Industry Pros On The Most Overrated And Underrated Beer Styles (Part IV)

The craft beer industry doesn’t want for opinions, it’s a passionate community and everybody’s got a take. So we recently asked our friends in the biz to weigh in on what they thought were today’s most OVERRATED and UNDERRATED beer styles.  And here is just some of what craft beer professionals we asked, thought.

Doug Constantiner- Brewery Curator & Brewer, Societe Brewing (San Diego, CA)  

Overrated: Fruit IPAs – “I think fruited IPAs, or “IPA-aritas” as we call them here, are incredibly overrated and over produced right now.  IPAs were never meant to be crowd pleasers or “entry-level” beers.  Stick with hops for flavoring.”

Underrated: Pilsners – “Czech/Bohemian Pils has begun to make a resurgence in the brewing community.  I wish we could replace every Stella handle out there with a locally made Czech Pils.”

 

Sara Lefevre –   Manager, Barranco Beer Company (Lima, Peru)

Overrated: “Imperial Stout (and similar) – “Although they can be very good you can’t really drink more than a sip.”

Underrated: German Pilsners – “Because they’re hard to brew and you can’t really hide anything.”

 

Patrick Annesty – River North Brewery (Denver, CO)

Overrated: Fruited IPAs – “As a caveat, I must say that any beer style has exceptional examples. But lately I see a trend of “fruit for the sake of fruit” overall, and with IPAs in particular. You spend all this time building great hop character, with all its floral and citrusy goodness, and then muddle it up with some artificial additives. Often just to snag another spot on a shelf.”

Underrated: Schwarzbier – “The long-neglected lager is finally making a comeback stateside, particularly with pilsners and seasonal Oktoberfests, but I still struggle finding a proper Schwarzbier produced in the US. Whether you call it Schwarz or simply “black lager,” it’s a damn delicious and drinkable style that doesn’t get nearly as much love as it should.”

 

Greg Papp – Brewmaster, Tallgrass Brewing (Manhattan, KS)

Overrated: Black IPA – “Quite frankly, it’s a made up style and it’s confusing! Hoppy, roasty, bitter…decide whether you’re an IPA or a stout! I’ll take either of those over a Black IPA. Worlds will collide once the Double Black IPA hits the market…wait, it already exists. I’m not sure what this beer’s true identity is.”

Underrated:  Pale Ale – “This is a lost style. In my honest opinion, it seems to be overshadowed by its bigger brother, IPA, and its younger, less refined brother, the eye-rolling Session IPA. The pale ale is a great test of a brewer’s skill to balance the best of both worlds — hops and malt — a true testament to a brewer’s mettle. I’m going to go buy some Sierra Nevada Pale Ale!”

 

James Book – Director of Experiential & Brand Marketing, Ninkasi Brewing (Eugene, OR)

Overrated: Gose – “I’d have to say Gose as overrated right now in terms of mainstream marketability. I personally enjoy them but I doubt they’ll catch on as the next big thing that (apparently) many bet on this year. There are always styles and “trends du jour” in craft and there are just a lot of them out there right now.”

Underrated: Lagers – “Quality craft lagers are definitely underrated probably because of the glut of cheap-ingredient macro lagers that have dominated the market for so long. Proper lagering requires a lot of tank real estate so making them (well) can be a commitment for smaller operations.” 

 

Chris VanDeewert – Sales Manager, DuClaw Brewing (Baltimore, MD)

Overrated: Pumpkin beers – “I haven’t had one yet this year, but I saw the first one come out in March (MARCH!) earlier this year. I think the average craft beer drinker might pull back and not drink as much this year.”

Underrated: Sours (in general) – “I personally love almost all of them, but the average craft beer drinker is just starting to understand what they are and how varying the style can be. They’re growing each year as more consumers become more educated on them and begin to taste more styles.”

 

Bob Tupper – Author, Drinking In the Culture, Tuppers’ Guide to Exploring Great Beers in Europe

Overrated: Gose – “It’s the new Kölsch.   Everyone’s doing it and many freely admit that they haven’t a real clue what the original actually tastes like.  A good brewer who has never tasted an Imperial IPA can brew a fine one from a recipe.  Gose is much harder to (re)create from words.   The original revival of the style was a masterpiece striding the fine line between accessibility and acidity.  A few of the new ones here and abroad hit that target, but many miss it.”

Underrated: True Pilsners – “I understand the economics that make it hard for even Pilsner Urquel to brew the way it used to, but I’m still sorry the market hasn’t pushed more brewers to invest the sort of capital they put into their high alcohol barrel aged beers into a super-premium Pils.   A close second would be really good Bavarian style Helles lagers.  Munich’s Augustiner turns out 600,000 barrels a year of the best Helles in town.  Again, the problem for newer breweries is that they lack the vast aging cellars the Bavarians built in the 19th and 20th centuries.  After all that time and expense in lagering, the beauty of the beer is its subtlety — and subtlety is very hard to sell.”

Be sure to check out the MOST OVERRATED AND UNDERRATED BEER STYLES – Part I  ,  Part II, and Part III while you’re at it.