It is a fascinating time in the beer business, a time like no other. There are more breweries making more beer in this country than at any time ever, much of the growth spurred by the beer revolution known as craft brewing. According to the Brewers Association, the adjunct macro lagers, via slick advertising, had mostly monopolized the beer industry in the US. By the mid to late 70s we were down to 44 functioning breweries in the country. One of them, Anchor, under the leadership of Fritz Maytag since 1969, was the first cog in what became the craft beer revolution.

From those humble beginnings, one craft brewery, the craft beer movement began, Albion in 1976, Sierra Nevada in 1981, Widmer in 1984, Sam Adams in 1984, Harpoon in 1986… and the race was on. Forty-four breweries in the 70s became 100 craft breweries by 1988, with the majority being brewpubs, then 500 in 1994 and 1000 by 1996. Despite a small crash in the late nineties and early 2000s, we have hit 2000 craft breweries active in the US as of April 30, 2012, and 2051 breweries overall.

A part of what makes this interesting to me is the history and relativity. In 1873, the year Coors Brewing Company began making beer, there were a record 4131 active breweries in the United States – the most ever and since. With only 37 states in the Union and a population less than 5% of today’s, these breweries combined to make approximately 9 million barrels of beer. Now, we have nearly 2100 breweries producing many times that amount of beer (>200 million barrels) for many times the population (> 310 million). Of course, with modern technology it is possible to produce more beer, faster and more consistently than it was 140 years ago.

This scenario begs a number of questions, however.

1. How many breweries can the US support? We had a small crash in the late nineties, so
2. When will the next one be?
3. What will be the impact of the next crash? The craft beer drinking crowd is growing exponentially, as is the number of breweries.
4. How long can this pace sustain itself? It seems almost inevitable there will be a burst.
5. Where will that burst occur? Will it be nationwide? Sporadic? Localized?We have seen an increase of 2000 breweries in the last 35-40 years, the vast majority of which are craft, micro or nano breweries. Fortunately, thus far, supply and demand (breweries and consumers) have grown on nearly parallel courses.

What will cause what I consider to be an inevitable contraction of this growing bubble of beer? There are a number of factors that can play in. First, of course, is the accelerating pace at which new breweries are opening. The simple math seems the prime culprit in the crash at the end of the 90s. The number of breweries and their output exceeded the consumer demand. At a deeper level, I think we had a lot of breweries that concentrated more on marketing and less on quality, looking for gimmickry to drive consumer interest. As predictably happens consumer interest did not continue to grow, the market contracted and a number of breweries closed. It took a few years for momentum to reverse and growth to be noticeable but since then, it has been a rocket.

Fortunately, in the craft beer business now, it is really hard to find bad beer. There are some better than others, some styles people prefer over others, but the level of quality is impressive. People are flocking to craft beer, sections everywhere are growing, there are more beer tastings, classes, events and beer dinners than ever before educating consumers and growing and developing passion. It is, however, still possible that the number of breweries opening will begin to produce more quality beer than the public will demand.

The second factor I see as being significant is a shortage of supplies and materials. Growth is so fast right now companies like Microstar can’t keep up with demand for new kegs. We are also still struggling with a hops shortage. This is caused by multiple factors, as well. Outside the US there have been some poor crops, an overabundance of hops in the 90s caused a crash in price which put some farmers out of business and reduced the acreage planted with hops significantly. Lastly, and perhaps most significantly for the long term outlook, while the last several years has seen increases in the hops production in the US, the demand for craft beer has increased at least as fast. Sam Adams is actually, for the second time, selling its excess hops to small breweries that are struggling to source their hops. I cannot swear to it, but I suspect there are a few breweries which were able to stay in business because of this hops infusion.

The third factor I see leading potentially to a collapse is a decline in quality, like was experienced in the late 90s, causing another bubble burst. Fortunately, I do not see this as a likely scenario. There may be a few now and then not making high enough quality, but they will either market to the macro crowd or fail because they are not meeting the demands of the craft crowd. I do not, however, see this as a significant growing trend or more than a blip on the radar.

So, ultimately, the most likely scenario for a burst of this growing craft bubble is either brewery openings and production increases at a rate that can’t be sustained by the consumer base or a severe shortage of raw materials.

Stay tuned for the ongoing adventures of the Craft Beer Whisperer as I use a continuous supply of libations to lubricate the investigative process.

I recently had a chance at a sneak peak (so to speak) at Kappy’s Barrel Series #3. This beer is not yet ready for prime time, though I will promise the carbonation is there. KBS#3 is the Idle Hands Triplication aged in an oak barrel that we supplied to them. This is one special beer. At first sniff, the Bourbon flavour comes through beautifully… I was tempted to just sit there and enjoy the aromas, but the beer was begging to be tasted.

Once I got to tasting it, the vanilla and wood showed up, blended with the whiskey flavours and was just absolutely delicious. This beer is still a couple of months from being ready to sell, though it is in the bottle and is being bottle conditioned for a bit longer. There are hints of the depth and complexity that will come through and though it is not yet a finished product, I am looking forward to how this will develop both by the time we are ready to release it and for a period of time beyond. I think that over time the wood and Bourbon flavours will moderate and bring out more complexity with the Belgian Tripel that is its base and anticipate releasing a truly remarkable beer before long.

First Glimpse of the Future

Today I was able to taste a sample of Kappy’s Barrel Series #2. For this one we went all the way to the exotic land of Everett to find a brewer and the gentlemen at Night Shift Brewing stepped up to the plate. They took their Trifecta Belgian Pale Ale and aged it for a month in a Bourbon barrel that Kappy’s in Medford supplied. This beer will be ready in a few weeks, but is currently not yet carbonated. The oak is balancing beautifully with the beer and once it is carbonated and ready for release … we will have a real winner on our hands. More information will follow as we get closer. This is a pale ale with oak aging … not the usual match, but a delicious experience, which will only get better over the next few weeks as we prepare to unleash this gem.

Recently the Widmer Brothers Brewery released two new beers, starting the Omission series, of gluten free beers, made with Barley. According to FDA guidelines, however, products that are made with ingredients that contain or once contained gluten cannot be labeled as gluten free. So our friends at Widmer Brothers have taken a novel approach to satisfying the needs of the gluten free public, while offering a beer brewed with traditional beer ingredients – including malted barley. Due to people closely involved with their family and the brewery needing to be gluten free, the Widmer Brothers have spent the last six years cloistered in a small room surrounded by test tubes and Bunsen burners (ok, I lied, beer mugs and allergen experts) developing a unique brewing program that allows them to remove the gluten from Omission beer after the beer is made.

Labeling restrictions aside, the Omission brand is the first craft beer brand in the United States focused exclusively on brewing great tasting craft beers with traditional beer ingredients, including malted barley, that are specially crafted to be gluten-free. To be certain they are putting out a product that will be safe for those with Celiac disease or other gluten sensitivities, every batch is sent to two independent laboratories for testing using the R5 Competitive ELISA test to ensure that they are below the international gluten free standard of 20ppm or less. The FDA has proposed the same gluten-free threshold, but has not yet formally adopted this standard.

Additionally, the Omission team has set up a system where consumers can view test results for their own bottle of Omission beer. Consumers are encouraged to visit:http://omissiontests.com/ , enter the date code stamped on the bottle, and view actual test results from the lab, to ensure that the beer meets your health requirements.

Now that the technical stuff is out of the way, let me just say this: This is the first gluten free beer I have tried that has been taste indistinguishable from beer with gluten still in it. The beers are delicious and will be a welcome relief for those who have been unable to enjoy their favorite grain based libation due to health issues. Finally, a gluten free beer, made with Barley that tastes just like a beer should.

It is the time of season again for mixed drinks over ice. We have a classic recipe for you tonight, as some classic drinks are making a comeback. The fun part of these is that it is the season for Ginger Beer, most recognizable as a key ingredient in the infamous Dark & Stormy, but there in some other forms, as well!

For a fun incarnation of Ginger Beer, we recommend the Broken Down Chevy. This is a delightful and refreshing summertime beverage. If you are confident in your golf game or just don’t care what your score is…this is one way to make an afternoon of golf pass more quickly. Start by mixing 2 ounces of your favorite Vodka, one spoon of Agave Nectar and 1 ounce of grapefruit juice in a mixing glass. Shake thoroughly and pour into a glass. Top the glass with 3 ounces of Ginger Beer and garnish with a slice of grapefruit or lime.

Next, plant your feet shoulder width apart, golf ball on a tee just inside your left foot, beverage receptacle neatly held inside the curved fingers of your right hand, eye the target and study the projected trajectory for the desired result. Gently bending your right elbow, carefully lift the receptacle, tilt towards your mouth, drink and savour the refreshing liquid as it passes over your palate. Look at the other members of your foursome and simply say, “hole in one.” Repeat as necessary. Practice with deliberation and focus. You have just mastered the Broken Down Chevy. Also remember, that like golf… consumption of this beverage involves keeping your score low.

6-25-12
Today turned out to be a wonderful adventure. I made the first of what I anticipate will be many pilgrimages to the Cambridge Brewing Co. I went with a friend, found a very entertaining and knowledgeable bartender, some delicious food and some incredible beer.

We started off with a small pour of Ozymandius …the only size they serve of this beer. Ozymandias is named after the King of Kings in the famous sonnet by Shelley. It’s the CBC 23rd anniversary beer, and wow… The best way to describe the flavor is that it is like a dark porter, with a touch of sour balanced by some sweetness from the red wine and bourbon barrels used to make it. The nose had light notes of dark fruit, which also followed through on the palate, lending some of that sweetness as well.

Even better, as dark and rich and intense as it was, there was balance, and the 15% abv was not noticeable in the flavour. All told, this is an exquisite beer, which I regret is not available in the bottle, understandably. This is also a beer to sip; to drink slowly and contemplate.

I also had the opportunity to sample another tremendous beer, which is virtually beyond description. This beer was called Mass Appeal, and is a serious collaboration. The folks from CBC spearheaded a collaborative beer created with local breweries Mystic Brewing, Night Shift Brewing, Idle Hands Craft Ales, and Enlightenment Ales, using malted wheat and barley from Valley Malt. Even more interesting, the beer was made with four types of hops, yeast from all five participating breweries and a whole fruit stand’s worth of citric fruits.

Mass Appeal was deep, complex, aromatic, fruity on the nose, malt, hops and alcohol in balance. It was also extremely easy to drink, smooth, and enjoyable. This is a beer for sitting and contemplating as well; not a session beer and certainly not something to toss back watching a game and noshing on nachos. I would suggest it with a quiet meal, involving chicken with a cream sauce, and would stay away from tomato sauce (I don’t think the acidity would be a good complement). I would also suggest something in a meaty whitefish such as swordfish, for instance, as I think something light would be overwhelmed by the beverage.

That being said, those beers were only a part of the overall experience, which was tremendous. I am looking forward to my next visit and an array of different beers to try. Somehow I do not think a visit to the CBC will ever be anything less than an adventure, one to be explored over and over again. I looked upon the works of Ozymandias, King of Kings and I rejoiced with each sip. The only despair is that this luscious beverage is unlikely to be repeated.