"Enemy"? That's a strong word. Eric Asimov used it in the NYT last week and it got me thinking about me and good beer:
What unites this team is the striving for real wine, real beer, and real food, as opposed to cynical product. That is the problem, and I think most people realize this no matter what they say or do. Craft beer’s battle is not against wine but against decades of cynical marketing from the giant breweries, which have done everything possible to portray beer drinkers as asinine fools. The enemy of good wine is the atrocious marketing that makes wine an aspirational commodity, just another luxury good to purchase for its status value. That has to offend the reverse snob in all of us.
Writing in this space has been an interesting exercise for the six or so years I have been at it. I have found it a respite from political discussion, an opportunity with a less substantial topic as well as time spent with more genial company. Beer sits in our own subjective space like radio does and examining that personal space is a big part of the interest in examining good beer. So, we have to be aware and also beware those forces which would interfere with our subjective experience. I thought of this when Stan discussed the problem of glassware and also Eric Asimov's comment this week and noted:
The enemy of the good is the excellent. But, as you say, the enemy of both the good and the excellent is the false prophet. I’ve learned more about good beer care of a lawn chair than a special glass.
I come back to a theme - North America has no CAMRA, no consumer protection organization. And no Ralph Nader is on the horizon. Instead there are a couple of struggles. First, there is the quiet and by no means universal shuffling to replace Michael Jackson as the best example and to a certain degree leader of beer writers, the one who has the place to identify the themes that are more worthy. Second, we have to less quiet but also by no means universal jockeying to make good beer into an aspirational brand.
For me, the second is more immediately concerning. There is a skewing of the market that I am not satisfied is based primarily on consumer demand. When cost inputs shot up, we were asked for patience and understanding and to dig deeper for the cause. When the cost inputs collapse, there is silence or the suggestion that beer must have been under-priced. We are asked to pay at an amount, as we read in an article in the November issue of All About Beer, to ensure some brewers plans to be "rich and happy" are achieved. Not that it is a bad thing to be rich and happy but ought there not be some humility about the source of the riches, the consumer? I felt a similar way when the short run documentary Beer Wars came out and the PR told me and others to not only fall in line with the message but pass on that message without comment. You may recall I did not give a rat's ass.
These factors are indicative of conditions which could inflate price to the detriment of the consumer. We know from Andre Barr's excellent 1988 book Wine Snobbery that assertions of excellence should be met with suspicion. The idea is summed up well in his observations that there is no vintage so bad in champagne that excellent sparking wine and that it is critical to the big houses that regional wines are not sold under the particular village name so as to not weaken the brand image which they have worked so hard to promote. Is the good beer market been affected by similar forces? Is even the idea that we consumers are foot soldiers in a "war" facing an "enemy" a construct to manufacture loyalties that distract?
Which leads me to that first problem up there, the state of beer writing. In the few short years I have paid attention to this stuff, I can only describe what we are witnessing as an explosion of great writing and thinking about good beer. But I can't wholeheartedly include beer and economics to the same degree I would point to other topics within this renaissance - though to be fair some examples are far worse than others. I don't know why the economics of craft beer buying are not a discussion. We consuming readers are encouraged to wish all brewers well, to feed our obsessions for rare and exotic, to join the cause. But, while it is true that a rising tide raises all boats, it does not float mine if it is at my expense or at least the role of my wallet is not a major consideration. Because my values include value. And value is relative and, as Lew noted this week, can come in unexpected, unheralded and inexpensive places. Wouldn't a consumer focused discourse make that the story of the week?
For me, is there an enemy? I am sure there are some but it is still too vague, too inarticulately put for me to trust.
Comments
Jeff Alworth - November 1, 2009 5:46 PM
Based on my discussions with brewers, they have to raise prices. I don't know what it's like on the east coast or in Canada, but we have so many breweries and pubs in the NW that prices stay pretty low. Breweries can sell a lot of beer here (good), but because the quality is so good, few try to "signal price" their beer. It's all good.
And, compared to a bottle of decent local Pinot ($20, minimum), eight dollars a sixer remains a good deal.
Alan - November 1, 2009 7:54 PM
Good point and maybe there is a critical point for real competition to arise that overcomes other forces. I am going to be across mid-week, Jeff, and have a look around NNY but what we get here in the Great White North is $12 to $15 a six as we live in a monopoly retail market.
Jeff Alworth - November 1, 2009 10:47 PM
Holy crap! I know the exchange rate is unstable, and beer pricing is more stable, but that works out to something well north of $10 a sixer, US. (And I was a bit off. According to Bill, the current average price in Portland for a six-pack is $8.85.
I visited Allagash last year and was pretty surprised at the prices they were commanding. Allagash is a fantastic brewery, but they get $10 a minimum for .75 liters. Here it's very difficult to get more than $11--which seems to be the ceiling. Allagash is great beer, but it's not better than Deschutes Abyss or Widmer cherry-aged doppelbock (etc etc). So the more I think about it, the more I sympathize with your position. Our brewers are probably getting by on a smaller margin--but probably have a safer, more predictable customer base.
Beantown Brews - November 2, 2009 6:30 PM
Jeff - I am with you on Allagash. Great beer, but way over priced. You end up paying a good deal more than most 6-packs for a 4-pack. I kept telling myself "well it is the extra care they put in to the beer," but I am not so sure about that lately. Great beer - shitty price point.
Stan Hieronymus - November 2, 2009 7:56 PM
Jeff - It's been more than a year since we looked at Allagash prices, but then the beers above $15 were more like the Cascade offerings - time and funk involved. When we were in Oregon the best price we saw for a 750ml of Cascade was $17.99. Maybe we were looking in the wrong places.
The Widmer Doppelbock is $7.49 in our market right now.
dave - November 2, 2009 9:29 PM
$12 to $15 a six pack for what? Good Lord. Is that for a local beer or something imported?
Speaking of beer and economics, maybe a possible way of getting the ball rolling is including price in beer reviews? Giving an idea of "It was good for $12 a six pack, but beyond that I would pass". Granted that might get a little confusing with exchange rates, but maybe a possible start? Not really sure though.
Alan - November 2, 2009 9:56 PM
Here are some prices from the LCBO:
- Delaware's Dogfish 60 Minute is $14.25 a six
- Quebec's Dieu du Ciel Peche Mortel is $22.80 a six
- Ontario's Mill Street Coffee Porter is $12.55 a six
- Ontario's Saint Andre Vienna Lager is $11.45 a six
- Belgium's Het Anker Margriet is $13.80 a six
- Genny Ice is $10.50 a six.
dave - November 3, 2009 10:24 AM
So that means (with current exchange rate of 1 Canadian dollar = 0.92816 U.S. dollars [care of google]) the 60 Minute six pack costs $13.23 in U.S. I have not picked up a 60 Minute in a while, but I think that is high. Tonight I should be able to get some price comparisons on 60 Minute, and Dieu du Ciel. Not sure about the other beers though.
Alan - November 3, 2009 11:47 AM
Where is that link to the local beer price index idea that was floated a few weeks ago. The LCBO would be able to provide data to create an Ontario comparison.
dave - November 3, 2009 11:34 PM
Some numbers for Boston (taken from four stores, though not all beers were represented at all four stores):
Dogfish Head 60 Minute: $11 - $12 per six pack
Quebec's Dieu du Ciel (did not note which ones, but they were only found at one of the stores and the different types ranged from): $5 - $7 per 12oz bottle
Allagash White: $9 - $10 per four pack
Allagash Tripel: $10 - $12 per four pack
Widmer Hefe: $8.50 per six pack
Take these prices and then add on 6.25% sales tax and 5 cent deposit per bottle.
Alan - November 4, 2009 1:44 AM
My prices include taxes so I am starting to feel happily surprised.
Jeff Alworth - November 4, 2009 2:26 PM
<i>Jeff - It's been more than a year since we looked at Allagash prices, but then the beers above $15 were more like the Cascade offerings - time and funk involved. When we were in Oregon the best price we saw for a 750ml of Cascade was $17.99. Maybe we were looking in the wrong places.</i>
You're right about the Cascade. You do get a bit of a deal at the brewery--fifteen bucks, I think. But it's not just the funky Allagash that was expensive. As Dave's numbers show, the brewery is charging a premium on all their beers.
That said, I am perhaps using the wrong data point. I was mainly contrasting it with Alan's quote of Canadian prices. Perhaps Allagash is just an outlier. In Oregon, Rogue charges substantially more than competing breweries. Some folks just charge more. In Allagash's case, more power to them. I would gladly pay more across the board for their beers if it subsidized experiments like the spontaneous fermentation.
This is a bit off topic, but I went to New Seasons, a local organic grocery store in town that boasts a massive beer selection and picked up a passel of German beer for super cheap. I got a Monschoff Schwarz in a swing-top for three bucks. Another swing-top doppel (name eludes me in this moment) was four and change. German biers remain the best value of the good-beer world.