ago, we've made some beers deliberately to have broader appeal. There are many breweries who only ever do that. Moreover, and I think this is very important, it's got nothing to do with dispense format.
The other day I found myself in a London pub, with a series of about 6 handpulls. I tried most of the beers, and frankly, they were all the same in everything but name. All quite refreshing, balanced and very competently brewed, but to my palate quite bland and watery and with very little hop character. Obviously all brewed to fit the tastes of the wider1 cask beer drinker.
I still believe we stand by, and will continue to stand by the basic principle outlined in the article.
"Craft brewers are crazy about beer in the
sense that their desire to brew good beer has a
public-to-beer direction of fit. They try to
make a product which fulfils their conception
of the perfect beer and try to bring the public
over to it. As such, they’re personally invested
in the product. This is why craft beer has the
kind integrity and authenticity characteristic of
old-fashioned craft." The article was written by Andrew Jorgensen and published June 2013.
-------------------
1 "Wider cask beer drinker" - what am I talking about? The width of the drinker has got nothing to do with it I expect.
More... (http://hardknott.blogspot.com/2013/09/a-philosophical-view-of-craft-beer.html)