The Small Brew That Is Taking On Budweiser, Miller and Coors

[golf_lover44]

While I certainly enjoy the occasional beer, I drink a lot less of it than wine and spirits, and I’m not a serious craft beer guy. I appreciate the process and the passion, I seek out local beer when I travel, and I have been to too many craft breweries to recall them all. But it has always seemed to me that the emphasis of the industry has been too heavily focused on heavy, heavily hopped, high alcohol beers, or esoteric options like coffee and fruit flavors (before you write in hate mail, remember the part about “seems to me” – it might seem different to you).

There’s also too much snobbery in the craft beer world for my taste. I recently walked into a hipster gastro-pub with a tile wall full of unmarked steel spigots and blackboards displaying all the options, most of which I had never heard of. Since my taste runs to the lighter end of the spectrum, I started my decision making process by asking the barkeep, “What do you have that’s in the lager family?” He raised an indignant eyebrow and disdainfully replied, “Nothing. That’s not what we are about.” Well, OK then.

Lately I’m not alone in this feeling. Recently on leading culinary site SeriousEats.com, Maggie Hoffman wrote an ode to the lighter pilsner style, saying, “Like many craft beer enthusiasts, I’ve done my fair share of exploring the extreme edges of beer, those pricey bombers of citrusy double IPAs, coal-black imperial stouts aged in every kind of barrel, and puckeringly sour, offbeat, and complex beers…Maybe my taste buds got a little tired from all that excitement, but lately I’ve found myself craving beer that’s poured by the pint. Beer that’s easier on the palate – and on my blood alcohol level.”

I like stout, and sometimes go for a red, blond, nut brown or cream ale, and occasionally a wheat beer/weissbier or pilsner. But most craft centric bars I’ve visited and most craft beer fans I know tend to be obsessed with double bocks and IPAs, which makes sense given that the entire craft beer movement came about as backlash against the mass produced beers most people were buying and drinking, almost all at the light bodied, flavorless end of the spectrum.

Nonetheless, given the fact that the market had evolved this way based on demand, and beers like Budweiser, Miller and Coors remain far and away the most popular in the world, it seems surprising that the craft beer industry has not taken much of a shot at head to head competition. Instead of trying to build a better mousetrap, they have mostly built traps for different prey.

That’s what is interesting about newcomer House Beer. In a crowded marketplace of myriad styles and seasonal editions (pumpkin beer anyone?), the company unapologetically makes one and only one beer, specifically targeted at the big guys: it’s a craft approach to America’s favorite lager style.

The company says its beer is “Brewed with the taste and ingredients you expect to find in most craft beers, but one you can drink time and time again without worrying about how filling it is or what it says about you… Over the years we’ve happily enjoyed all kinds of beer. From popular mainstream ones to smaller craft specialties. But there were times when we felt we had to choose between beers that were great for drinking and beers that tasted great. Why can’t you have your beer and drink it too? We brew only one thing. House Beer. We call it that because there’s nothing pretentious or complicated about it. There’s no light version. No seasonal brew. Just an original premium lager expertly brewed from the finest ingredients, and crafted to simply be the perfect beer, and nothing less.”

Not surprisingly, House Beer’s co-founders, the Sindell brothers and Keegan Gibbs, grew up drinking the “Silver Bullet,” easy to drink Coors Light. After coming to the opinion that microbreweries and brewpubs were leaving patrons “too full or too drunk,” they had the idea to combine the quality and size of craft beer with the drinkability of old school American lagers. Of course, like artisanal, local, or small batch, “craft” is in the eye of the beholder, and this is all the more confusing due to the fact that there is no true definition of just what makes craft beer craft. The most commonly cited one is that of the Brewers Association, which is far more focused on company ownership and production volume than the actual beer making process.

Whether they succeed remains to be seen, but it’s definitely an interesting idea. House Beer is based in Venice, CA, brewed in Denver, 4.8% alcohol by volume and 18 International Bitterness Units. The company is a member of 1% for the Planet, and its beer is sold at Whole Foods and other retailers, as well as in bars.

Cheers!

http://www.forbes.com/sites/larryolmste ... cb6a787321

[LostHoosier]

I agree. Sometimes all I want is good pils or lager. Bohemian brewery in Utah is one of my favorites. They only do lagered beer.

[Diamond State Boy]

Couldn't agree more...while I love a good IPA my thirst for beer has priced me out of buying a 12pk of Sierra Nevada (or whatever brand) every other day. I'm actually quite content with my $11 18pk of PBR. I'll have to look for this brand to make an appearance here.

[ANDY MILLER]

I like the Craft beers. Inside. At home. Looking to get drunk. Or out trying new things. With food etc. But sometimes I just want good old beer. Lately I been drinking regular Coors in the 16oz screw top canbottle . Perfect beer for yardwork. Great tasting good old fashioned beer taste. Takes Me back. Plus those cabottles stay cold and the screw top cap keeps the beers & bugs out of My beer when working in the garden. If I'm performing in My band. Its not a good idea to drink high alcohol IPAs etc . I tend to just stick to cold Pabst or something. Last night We played a place that actually was serving National Bohemian. So I had a few of those. They had a cool old Schmidts of Philadelphia neon too LOL

[RustnStuff]

Couldn't agree more. Just got back from a "Beers and Gears" event in Delaware, that had a car show and around 30 craft breweries on sight to sample their suds. We found ourselves seeking out the ones offering a Lager or wheat beer to get away from the multiple IPA's offered. Great insight and well written, thanks for sharing !
Keith R

[Candog]

Because of the cost of Hops a lot of Craft Brewers have introduced good Pils or Pilsner beers. This is the type of beer I learned to love in Germany between 1983-88. I am surprised at how close they are to good German Pils. So if you don't want a Pale Ale or IPA, try a good craft brewed Pils. Victory Brewing in PA has one of the best I'm had yet.

[Dixie Dave]

I again reference the panel I attended at the Brooklyn Bash at NOLA last year. The primary focus of discussion was the growth of craft beer, and how to continue to grow the craft beer movement. Panel was comprised of the founders of Abita, NOLA, Parish (a popular craft brewer from down in the bayou), and Brooklyn. All agreed that for craft to continue to grow, there is a need for more craft brewers to brew more approachable styles like pilsners and lagers. A lot of people are open to a flavorful beer, but all those IPAs and weird sounding variations of things scare them off. So do a lot of stronger brews. Show them that a good pils tastes better than Miller Lite (and is just as sessionable if they want to enjoy several of them) and you can win a convert. That's what I've been doing for years.

This House Beer sounds like a good idea. Sam Adams has been quite successful selling a full-bodied lager, and I'm sure there is room for another quality lager at the bar.

[Shevy85Ale]

Yeah, I agree. I've never been a huge fan of the insanely hopped IPAs. I can enjoy one, maybe two on a good day, but after that, it feels like the entire Chinese Army marched through my mouth in their socks. I have to drink two pints of water for every pint of IPA. We have a local brewpub here in Northern VA called the Ornery Beer Co. which just released their MaiBock a couple of weeks ago. It's a huge malty lager and it is delicious. They don't do a lot of lagers, because they take too long, you have to lager them for three to four weeks, as opposed to an ale which you can have out in a week to two weeks. I was talking to the head brewer there and he said it's the fastest selling beer they've ever had there. I went in on Monday to fill two growlers ($10 growler pours on Monday as opposed to $16 any other day), and the bartender told me that my two growlers just might kill the batch. Up and down the bar, people were yelling "Hey, fill my pint before you fill those growlers". Most of their batches last at least two months, but the MaiBock was almost drained in two weeks. They also offer a Czech Pils, which is pretty good too. I understand that it's cool to drink highly hopped beers right now, but it's just not my favorite style. Most Americans (of my age) grew up drinking either pilsners or lagers, albeit relatively tasteless ones from the majors. Offer a Budweiser drinker a really delicious lager, a real lager, and they will become instant converts.

[oldindiapaleale]

When I started drinking craft beers in 2000, I enjoyed the IPAs and Pale Ales but really liked the lower alcohol Cream and Golden ales as well as the pilsners and wheat beers. Those styles are gone, replaced with 9% hop crazy IPAs or citrus/pumpkin/fruity craftswill (a term I just coined, btw), no wonder I prefer Pabst Blue Ribbon. I'll check out Whole Foods in Portland (Maine not Oregun) to see if they have the House Beer. Cheers!