The craft beer industry has grown by leaps and bounds over the past ten years. Now, in the beginning, that was a good thing. We were becoming more like Europe, where in countries such as Germany, it seems like every small town has their own brewery, and the beers there are generally good, unique, and flavorful. The first brew pubs were packed here in the U.S., and for connoisseurs of that wonderful, malty beverage, it was a golden age. Beer…
Ahhhhhhh, beer. The working man’s blue-collar drink. Since the dawn of civilization, skilled craftsmen have performed their magical alchemy and carefully brewed hops and barley, producing a golden elixir that has been celebrated and enjoyed for centuries. Throughout history, any town worth its salt has had a brewery. It was as common as a church, town hall, or marketplace. With the industrial age came homogenization and standardization. Local brewers were bought out or run out of business by large national…
Dear American Craft Brewers: Hello! I know you don’t know me, but I’d like to think that I write this letter to you as a representative of the American beer drinking population. First of all, let me say “thank you” for giving us much better versions of Pilsners, Lagers, Porters, and Stouts than any of the “big” breweries out there. You know which ones I’m talking about. The ones that produce watered-down, urine-colored hops and barley that I affectionately refer…