Gary, under a file with the special code name "Special report from correspondent Gary Rith", gave me the heads up about a flap over at least one beer claiming to be "organic":
I tried Green Valley Brewery's Organic Wild Hops beer and reviewed it here a few months ago. I had seen it advertised, tried it and liked it. Then I looked it up - Green Valley brewery is a front for Anheuser Busch, there is not really any such brewery.Frankly, I have a wee bit of an issue about organic of anything when it is coming from a mass produced industrial scale anything. Don't get me wrong - I have a compost pile, I leave the dandelions in the lawn with the best of them and I am all for saving the microbes - especially those in blue cheese. But I mean what is the point about an organic beer that is driven by truck 4,000 miles to the point of sale? One beetle saved at the farm is just swapped for 10,000 killed along the roadway. I am more interested in local and real ale myself.There is a fresh and new stink rising from this product: do they really use ORGANIC hops, and why is Budweiser twisting the republican administration arm to say that it is? Our friend at Beer Activist writes about this rather well, and links it further to an excellent article in the LA Times.
If Bud had simply called it "Green Valley Lager with some wild organic hops by Budweiser" I would have enjoyed the product and the honest outlook.
But, like Gary noted in his original post, Ms. Special Correspondent and many like her do prefer the organic label when they are confronted with choice. So do any of you like organic beers particularly and would you buy them in preference to anything else. And here a some posts which refer to "organic" - do they represent any particular theme or quality?
Comments
Stan Hieronymus - June 14, 2007 8:40 AM
Another question would be: Do organic beers taste "better" or even different?
In an excellent two-part review of the Organic Beer Festival in Portland, Ore., Jeff Alworth says the overall quality was excellent and makes a couple of interesting points:
"More likely, it is a reflection of a particular moment in time: breweries don't lightly brew organic beers. Since they take special effort, it seems like breweries take special care with the recipes."
And:
"It is inevitable that this moment will not last. All trends revert to the mean. Eventually, if we're lucky, organic beer will become the norm, not the exception. And then we'll have the usual distribution of mediocre efforts and noble failures. But for now, and probably for the next couple-three years, seek out organic beers."
Knut Albert - June 14, 2007 9:06 AM
I don't think organic beer (or organic food) will save the planet. The opposite may be more correct - more land is needed to grow organically than with fertilizers, and with the increasing demand for bio fuel, we are in for a squeeze.
But there is another point here, and that is quality. Small scale producers of beer (or wine, or cheese, or carrots..) take more care about the quality of their product than the ones run by the accounting division of multinational companies. And real organic producers are small scale and care passionately about what they are doing. This makes them interesting to seek out and for us beer enthusiasts to embrace them!
Pam Reed - June 14, 2007 1:20 PM
Alan, I am the Mother of Joe Reed aka the unabrewer. I am trying to locate him, have not spoken with him since he went to China. Yes I am a shamed to say that. I just want to know he is ok. Please if you hear from him ask him to please call 501-843-1606 (home)or at least email.
Thank You....Pam
Jon - September 17, 2007 11:40 PM
At the end of the day, my taste buds decide the best beer, not my environmental conscience. If organic beer tastes great because of smaller scale operations, I will buy it soley for the taste.
Reed Vander Schaaf - October 5, 2007 3:41 AM
I brew organic beer, have been for the last 5 years. I think it's the best revolution in brewing since hops, and when I compost my grains it just feels so sweet. Honestly though not all "organic" beers are made with ALL organic ingredients. Our friends at some of the fizzy yellow wussy drink factory don't use organic hops, even some of the smaller brewerys are taking this rout, I'm boycotting any organic beers that are not honestly made with organics ingredients. Besides who wants to be hurting the earth when your drinkin your a favorite brew?
Jean-Yves Landry - December 19, 2008 12:05 PM
Organic beer is simply beer made without GMOs or any human made chemicals. There are of course a few ripoffs, but there are many that are good. Some is produced in New-Brunswick, Canada, where I am from. Organic beer is the way to go.
Alan - December 19, 2008 3:24 PM
"Simply"? Thanks for that papering over - especially the obfuscation of GMO with compost pile. And, to Reed's point 14 months ago, I'd rather have a beer with inorganic hops (if such a thing is possible) that didn't use 150 gallons of fuel to be shipped to me.