alt Hacker NewsThe craft brewing industry became over-saturated.
I also think product has suffered.
I seem to remember more interesting and very good beers available.
Like, where did all the fabulous Gose varieties go?
It seems like everything available today is a hazy IPA or a basic lager. There used to be such a breadth of flavors.
The other child comments about GLP-1 is also correct. That also seems to be a source of the protein craze going on right now.
The average person is pretty clueless about diet and their doctor told them to get XX grams of protein per meal, and fast food cafes and establishments adapted to those dietary instructions.
Also, the brewpub culture is becoming TGI Fridays-ified.
TGI Friday’s was a trendy singles bar for boomers at the time, now it’s a watered down boring family restaurant, just like many craft breweries which are stroller-fests.
I don’t even know what Gen Alpha/younger Gen Z is up to. Staying inside online? Maybe going more out to party oriented clubs rather than mellow brewpubs?
Finally, anyone into indie beers knows that brewdog has been corporate suckage for years.
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drinking out sucks now. it's too expensive. landlords are killing drinking out.
I love drinking craft beer. but when a single craft beer reaches up to $15 a beer, there's only so much I will partake, especially if I can have a $1 coors at home (which imo is still an expertly made product).
similarly, canned vodka sodas or malt bevages (like whiteclaw) easily hit the $10-$15/can mark at establishments. it's no wonder people don't want to drink out.
I'm convinced the "craft beer" industry settled on IPAs not due to genuine consumer demand, but rather manufactured demand for IPAs because IPAs are more tolerant of faults in the brewing process and therefore have lower production costs (less wastage.) This is because when an IPA turns out particularly poorly, it can be bottled anyway and if anybody points out that it tastes like silty skunk ass (all my homebrews, BTW) some nearby IPA enthusiast will be sure to scoff that the complainant just can't handle the hops.