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Anchor Brewing Company ends national distribution, kills Christmas Ale

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Re: Anchor Brewing Company ends national distribution, kills Christmas Ale

#141

Post by 13of40 »

bamfly wrote: post #86
mikestew wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I was just thinking that this weekend in the Seattle area as we wandered the aisles for six for the wife. It’s either an attempt to put the scariest-looking skull(s) on the label, or $SOMETHING $SEXUAL_REFERENCE $FARM_ANIMAL (e. g., Ass-Kickin’ Horny Goat Stout).

> It’s either an attempt to put the scariest-looking skull(s) on the label One of the people behind Liquid Death water was on NPR some weeks back, and basically their entire deal, as told by him, was just taking canned water and applying craft beer branding. Not to knock it, evidently it worked and, as far as the product and concept, was all they needed. Just thought it was funny—yeah, why not put an edgy name and sk…

The only reason I haven't bought one of those at Whole Foods is I don't want to deal with the cops seeing it in the cup holder in my car. Much better to buy the plastiboard container that says "Just Water" on the side[1] and fill it with vodka.

(I am kidding.)

[1]https://dg6qn11ynnp6a.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2018...

Re: Anchor Brewing Company ends national distribution, kills Christmas Ale

#142

Post by karlshea »

rootusrootus wrote: post #90
bsder wrote: post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What is happening in the craft beer market? Ballast Point had a similar trajectory. They got bought for a gigabuck and now are just gone . Why the hell would you buy a company and then screw it up ? In the case of Ballast Point, all Constellation Brands had to do was leave the bought company alone . And, no, I don't believe that the issue is because you can buy great beers in every market. Hogwash. Maybe I can buy IP…

> I can buy IPA, IPAer, IPAest, and IPAestest in every market--maybe. However, dark, heavy porters I'm totally with you, though my personal love is sour beers. IPA rules the market, to the point where I have trouble distinguishing between whichever super-hoppy IPA is currently the best. But good sour beers are not nearly so common. If someone ever buys Cascade Brewing and kills it, I will be wildly irritated. I do se…

There's a bunch of Minnesota breweries doing some amazing sours, and many of them are only around for a season or two before they switch up the fruits. I'm so happy about it because I was totally burnt out on IPAs.

And now that everyone isn't so IPA-happy there are some great examples of varieties like Gose and Kolsch that I hadn't even heard of before.

Re: Anchor Brewing Company ends national distribution, kills Christmas Ale

#143

Post by pdntspa »

vrosas wrote: post #88
pdntspa wrote: post #82

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Such is progress - there is no more regional taste, only trend Can you tell that to Yuengling, I would really like to partake in their beer without having to fly to Philly

I stopped drinking Yuengling when they got cozy with Trump in 2016. So many other superior breweries in Philly - Yards, Victory, Attic just to name a few.

I don't really believe in this whole stupid 'boycott them because they don't align with my values' bullshit, people should be free to express their political opinions however they see fit

Re: Anchor Brewing Company ends national distribution, kills Christmas Ale

#144

Post by shaklee3 »

eyelidlessness wrote: post #51
pfranz wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Beer is incredibly difficult to keep shelf-stable. International beers, unless very specific efforts are taken, will taste off. I heard a story that Austrian beer enthusiasts just assumed American beers tasted "skunky" because that's how they tasted after importing them. Time, temperature, and light are enemies. Anheuser-Busch has a dozen breweries across the US. I'm not a fan of hops, but the PNW grows 96% of hops i…

The skunky odor/flavor comes from light exposure to hops and it’s easily prevented with dark bottles or cans. Other herbs work well as preservatives and don’t get skunky at all. Beer can be shelf stable basically indefinitely if well kept, and often ages very well.

That's absolutely not true. IPAs cannot be shelf stable past a few months if unrefrigerated. They start to lose the hoppy aroma and taste and taste more muted. The longer you go the more skunky it tastes.

Re: Anchor Brewing Company ends national distribution, kills Christmas Ale

#145

Post by pacifist »

My fathers's dear friend Stese was close with the old brewmaster at Anchor Steam. He was in his 90's at the time and one day he told Stese to start following him around the brewery and watch how he did things so he could take over for him when he was gone. Stese dutifully observed the brewmaster and took over his duties when he died. Soon there was a kid following him around taking notes on a clipboard. Fritz Maytag took over the operation, expanded it, bought a fleet of trucks and gave steam beer in SF a second life.

Re: Anchor Brewing Company ends national distribution, kills Christmas Ale

#146

Post by shaklee3 »

eyelidlessness wrote: post #120
pfranz wrote: post #107

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If it's easy to prevent, why is it so much more of a problem than for wine? Budweiser had a “born on date” and later switched it to a "freshest before" date. Other breweries insist on cold shipping--that's quite expensive.

It’s not really much of a problem. Beers that go skunky are typically sold in green or clear bottles. It really is the exposure of hops to light that causes it (and I have confirmed it with homebrew batches where some bottles skunked up rapidly while others lasted multiple years with no such effects, and even aged quite well). For beers like Bud that are mostly sold in cans, and/or Bud Light often sold in brown bottl…

Again, so this isn't confusing for anyone, this comment is totally wrong. Beer breweries do this because there's a clear change in flavor for beers left unrefrigerated and/or exposed to light.

Re: Anchor Brewing Company ends national distribution, kills Christmas Ale

#147

Post by shaklee3 »

prottog wrote: post #23
0xB31B1B wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I hate local beers. Local wine makes sense, there is terroir, a sense of place etc. Local beers are just some weird competition to see who can make the hopiest bitterest beer. I don't want to try a new lager every time I cross county lines, when I want beer I want something reliable.

People get it in their heads that small and local means good or at least better than the stuff mass-produced by MegaCorp, but that's not always the case. I think beer is a case where it's hard to beat Big Beer. Heineken, the second-biggest brewery in the world, moved 231.2 million hectoliters of beer in 2021[0], or nearly 19,000 acre-feet of beer (!). How many locally-produced lagers actually taste better than Heinek…

I'm really confused at the general lack of knowledge about this topic on HN. Heineken is one of the worst beers made, and local beers, while mostly not great, are certainly better. Look at untappd for statistically significant ratings.

Re: Anchor Brewing Company ends national distribution, kills Christmas Ale

#148

Post by julianz »

bsder wrote: post #83
AndrewKemendo wrote: post #65

>sold to Sapporo in 2017 Ah, I was wondering where the pressure was coming from. The idea that this 150 year old brewery is closing down a truly cornerstone beer in craft beer history because the label art is expensive - despite weathering untold recessions and tough periods - strains credulity

What is happening in the craft beer market? Ballast Point had a similar trajectory. They got bought for a gigabuck and now are just gone . Why the hell would you buy a company and then screw it up ? In the case of Ballast Point, all Constellation Brands had to do was leave the bought company alone . And, no, I don't believe that the issue is because you can buy great beers in every market. Hogwash. Maybe I can buy IP…

Happily, Ballast Point beers are still made under license locally here in New Zealand (by Behemoth Brewing) and are available fresh in my local supermarket. Yum!

https://asiabrewersnetwork.com/news/new-zealands-behemoth-pa...

Re: Anchor Brewing Company ends national distribution, kills Christmas Ale

#149

Post by libraryatnight »

iJohnDoe wrote: post #73
AndrewKemendo wrote: post #65

>sold to Sapporo in 2017 Ah, I was wondering where the pressure was coming from. The idea that this 150 year old brewery is closing down a truly cornerstone beer in craft beer history because the label art is expensive - despite weathering untold recessions and tough periods - strains credulity

My key takeaway as well. The moment I read that line I knew it was just corporate budgeting. EBIDA strikes again. They purchased the company because they were successful and will then proceed to kill the company by doing the exact opposite things that made them successful.

I hate this trend. Because successful as a business that sustains itself and success as part of a portfolio are different and the latter version of success is always less human, less interesting, just less.

Re: Anchor Brewing Company ends national distribution, kills Christmas Ale

#150

Post by mcbutterbunz »

analog31 wrote: post #136
bsder wrote: post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What is happening in the craft beer market? Ballast Point had a similar trajectory. They got bought for a gigabuck and now are just gone . Why the hell would you buy a company and then screw it up ? In the case of Ballast Point, all Constellation Brands had to do was leave the bought company alone . And, no, I don't believe that the issue is because you can buy great beers in every market. Hogwash. Maybe I can buy IP…

What I've noticed (purely my opinion): 1. We've reached Peak IPA. It was novel a couple decades ago, but geez, you can't taste the beer for the hops any more. 2. "Craft beer" has become a branding exercise. A lot of it is being brewed in contract breweries that will make a batch of whatever recipe you provide, with any label art you want. Bingo, craft beer. A couple of breweries in my region, in conversations, people…

Beer, coffee, hamburgers, pizza. They’re all solved problems. The only thing that makes a difference is the marketing.
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