Yes, indeed, “craft beer” has carved out an unmistakable place in the American drinkers’ lexicon. But that ubiquitous term comes with a couple of puzzling caveats, first and foremost: what the hell does it mean, exactly?As we crawl out of the depths of winter, it’s only appropriate that we find a beverage to celebrate the warmer days ahead. For many of us, that means indulging in time-honored favorites; we trade a can of Bud for a bottle of Corona in anticipation of the familiar taste that conjures carefree days of yore.
But the world of beer has undergone a massive facelift in the past couple of decades. Gone are the days when we could look forward to only a couple of easily discernable brews at the supermarket or local deli. Or the bar, for that matter.
Yes, indeed, “craft beer” has carved out an unmistakable place in the American drinkers’ lexicon. But that ubiquitous term comes with a couple of puzzling caveats, first and foremost: what the hell does it mean, exactly?
Let’s throw a few statistics out there to illuminate the place of craft beer in the world of alcohol. We only have two hard numbers that seek to measure the term “craft” quantitatively: the beer must be from a brewery that produces fewer than 6 million barrels a year, and that brewery must have less than 25% of its ownership in parties outside the brewers themselves. Stacked against Anheuser-Busch—makers of Budweiser—who typically ship close to 100 million barrels a year, that’s pretty slight, especially compared with the largest craft beer company, The Boston Beer Company—makers of Sam Adams—who typically ship about 2 million barrels a year.
But the trend towards “craft” is evident, with craft beer market shares growing by almost 50% per year since 2013. At this pace, the craft beer market will hit its goal of 20% market share by 2020, considerably eroding the makers of Budweiser down from their current 50%. So, economics-wise, it doesn’t seem like a solid bet to ignore the artisanal brewer.
But craft beer isn’t all about ensuring contained and independent business practices. In fact, it’s far more about creating innovative products that emphasize experimentation and eventual standardization. In craft beer, experimentation arises in taste, smell, booze-level, color, farming practices, and even design—a variety of factors that aim towards making beer far more personal, enjoyable, and, of course, tastier. And, as the craft beer trend begins to inundate the American bar and restaurant scene, a level of fluency will only bring good things for those that partake— if only to impress a colleague or relate to a craft-minded kid.
