I thought Modern Times had already sold out?
Lol @ Almasty.
Not heard anything about Modern Times selling out. They are taking the same stance as Cloudwater saying independence matters.
1 Like
From here in Denmark, Dry & Bitter today confirmed they are pulling out as wellā¦
Dear All,
It is with great grief that we have to tell you that we will be not attending the The Beavertown Extravaganza 2018. The recent purchase of a minority stake in Beavertown by Heineken leaves us in a really tough position where hard choices had to be made.
Many of our concerns have already been expressed by Cloudwater Brew Co and Brew By Numbers in their respective posts. (links below)
Our main issue is values. Heinekenās values and the way that they run their business does not align with who we are and what we represent.
We would like to apologize to all who have already bought tickets and were hoping to see us there.
When this is all said and done, we would like to give a massive shout out to all the wonderful people who work and run Beavertown. Beavertown and its employees have been some of the best people to us in the industry and this recent development will never be able to change that. Logan Plant and Team Beaver are still our friends, and few breweries have been more supportive of us and we cannot wait to see you guys on the road out and about. Thank you all for your support throughout the years and our deepest and saddest apologies for not being able to attend.
Much love,
Team Dry & Bitter
1 Like
Itās annoying but understandable that all the good breweries are pulling out. At this rate I would personally (selfishly) prefer that Extravaganza was cancelled and I had my Ā£120+ refunded. But some people might have booked flights and accommodation to attend from overseas so thatās a big fuckin issue here.
If it goes ahead itāll just be a big group of disgruntled beer enthusiasts who paid for and were entitled to expect a world class beer festival glumly drinking average beers while bitching about Heineken and the fact they paid so much for a shite festival. Not something Iām that keen to attend!
It must be tough when you know the BT guys personally. But it is encouraging to see that these breweries a) have these principles to start with and b) stand by them.
That said, i dont blame the breweries who are still doing it. This is an incredible opportunity to introduce your beer to Europe & network with bar owners, breweries, journalists, distributors, beer buyers and beer drinkers! Its quite something to say no to that
Thinking about it - I reckon Beavertown should push ahead with the festival but offer a refund to anyone who wants to take them up on it. āSupport us or donātā. Try to do the best they can with it and if they end up letting everyone down then the blameās all on them.
Or partial refund / beer package ā¦ something along those lines.
personally Iād like to see refunds offered now. If not and I canāt sell my ticket then Iāll go and make damn sure to drink Ā£65 worth of beer. There must be a tipping point where enough breweries pull out that itās no longer āas advertisedā (in spirit, even if within the T&Cs). That said, Iām not sure how many more will pull out, Iād have thought anyone that was going to would have done so within a day or two of the announcement
not convinced weve seem the end, they still seem tobe dripping out. But Also think there a few who will go, but hevent commited publicly yet
Seen a reply from BT that someone posted saying they are still yet to hear back from some breweries and will make a decision on refunds once they have
Obviously, getting into bed in one way or another with big beer, venture capitalists etc etc isnāt especially ācraftā. But the rush to expand at breakneck speed, often at the expense of some principles, to secure the huge funding required doesnāt seem particularly ācraftā to me either. A number of (over) ambitious breweries have already come a cropper that way. Whatās wrong with steady organic growth?
Dramatic expansion of a relatively small number of ācraftā brewers may present a threat to consumer choice in the longer term - from a volume and branding/marketing perspective. Personally, I can get as much Beavertown beer as I want already so thereās no benefit to me in them pushing for a greater slice of the shelf space (which is not to say I condemn them outright for wanting that). And although a definition of ācraftā is notoriously difficult to pin down Iād probably put a theme park on the not-craft side of the equation.
As for the Extravaganza, I wish I could say Iād had the perspicacity to anticipate what might happen but the truth is that Iād completely forgotten to buy tickets. Iāll adopt a wait and see approach before deciding whether to shell out, so Iām not going as far as boycotting the event. But I do wonder how firm some of these commitments from brewers were in contractual terms. We all know how difficult in can be to pin down exactly what youāll be getting for your dosh with these high profile, buy far in advance festivals.
2 Likes
Which is one of the reasons you donāt see me at them, over hyped beers from over hyped breweries at over hyped ticket prices. I will stick to being an āold gitā who likes sitting in a corner of quiet pubs thank you very much.
<*))))))><
1 Like
You dont like over-hyped beer from over hyped breweries at over hyped prices? Iāll be seeing you at Shrewsbury Beer Festival then.
1 Like
On holiday over this years CAMRA fest, so will not make it, sorry.
<*))))))><
I canāt say Iām surprised. I do like Beavertown and the best case scenario will be a fall in prices and the quality remaining the same. Iām optimistic.
Iām sure weād all like high quality beers at reasonable prices. Just not the same ones all the time, as far as Iām concerned anyway. I donāt really need more outlets selling Neck Oil and Gamma Ray, possibly at the expense of more diversity in the medium to longer term.
To be honest, unless prices are silly, Iām not that bothered about cost. I realise not everyone has the luxury of thinking that way. But, if the economies of scale and marketing/distribution clout of big beer squeeze out smaller players, thatās not a good thing for the ācraftā business or the discerning consumer. Or ticker.
2 Likes
No one wants that but a gamma ray tap in a pub with only lagers as other draft options, very happy
Most people dont care about independent, craft, artisan, local. They want recognisable, dependable beer. Like Punk IPA or Heineken. Gamma Ray will also fall into that bracket over the next year or so. And it will please those drinkers no end. Especially those who want to put the least effort possible into being edgy.
1 Like
and although id much rather they hadnāt sold. in many ways thatās no bad thing. if it means i walk into a crap bar and discover that gamma ray is an. option where as before it would be lager or Guinness
1 Like
Jester King is out.
