As I visit Taprooms, I am just amazed at the selection of beer available to us now. We have over 8000 breweries in this country and a lot of them are making amazing beer. The selection has never been better, and no matter what kind of beer you’re looking for, there is something for everyone in the craft beer world. I love trying new beer and just this weekend my friend Chris and I attended the Frigid Ferkin Festival at 2Tom’s In Fort Wayne where we had a dozen amazing limited release beers to choose from. No matter where you go, there is more beer than ever!
I travel throughout my state, and the country, and the selection of beers available has never been this amazing. I think that as new brewers get on the scene making amazing beer, everyone has stepped up on their game. It seems every week I’m finding something new that impresses me, and this is a good problem to have. I used to walk into a brewery and only have a few beers to choose from. Now places usually have at least a dozen. It’s another reason I think I chose the right name for my blog!
I consider myself a beer traveler as I make it to places all over the country. Many of the places I used to go to had a beer scene long before what we have in Indiana blew up. Now there’s nowhere beer is not amazing. You don’t have to divide 8000 by 50 to see that there is at least a decent sized beer scene in nearly every state. And many of the great beers that make it to me from other places in the country give me another reason to be excited when I get to go to their actual Taprooms. More craft beer than ever is being consumed by more people than ever, and that reason to celebrate. I want to see all these breweries be successful, and the more beer they make, the more beer there is for people to try!
When I go to breweries, I usually have over a dozen beers to choose from. That’s about double of what I used to find when I went to places. And many other places have dozens of beers on tap. That’s a lot of beer, and as I travel, I find it’s a good idea to do a flight. Unlike domestic drinkers who are loyal to a specific lager, craft beer drinker celebrate diversity. And if you order a flight, please take care of your bartenders and servers because this is extra work. At 450 N. in Columbus this Friday I watched my friend Katie scrambling to fill flight orders! It’s a great way to try it lots of beer and I know it can be fun. Not to mention that if you’re on Untapped, it’s more fun to check in four beers instead of one.
And on the subject of Untapped, it’s a great app, but be mindful of some of the pitfalls that come with it. While it’s a great tool to see what beer is available at breweries, I try not to look at the ratings people have given beers because beer drinking is so subjective! I was at a bottle share at a brewery in northern Indiana with someone who was very critical of a lot of beers that I like. It’s nice to use Untapped to check in the beers you try, but make your own decisions on what you like, and get to try. A lot of people use the rating system differently, and this this is important when looking at the site. Many business decisions are being made off of what’s going on on Untapped, and this doesn’t always help Breweries. We make a lot of good beer in this country and abroad, and not everyone is going to like everything. There’s a reason there is so much beer available, and we should celebrate it. Everyone’s palate is different, and that’s a good thing.
The environment of craft beer is very different from when I started drinking over 20 years ago. Good beer seemed few and far between, and visiting a Taproom was a very special occasion. Having so many more available now has not lost its luster. But you know we can’t spend all of our time in Taprooms unless we work there, so the decisions we make are very important. Fortunately a lot more people are making the same decisions and that’s why craft beer is so popular. Find what you like and try to visit as many places as you can. I’ve traveled my entire state and while there are exciting places hours away from my home, I am blessed to have taprooms only a few blocks from where I live. It’s important to drink locally, but I’m sure you already know that!
So drink the beer you like and enjoy it wherever you are. There’s a lot of it out there, and you have a chance to drink the best beer that we’ve had in a long time. Find what you like, and embrace it. I like to write about beer because there are so many good beers being made right now, and this makes me smile. Wherever you live, please make sure to enjoy the beer that’s made near you. We really do have a lot of great beer to choose from, and I’m so happy to be a part of it!
So Much Beer So Little Time 