Craft Beer...At What Price?

Let me start by saying I'm an ignoramus.  I have to tell you upfront that I do not know how much it costs the average craft brewery to brew a six-pack of their standard IPA or a 750ml bottle of their year-round stout.  It might cost them $6.  Maybe a $1.  I'll be it's neither, but somewhere in between.  I know it's likely a heck of a lot more than it costs SABMiller or one of the other macro-giants.  

But still, beer prices have been on the rise across the board.  Are we seeing an endless upward trend in the average price of 6-pack (or God forbid, downsized 4-pack).  I won't call out breweries or beers by name, but you've surely noticed it yourself.  That $7.99 or $8.99 six-pack of craft tastiness you used to eagerly snap up is now $9.99 or $10.99 or even more.  Or maybe it's still $8.99, but now it's in a 4-pack.  Quick math says it may only be a buck or two, but that's a 20% increase or more.

Chart courtesy Brewer's Association

This begs the question, is the cost to brew a quality craft beer increasing that quickly?  I've read that raw material costs are on the rise.  Those costs get passed on from producer to consumer, and I have no problem with that.  Reports show that, while hop acreage increased YOY in 2012, the yield actually decreased (source).  In a similar twist of grain-related fate, the cost of barely has been on a fairly steady 3-year rise...a 250%+ increase from Summer 2009 to Summer 2012 (source).  However, despite the seeming squeeze on resources "craft beer numbers were up: 18% more breweries in the U.S., 15% more beer produced by volume, a 17% increase in sales, and a whopping rise of 72% in American craft beer exports." - Time Magazine (3.22.2013).  Production has, most certainly, not gone down as a result.

I just can't help but feel that maybe some breweries are piggybacking off their more popular beers, and their high demand, to increase prices across the portfolio.  Maybe it truly is the rising cost of raw materials combined with increased demand that is pushing craft beer prices up and up.  Could it be that retailers are picking our pockets without the knowledge of breweries or distributors (it does happen)?  Perhaps it's a combination of all of these factors.  

And I know, I know.  If I want a craft product, I have to pay craft prices.  If I want a high quality beer, I have to pay higher prices.  If I think it's too expensive I don't have to buy it.  I understand how the free market works.  But frankly, I do have to buy it.  I can't drink macro beer anymore...and maybe that's a factor too.  They've got me...right where they want me.

Spring Has Sprung & NYC Craft Beer Festival Will Be Hopping

It was just over one year ago that the first American Craft Beer Festival was held in NYC at the Lexington Armory to rave reviews.  Well, Spring 2013 is upon us and the team has put a new twist on an "old" favorite.  March 30th is the date you should have marked on your calendar to attend the NYC Craft Beer Festival's Spring Seasonals celebration at the Lexington Armory which will play host to over 75 craft beer breweries.  Those craft brewers will be offering up nearly 150 seasonal selections.  Word on the street is that Founders Brewing's vaunted Kentucky Breakfast Stout (KBS) will be making a pre-release appearance at the event!

The NYC Craft Beer Festival is offering two sessions, 12:30 PM-4:00 PM, and 6:00 PM-9:30 PM.  Tickets are on-sale now at NYCCraftBeerFest.com.  They're going fast and won't last much longer, so don't delay!

“The NYC Craft Beer Festival is a true celebration of the American craft beer experience. We invite the country’s best craft brewers to come together at one time, in one place, so attendees can sample a careful selection of the best Spring seasonal brews the brewers have to offer,” said Jim Pickett, Founder Gotham Artisanal and event consultant.

Among the several other speakers and seminars, Giancarlo and Sarah Annese from BeerUnion.com, will hold a seminar & blind tasting to explore the question, “What is "Craft" beer, really?” Attendees will  participate in a blind tasting of Craft beers alongside non-craft beers to see if they can tell the difference. A spirited discussion will focus on the official definition of "craft" beer, and what it may mean to you.

VIP and Connoisseur ticket holders can enter the Armory an hour earlier and have access to the beer, the brewers and the food during this first hour. This is a great time to speak with some of your favorite brewer representatives.

Just 150 Connoisseur tickets are available for purchase per session. The Connoisseur package offers a speedy entrance line to the Armory and access to the exclusive Connoisseurs Lounge for the entire session where there will be an additional 15-18 rare beers not found on the Grand Tasting floor. 

Craft beer-centric food offerings will be available from NYC hot spots Cooper's Craft Kitchen and Tavern 29.  So don't miss the festival's triumphant return to the Lexington Armory on March 30th.  It'll be here before you know it!

Cheers!

A New Year, A New Beer...It's Two Thousand 'Thirsteen'

So it's a new year.  I'm sure you've heard something about it.  I think it was on the news or something.  Anno Domini Two Thousand and "Thirsteen" may only be a week or so old, but beer, especially craft beer, has already made the news.  

Whether it be the sale of a bottle of the White House home brew, the "Craft" vs. "Crafty" discussion, the NY Times article on the brewsade's advance in my home state of New Jersey or the many reports on the undeniable and exciting growth of the segment over the last 12 months, it's an exciting time to be involved with craft beer.

It's also a time for resolutions.  What's yours?  I'm hoping it's beer related.  Mine?  Glad you asked.  I'm going to be a good craft beer soldier this year.  I'm going to try more beers.  More new beers.  More beers that are not in my wheelhouse.  Don't get me wrong.  I love new beer.  I just looked at my Untappd check-ins from 2012 and if exclude the seasonal beers (tasted for science reasons) it's clear I drank a lot of new beer, and furthermore that I am a lover of the hop.  IPAs, double IPAs and pale ales dominate my charts.

Therefore, for the coming twelve months I vow to try more daring ales, sours, lagers, witbier, saisons, bitters, Biere de Garde, dunkels, doppelbocks, stouts, porters, marzens, maibocks and other beer-type libations with reckless abandon!  I won't be afraid of those brews without snarky hop-related names...you know who you are.  

As of today I am 175 distinct beers away from hitting the 1,000 mark on Untappd.  My plan is to make at least 75 of those beers something I wouldn't necessarily seek out.  I'm leaving my comfort zone, and I present the same challenge to you.  Make it a year of "new".  New beer.  New beer friends.  New beer places.  Now get out there and do your thing.  I know you can do it.

So look out craft beer world.  I'm coming for you...and I'm thirsty!

Join the brewsade...it's 20"thirsteen"!

Cheers!

- Zach

A Stop At New Jersey's Own Carton Brewing

It was a bitterly cold Sunday morning when Rob and I, with little planning, jumped in his truck and decided to hit a few craft beer spots that have been at the top of our list.  Today, Carton Brewing located at 6 E.Washington Ave. in Atlantic Highlands, NJ was on that list.


We followed the GPS right to their front door, but we weren't sure we had actually arrived.  The building has zero public signage, I assume because it's located directly across the street from the Atlantic Highlands Elementary School.  It wasn't until we saw someone walking out of the front door with two freshly filled growlers that we knew we had arrived.

We headed into the unassuming building, a "turn-of-the-century red brick warehouse", and headed upstairs where we could hear the hustle & bustle of a good-sized gathering of tasters.  We were met at the top of the stairs by Doug who took us on a brief but very informative tour of the Newlands System 15 barrel brew house on the first floor below.  It was immediately clear that Doug loves beer as much as we do and knows his stuff about the brewing process at Carton.

I immediately noticed stacks of personalized Carton sixtels and my mind began racing.  Doug confirmed for me that Carton Brewing can now sell sixtels to the public.  Amen!  Though they have yet to begin bottling or canning their beer, Carton is well known throughout the state at better craft beer bars for their draft beer selection, and now you can take some home too.

During the tour we were shown the tricked-out homebrewing rig used by Augie Carton and head brewer Jesse Ferguson to brew test batches and otherwise experiment with ingredients and styles.  Sometimes these "experiments" are available to sample in the tasting room ("What's on the tippy?").  The setup would make any  homebrewer drool...and so we did.  Drool that is.

After the tour, Doug guided us upstairs, we thanked him and were met by the tasting room bartender already pouring our first beer.  The tasting room is a cozy feeling loft with exposed brick walls and exposed beam ceilings.  A couple leather couches with a coffee table sat in the center of the room for those who prefer to enjoy their samples sitting and chatting.

Rob & I bellied up to the bar and tasted all six available samples that day, including their  new seasonal, "Decoy".  A high ABV (12%) winter warmer-style ale that hides that alcohol extremely well.  An exceptionally smooth beer for the style.

The building is charming.  The staff is outstanding.  The beer even more so.

It's one of the newest craft breweries in New Jersey to find traction with the state's fervent beer lovers.  I'll skip the hyperbole and only state fact here.  Carton is brewing my favorite home state beers right now and some of my favorite beers period.  

So next time you're out and see that Carton tap handle don't hesitate to tip back a pint...and wherever you are in NJ, a trip to Carton Brewing should be on your to-do list for 2013.

Cheers!

- Zach