What are your local beer trends?
- Thread starter jmcnamara
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Switzerland, as elsewhere, has a craft beer boom, breweries popping up everywhere you turn, craft beer available in growing numbers of bars and such. The peculiarity of the Swiss market is that there was actually a cartel of a few big breweries who pretty much had the market locked down for much of the 20th century. There were always a few local breweries, but nothing to write home about.
The "traditional" grading of beer in these parts pretty much boils down to Blonde (lager), White (hefeweizen), Brown (porter/stout), with Amber/Red added for fun. And "Belgian" for the adventurous. Quite a few breweries still call their beers that way, out of tradition and I guess accessibility for the consumers. Then again, a sizable number of brewers and drinkers fully embrace the BJCP spectrum where you classify beer as IPA's, Porters, Saison, Pils etc. It's gotta be said, that BJCP culture, if I may call it that, is such a wonderful way of understanding, discovering and enjoying beer, it is no surprise that it's exporting so well. In the blonde-brown-white scheme, you can make great beers, but you can't really talk about them meaningfully...
Dedicated craft pubs are opening and serve what I'd call a typical assortment, a bit of everything from different breweries, presented according to the BJCP spectrum. Sours and Goses are now a fixture of the menu, and there's usually a NEIPA too. Basically, the scene mainly follows the great trends out of the USA. Perhaps at a remove and with less of a sensitivity to fads.
The "traditional" grading of beer in these parts pretty much boils down to Blonde (lager), White (hefeweizen), Brown (porter/stout), with Amber/Red added for fun. And "Belgian" for the adventurous. Quite a few breweries still call their beers that way, out of tradition and I guess accessibility for the consumers. Then again, a sizable number of brewers and drinkers fully embrace the BJCP spectrum where you classify beer as IPA's, Porters, Saison, Pils etc. It's gotta be said, that BJCP culture, if I may call it that, is such a wonderful way of understanding, discovering and enjoying beer, it is no surprise that it's exporting so well. In the blonde-brown-white scheme, you can make great beers, but you can't really talk about them meaningfully...
Dedicated craft pubs are opening and serve what I'd call a typical assortment, a bit of everything from different breweries, presented according to the BJCP spectrum. Sours and Goses are now a fixture of the menu, and there's usually a NEIPA too. Basically, the scene mainly follows the great trends out of the USA. Perhaps at a remove and with less of a sensitivity to fads.
Resurrecting this thread for 2019. I need to travel to Portland soon to confirm observations in Central Oregon lately. We must be up to about 30 craft breweries lately. Competition is fierce. Emphasis on NEIPAs, sours, fruity, Belgian, Saison and barrel aged beers is diminishing. Lagers are making a push, but lately I’m seeing a big push for clean, tried and true West Coast IPAs and DIPAs with balanced hop profiles, some a little on the fruity new hop side, but more on the piney and or earthy old school citrus hop side. Most of our craft breweries have a couple WC IPAs in the regular roatation, but lately two or three more IPAs are showing up as seasonals. More single hop offerings so customers can identify favorite hop flavors. Most breweries are listing the hops on the menu.
What are you seeing out there?
What are you seeing out there?
It has been interesting to see the direction that hazy IPAs have taken in the PNW. Whereas I keep seeing and having NEIPAs from the East Coast that seem to be getting even more adjunct-/adjective-laden, the trend out here has seen a turn back toward the PNW-style profile. Stil seeing plenty of haze, but seeing a lot of them with the more typical piney/citrus/dank hop profiles; and lactose (in an IPA) has almost become taboo in some circles. Double IPAs are popping up again, but instead of being the 100+ IBU bombs they used to be, they are balanced and delicious.
Barrel-aged strong beers continues to draw the biggest crowds on release days. Sours are here to stay. The Washington Cask Beer Fest has become incredibly popular.
Refreshingly seeing more chatter around the English Mild styles. Machine House Brewing works almost exclusively in the style, and while it has taken quite a while for them to become popular, people seem to be finally discovering that there is a lot of possibilities within the style.
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In the inland northwest the ipa's are anchored in but sours and barrel aging are increasing with popularity. Tequila barrel aging is coming out more along with bourbon barrel. Hoppy lagers or some malty ones can be found but well made citrus or piney / earthy ipa's are here to stay. West coast affects us more than midwest but we still have a great variety that go every direction from sours to creme ales.
As far as the specific Missoula western MT area there is a huge variety and a trip to a pub can get you anything from a Bohemian style lager to a belgian to a fresh crisp citrus ipa.
Not sure which way things will head from this point but beers that go with recreation, and canned beer are a must.
As far as the specific Missoula western MT area there is a huge variety and a trip to a pub can get you anything from a Bohemian style lager to a belgian to a fresh crisp citrus ipa.
Not sure which way things will head from this point but beers that go with recreation, and canned beer are a must.
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The one down here that keeps growing noticeably, though not overwhelmingly, is a range of fruited and/or dry hopped kettle sours for summer. Ranging from lolly water to complex and mouth puckeringly sour. I think it's catching a bunch of non-traditional beer drinkers who don't want anything to do with 'Mum juice'.
And on one of the brewing podcasts I was listening to, they were predicting rose beers would be the successor to Brut IPA. Seems we need a new fashion every 12 months to keep us arguing over trivialities.
And on one of the brewing podcasts I was listening to, they were predicting rose beers would be the successor to Brut IPA. Seems we need a new fashion every 12 months to keep us arguing over trivialities.
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Spot on Mark! Those troubling and difficult First World problems that keep us up at night
...but what the heck is "lolly water"? Help me out with the Aussie speak Mate! I know from Mary Poppins what Barley Water is but lolly?
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Ill be in Geneva around the end of april, I went last year in January and couldn't find craft beer for the life of me. Any places to look for?
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As for the DC/NOVA area we have tons of NEIPAs but then you get some guys out there doing fantastic Imperial Red IPAs, but most are one off's. NEIPA dominates here but everyone seems very niche here, with oh we are a sour house and oh we only do pastry stouts or BB- aged stouts and some of the release and follow on secondary prices of these beers are insane. and dont get me started on the collectable glassware trend.
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I'm actually seeing a trend away from "extremes" to more drinkable beers, 5% - 6% alcohol, lowered bitterness, fewer "wild" ingredients. That's in the brew pubs I frequent. Homebrewers keep brewing the "out there" stuff but pubs are offering more drinkable brews.
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For a dedicated Craft beer bar with a nice selection, try Le Coin Mousse, close to the train station. Many bars have some selection of less mainstream beers, from international crafts to regional artisanal heavies to true local micro. But Coin Mousse should set you off nicely, you might wanna ask for recommendations there. There's also a small store at Place des Grottes right down the street that has a an interesting selection for takeaway. And Drinks Of The World in the train station, which is a chain of, you guessed it, drinks from all over, mainly beer.
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Forgot that meaning is not that common. Lolly water would be candy water, i.e. dissolving candy in water and drinking it. So horribly sweet. It seems us Kiwis and Australians shortened all sweets/candy to lollies from lollipops.Spot on Mark! Those troubling and difficult First World problems that keep us up at night
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Rate beer is a good resource for this question. I use it heavily when we travel - https://www.ratebeer.com/places/city/geneva/0/191/
Haven't been to Geneva, but the other cities I've been to in Switzerland all had a few really good beer bars. I have very fond memories of Biercafe au Trappiste in Bern. If you're into sours keep an eye out for BFM beers (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franches-Montagnes_Brewery).
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Seeing a trend from 7 to 8% towards 5 to 6% in terms of ABV. I like the move down. Hops are a featured item in beer description, like an annoying salesman. I don't buy IPA at the taprooms, we make one that tastes similar to the 4 million examples out there. Overall, we have several taprooms with a broad range of beers. Finding the ones you like is the fun.
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Here lately it seems many of the local smaller breweries are canning their beers. Not a problem with that but I'm finding that the beer just isn't all that great once packaged. I'm not sure if the small canning systems they're using just kinda suck or there is a lack of packaging knowledge or what? But I'm finding most of these beers once the hit the can aren't worth the premium price they're asking and I'm sure getting. I'm also curious if a couple of the beers have been so popular that they've changed the recipes to keep up with demand and maximize profits. Most of these are just fine and still very tasty if I go to brewery have them on tap, but I'm seeing more and more of this the last several months.
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I don't think they are changing the recipe. Canning lines can pick up oxygen if the operator doesn't do everything just right. Especially for breweries that are just starting to can, they haven't nailed the procedures down and the oxygen is staling the beer in the cans. Most smaller breweries also don't have dissolved oxygen meters to test the cans, so they don't know how much they are picking up.
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I'd second this. Commercial beers I really prefer canned but craft? They're running borrowed or rented canning lines from people who may or may not know what they're doing.... With the results Hogarthe notes.
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I can think of one coffee stout in particular that I really feel the recipe has changed. Before, it was rich, creamy, and tasted real. Now, It's thin and watery and the coffee tastes fake and over powering.
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Speaking of beer trends, cans, and "craft" beers...
That in fact seems to be a starting trend here in Germany too. It used to be (like just about anywhere in the world), only lower quality beer was packaged in cans. Now, many breweries are packaging in cans, not just traditional brews but also an ever increasing portion of the craft beer market.
Stone Brewing opened a brewery in Berlin just over a year ago and is only packaging in cans!
The interesting thing, as a consumer, even for the big breweries it seems to still be hit-and-miss. Some of the cans I have opened have contained some pretty horrendous beer...(even though the same beer in bottles is consistent, be it good or less-so)
That in fact seems to be a starting trend here in Germany too. It used to be (like just about anywhere in the world), only lower quality beer was packaged in cans. Now, many breweries are packaging in cans, not just traditional brews but also an ever increasing portion of the craft beer market.
Stone Brewing opened a brewery in Berlin just over a year ago and is only packaging in cans!
The interesting thing, as a consumer, even for the big breweries it seems to still be hit-and-miss. Some of the cans I have opened have contained some pretty horrendous beer...(even though the same beer in bottles is consistent, be it good or less-so)
