4 Steps to Geting Hooked on Craft Beer

Source: http://www.flatironsteakhouse.com/

Since I'm not doing any new U.S. Beer Trail posts this month (in September I'll be back with Virginia), I thought I would do a quick one about ways that anyone can get involved in the world of craft beer. Craft beer is growing at a double digit pace while sales of the mass produced beer that this country has been force fed for years declines year after year. There are thousands of high quality beers out there, produced by independently owned craft breweries all over the country. Each brewery has it's own style and character that is not based on million dollar advertising campaigns. If you do these four things, I can almost assure you that you will have a good appreciation for what they do and you won't ever order a beer the same again.


1. Start a beer club:
This is how I got involved in craft beer. Grab a few friends, colleagues, or family members. Then, at a specified interval (every month, every other month, or ever quarter) have everyone buy a case of whatever craft beer they would like. Split up the cases equally amongst the group members. Any number of club members works, but try to get at least 4, and probably no more than 8. You want a good balance between number of different beers, and quantity of each beer. Try not to repeat your selections from month to month and try to branch out to different styles of beer. One month get an IPA then next month get a Hefeweizen. Set a target case price range within $10 so that no one feels like they are getting ripped off. Some people may go under or over in certain months because they see something really intriguing, but over time it evens out. And anyhow you are going to try a bunch of new beer, so stop complaining. I've been in my club for almost two years and so I've tried about 150 new beers over that time. It's helped me figure out what I like (most everything), and it's helped me hone in on my favorite breweries.

2. Variety Packs:
If you don't want to commit to the club idea, figure out what the closest brewery is to you, and then pick up their variety case at the distributor. In case you haven't been introduced to them before, this is a great way to figure out if you like them. You might get something like an IPA, an Amber, a Pale Ale, and a heavier beer, but it will vary based on which brewery you are getting it from. This is also another method of determining which styles of beer you enjoy. Plus, since they are the local brewery, you might find a new go-to beer. It will always be available at your local distributor and most likely will be on tap at most of the bars in town. So, when you aren't in the mood to search for a brand new undiscovered beer at your distributor or the bar you'll default to your local brewery's best and not to the cheapest, most watered down, option available.

3. Substitute Craft Beer for Big Beer at the bar:
Instead of getting 2 or 3 Big Beers at the bar next weekend, get 1 or 2 good craft beers. It will cost you about the same, and since Big Beers are about 4.4% ABV max, one or two 6-7% beers will do the same damage. Don't get me wrong, there is definitely a time and a place for cheap, light beer. I'll admit it. I drink it. Tailgating, drinking games, when it's later on in the night. However, it's never the first beer of the night, or the third for that matter. Any farther than that, and I'll consider it. Unless I'm at an awesome bar with a million brews. If you substitute at the beginning of the night you'll remember the beers better too. I sometimes use the beers I get out at a bar as a way of getting ideas for my next case for beer swap club.

4. Take a Brewery Tour:
The people that work at independently breweries are almost always entertaining just by nature. Plus you'll get to see how beer is really made. Every small craft brewery I've been to makes their beer by hand, (i.e., mixes the ingredients by hand, has actual people determine when they are ready, and has actual people working the bottling lines.) So it's really cool to see people putting a bunch of effort into making the highest quality product they can. And every one I've ever been to will give you free beer either during or after the tour.

If you do all four of these things and you're still not interested in trying new, great tasting craft beers, then you clearly like your liquor. Cheers.