107 replies to this topic

[Genesee Ted]

That's pretty scary.

[3rd party JKor]

75 is huge for a company of Stone's size. They were either WAY too aggressive hiring or they are losing market share, big time.

That has to be around 20% of their work force. Yikes.

[denny]

I've been waiting for the shakeout to start.  This may be the beginning.

[MyaCullen]

I've been waiting for the shakeout to start. This may be the beginning.

explain?

[DieselGopher]

explain?

Over saturation in the craft market I'm afraid.

[denny]

Over saturation in the craft market I'm afraid.

 

Yep.  We have so many breweries here in Eugene and so many are mediocre at best.  Can only go on so long

[MyaCullen]

Yep. We have so many breweries here in Eugene and so many are mediocre at best. Can only go on so long

thought so, spokane is about at it's saturation point

[jimdkc]

Stone's been spending like the growth in their numbers would never end. I think they just expanded too fast, all while a shit-ton of new craft breweries have opened up, too.

[Poptop]

Yep.  We have so many breweries here in Eugene and so many are mediocre at best.  Can only go on so long

I can say the same down in here in SFL. They pop up with purpose and then you taste it. Bleh. Out of all I've tried from Miami to Palm Beach, I can honestly say I like 3 breweries - and Funky Buddha ain't one of them.

[HVB]

Yep.  We have so many breweries here in Eugene and so many are mediocre at best.  Can only go on so long

It is sad to say that we have had the same thing here but it seems even the ones that are bad are expanding.  One had a burnt plastic off flavor in every beer and they went and upgraded to a nice new 15bbl brewhouse and seem to still bring people in.  We do have many good breweries out here IMO but a fair amount that I am surprised have lasted this long.

[Big Nake]

I've had some God-awful commercial/craft beer. Is it possible that the craft beer world has so many flavor descriptors (sour, funky, phenolic, barrel-aged, complex, spicy, barnyard, fruity) that the common beer drinker (or even the more daring beer drinkers) just don't know what they're tasting anymore? I suppose that if you have a beer that has such a complex flavor profile to it, you might be able to hide any number of flaws. Another issue is that I have had the same beer numerous times (in a bottle from the store, on draft at the brewery, etc) and there is a big variance suggesting that quality control or just consistency is not there.

[3rd party JKor]

The growth has been insane.  The market is way oversaturated right now.  There are new barnds on the shelf every time I go into the liquir store (but the shelves aren't getting bigger, someone else is dropping off).  You can't keep up with all the breweries unless you're drinking 50 beers a week.  It's got to be near impossible for new breweries to gain brand loyalty right now.

 

IMHO, too many aspiring brewers are going right for production breweries.  The brew pub market (at least in this region) still seems like a big opportunity to me.  Craft beer acceptance and appreciation has gone through the roof, but I've seen very little in the way of brewpub growth around here.  For all the breweries that are popping up, I can't visit a decent brewpub within 30 minutes and I live in a very populous area.  I don't get it.

 

I have a feeling that some time in the next ~3 years it will be a good time to invest in some used commercial brewing equipment.  

[HVB]

The growth has been insane.  The market is way oversaturated right now.  There are new barnds on the shelf every time I go into the liquir store (but the shelves aren't getting bigger, someone else is dropping off).  You can't keep up with all the breweries unless you're drinking 50 beers a week.  It's got to be near impossible for new breweries to gain brand loyalty right now.

 

IMHO, too many aspiring brewers are going right for production breweries.  The brew pub market (at least in this region) still seems like a big opportunity to me.  Craft beer acceptance and appreciation has gone through the roof, but I've seen very little in the way of brewpub growth around here.  For all the breweries that are popping up, I can't visit a decent brewpub within 30 minutes and I live in a very populous area.  I don't get it.

 

I have a feeling that some time in the next ~3 years it will be a good time to invest in some used commercial brewing equipment.  

 

 

I agree with both of those.  I really wish we had a better brew pub dynamic here.  All I see are breweries that get food trucks to park outside the door and I really want more than that.

[Big Nake]

The growth has been insane.  The market is way oversaturated right now.

I hear that. I'm looking out across the court that I live in and wouldn't you know it, even the Hendersons have a brewpub!
 

I have a feeling that some time in the next ~3 years it will be a good time to invest in some used commercial brewing equipment.  

I think that there are some people who thought that this was for them and it's not. They either didn't have the brewing chops to begin with or else the business side of things was too much to handle and the brewing side suffered as a result. I can't imagine someone going through all the red tape to open a brewery, secure the funds and got the equipment, do their business plan, etc. only to turn out glasses or bottles of dirty dishwater. Time for someone (RICH!) to gobble up some of that discounted stainless steel!

We actually have a crazy number of small breweries and brewpubs opening here. Illinois was way, way behind but there may have been some legislative relief somewhere along the line. There are any number of "quaint towns" around here and my wife might suggest going to one to shop or have lunch. As soon as I search, I get at least one brewing company or brewpub result. Hey honey, sure we can go there... it's the home of Blue Caboose Beer Company!

[Big Nake]

Apparently TRUE. Weirdness.

[HVB]

Apparently TRUE. Weirdness.

 

So .. you missed this

Edited by drez77, 17 October 2016 - 09:58 AM.

[Big Nake]

So .. you missed this

Well, I saw it but wasn't sure how accurate it was. You know... because it came from Denny. Strange that these suppliers would be gobbled up by the giant brewery conglomerate but luckily I swore off Midwest and NB long ago because of that nutty shipping policy they have... if you want it now you have to pay for the expedited shipping. If you don't want it now then you'll get it whenever we get around to it. I chose "ground shipping" on my last Midwest order and it took 10 or 12 days to get to me. They explained, "If you choose the cheapest shipping, that suggests that you're not in a hurry". I pointed out that Rebel and some others usually get stuff out that day or the next day. I've ordered stuff from Rebel on Monday night and it arrives on Wednesday morning. Not so with MW and NB.

[Poptop]

Is it just me and my typically conspiracy theory type thought process that a Beer Acquisition / Distributor company is buying retail supply houses that maybe they want to make it harder for us little brewers to get supplies?

I mean that we make our own beer, we don't buy (as much) of theirs??

Edited by Steppedonapoptop, 17 October 2016 - 10:16 AM.

[Big Nake]

Is it just me and my typically conspiracy theory type thought process that a Beer Acquisition / Distributor company is buying retail supply houses that maybe they want to make it harder for us little brewers to get supplies?

I mean that we make our own beer, we don't buy (as much) of theirs??

I'm always under the impression that A LOT of people are homebrewing these days. But I'm usually in the homebrewing circles so I assume that it's not really that many people. Plus... most homebrewers I know also buy a lot of commercial beer. I will buy the occasional commercial beer and I go to bars and restaurants and order commercial beers but I don't really keep up with commercial brands as much as others. You guys mention beers that I have never heard of. I don't think that the bug guys would do what you're suggesting and even if they did... it's only 2 of the suppliers and thankfully I don't use either one.

[neddles]

The way I see it is that they have to make $$ in the business they purchased, so they have to have an idea as to how they can make NB/Midwest more profitable. It seems the best way they can improve the profitability of NB/Midwest are with their ability to get raw materials at a cheaper price. If they can use their purchasing power to purchase raw materials (I am thinking mostly malt and hops, but who knows) they can leave the current pricing structure (or possibly reduce it) and turn a good size profit/ make the whole operation more profitable. It may be small cookies in terms of ABInBev overall but good numbers as considered from the venture capital subdivision of the company that made the acquisition.

 

Buying a business only to shut down availability to home brewers ≠ home brewers buying macro-lager.

Edited by neddles, 17 October 2016 - 10:59 AM.