BroDog
March 24, 2016 6:57 AM   Subscribe

Opinions of BrewDog tend to go one of four ways. The evangelists think the company can do no wrong. The haters cannot get past the relentless self-promotion, and loathe everything BrewDog stands for. The compromisers argue that yes, they might on the whole be happier if BrewDog toned down the language and cut the stunts, but hey, they brew such great beers you have to forgive them.... The final group, let’s call them the sceptics, reckon the beer and the hype are, in fact, inseparable. The aggressive, outrageous, infuriating (and ingenious) rise of BrewDog
posted by fearfulsymmetry (42 comments total) 10 users marked this as a favorite
 
Insecure twentysomething men have money but not taste or good judgement, the ongoing series.
posted by mhoye at 7:04 AM on March 24, 2016 [11 favorites]


but hey, they brew such great beers you have to forgive them....

hahahahahaha
posted by beerperson at 7:12 AM on March 24, 2016 [5 favorites]


i've seen their offerings for 16 bucks or more a bottle

it could be the world's best beer but i'll have to pass
posted by pyramid termite at 7:15 AM on March 24, 2016 [1 favorite]


It's like those bearded chocolate guys all over again.

Awash in so many beer options (beer is a commodity), they are picking how to distinguish their tribe, and get people to swear brand loyalty/allegiance.
posted by k5.user at 7:16 AM on March 24, 2016 [2 favorites]


There's room enough in the world for both cask-conditioned, yeast-cloudy real ale and brash, experimental craft beers. What there's no room for is insipid, watery mega-lagers. As for the marketing stunts, that's the only way to promote anything nowadays. These blokes don't strike me as either heroes or villains. As long as they produce tasty beer and don't actively perpetuate the kyriarchy, I'm content to leave them be.
posted by Faint of Butt at 7:17 AM on March 24, 2016 [17 favorites]


Eh, they're interesting I guess, and at this point in the drinking life I'm inclined to say that's sufficient.
posted by aramaic at 7:18 AM on March 24, 2016 [1 favorite]


I have had their beers when I'm in the UK; they're not bad at all, actually. But I didn't know anything about the company or the founders so this was an interesting read for me! Eh, I'm smart enough to separate what I like drinking from what caring about the weird squabbles/drama/bro-ness that brewers do. If it affects the quality of their beer or if they start giving money to horrible people, then I'd be less inclined to cut them some slack.

Too bad they're not women; I bet they'd make for an interesting interview for my in-progress podcast. (But they're dudes and I only interview women in the field, so *shrug*)

I am sad Meantime is no longer an independent brewery. I had one of the best beers of my life at one of their pubs in 2010.
posted by Kitteh at 7:22 AM on March 24, 2016 [2 favorites]


Brewdog: The weird offspring of alcopop and CAMRA.

I like to think of them as a gateway beer for kids moving away from interbev properties, and a way for me to quickly identify and avoid places where those kids drink. A win-win all round, I guess.
posted by davemee at 7:24 AM on March 24, 2016 [1 favorite]


well, i went round theakston's last week. who employ the uk's only cooper, if i remember correctly. had a really good tour from a very competent guide. much better than the tour at black sheep (so i recommend touring theakstons and then going to black sheep for lunch, because they have a pretty decent restaurant).

(wasn't that impressed with the vaniila stout tho' - perhaps that is there attempt to take on brewdog....)
posted by andrewcooke at 7:36 AM on March 24, 2016 [1 favorite]


The Punk IPA leaves me feeling like crap the next morning. I'm not a heavy drinker, and rarely suffer any ill-effects. But both times I've had a couple of bottles of Punk IPA, I've felt really dodgy.

Also, I don't really need my beers to be challenging or experimental. Beers like those from the St. Austell Brewery or Sharp's prove that there's no requirement for taxidermy or stunts with military vehicles.
posted by pipeski at 7:45 AM on March 24, 2016 [2 favorites]


I was a big fan when they started - a lot of their beer was different and deliciously so, and I enjoyed my occasional encounters with the Dogs when they turned up in London for tastings and events.

But, eh, not so much now. I've tired of their re-lent-less in your face self-promotion, and I've either tired of their beers or they've just stopped bothering with that original freshness and inventiveness now they're in the supermarkets and shifting serious quantities. I tried a bottle of their Punk IPA the other day, and it just wasn't very good - that could be me souring on the whole Brewdog thing, of course, but hey. Plenty of other nice things to drink.
posted by Devonian at 7:49 AM on March 24, 2016


I love their TV show on the Esquire network, in which they come off not bro-y at all, but as just a couple of Scottish beer geeks who are truly passionate about beer and sincere about trying to share that passion.
posted by Clustercuss at 7:49 AM on March 24, 2016 [3 favorites]


The stunt I object most to is the CamelCase.

Yes, I know, MetaFilter. I love MeFi despite it's typographical flaws.
posted by Rock Steady at 7:50 AM on March 24, 2016 [4 favorites]


pretentious hipster douchebags

No, performance artists is the correct term.
posted by kozad at 7:58 AM on March 24, 2016 [1 favorite]


I made a point to go to one of their Edinburgh locations when on vacation last year and had a good time. The bar was not as hipstery (well, there were a lot of beards and a dog) as I expected. Their beer is fine - tasting one of their high ABV beers should on a beer geek's bucket list, but once you've done it there are other options, especially in the States.

I still will grab a six of Punk IPA if I can easily find one, but that's mainly because my wife will pay for me to drink a Scottish beer provided I watch Outlander with her. Also I have to wear a kilt. And do other stuff.

It's complicated.
posted by robocop is bleeding at 8:10 AM on March 24, 2016 [14 favorites]


No, performance artists is the correct term.

Piss artists.
posted by walrus at 8:12 AM on March 24, 2016


Like, I know a good number of professional brewers and none of them takes BrewDog seriously.
posted by beerperson at 8:26 AM on March 24, 2016


Never heard of this beer before, but I'm guessing it has electrolytes, doesn't it?
posted by Naberius at 8:43 AM on March 24, 2016 [1 favorite]


Like, I know a good number of professional brewers and none of them takes BrewDog seriously.

You know some guys, eh? Well I'm convinced
posted by Hoopo at 8:54 AM on March 24, 2016 [11 favorites]


Ok. I'm a shareholder, card carrying biased individual. But I met the guys at a tasting in Edinburgh. The beer (100+ varieties) is good. If you like hops. Beyond that, they're trying to get noticed amongst the international mega-breweries who produce beer that, whilst perfectedly drinkable if you goal is to get wasted, tastes of very little. I would choose a Brewdog bottle over anything mass produced for a quiet drink at home and I seek out their bars. Their heart is in the right place even if they're annoying gits at times.
posted by khites at 8:56 AM on March 24, 2016 [8 favorites]


At least they are a group of guys who want to make the beer world interesting by doing fucked up, obnoxious shit - that's what punk was all about. Whether the beer is good or not, I'll take an adventurous, willing to be ridiculed, have a sense of humor brand doing crazy stuff in the marketplace over another fucking Coors commercial with a picture of the Rockies or a fucking Budweiser "Are You Up For Anything" frat boy stunt any day. Full disclosure: I've never had their beer, but I like less hoppy, more subtle beers like Sierra Nevada and Allagash White.
posted by spicynuts at 8:59 AM on March 24, 2016 [3 favorites]


They recently released their recipes for homebrewers.
posted by exogenous at 8:59 AM on March 24, 2016 [6 favorites]


At least they are a group of guys who want to make the beer world interesting by doing fucked up, obnoxious shit - that's what punk was all about.

I thought it was about setting shit on fire.
posted by octobersurprise at 9:02 AM on March 24, 2016 [1 favorite]


Oh and as for the Portman Group? Cartel looking after vested interests. And CAMRA are doing a grand job looking after pubs that would otherwise close. Cask beer has its place. Variety is good. But the intra-industry fighting that goes on is weird. If you like interesting beer, you like interesting beer. You shouldn't have to take sides.
posted by khites at 9:04 AM on March 24, 2016 [4 favorites]


I live in a small town/large village in the English countryside. In the local shop I can buy three varieties of indistinguishable musty brown 'traditional' ales of the least interesting kind, various flavourless industrial lagers, and BrewDog Punk IPA. In the face of that selection, it's an easy choice, and I applaud them for getting something different onto mass-market shelves. I have... some misgivings about the company founders and some of their zanier antics, but I'm more sanguine about it than some; it's clearly at least partially being controversial for the sake of publicity but I also believe them when they say they're beer nerds and that they're passionate about it.
posted by parm at 9:05 AM on March 24, 2016 [4 favorites]


Beers like those from the St. Austell Brewery or Sharp's prove that there's no requirement for taxidermy or stunts with military vehicles.


I will take a Proper Job but otherwise these are a bit mainstream for me.
posted by biffa at 9:31 AM on March 24, 2016


Some years ago now, at a beer festival I was involved in, I had occasion to drink some cask-conditioned Paradox from a batch that'd been matured in barrels from an Islay distillery. It was phenomenal. I'm a little sad that they stopped doing proper cask beer, but I do enjoy a lot of their stuff bottled, even if it'll never live up to that glorious memory.
posted by Dysk at 9:50 AM on March 24, 2016


I know these things can be edited any which way but Watt in particular and BrewDog in general do not come over at all well in the Who's The Boss program mentioned in the article - corporate, risk averse, humourless with the sort of added business bollocks you can get from thumbing through the latest trendy biz book (Sample interview question - 'How would you empty a 747 full of jelly beans?'). Not very punk rock at all.
posted by fearfulsymmetry at 9:51 AM on March 24, 2016


What there's no room for is insipid, watery mega-lagers.

There's room for them on at 2pm on a hot, sunny day, playing cornhole on the beach in between dips in the ocean.
posted by Aizkolari at 9:52 AM on March 24, 2016 [3 favorites]


Yeah, I think Brewdog is going to look a little different to you if you are a) living in a city in the UK with eleventy-billion craft offerings (or live somewhere in the US where you can nip down to the bar and get a pint of Pliny the Elder or something, in which case btw I hate you) or b) facing the cold hard reality of your local Tesco that sells Budweiser, a few same-y bitters, and -- like a gasp of sweet, hop-laden fresh air -- Punk IPA. I mean, it's not amazing, but it's hoppy and fine and I will take it every damn time over most of the other stuff I can get here. Similarly, I didn't drink Goose Island much when I lived near their brewery in Chicago, either, because there were better beers to be had, but I will lap it up at my local pub here because it likewise has at least a bit of hoppiness to it and most of the other beers don't. Anyway, the article was interesting; thanks for posting.
posted by chalkbored at 9:59 AM on March 24, 2016 [2 favorites]


It's interesting how their beers have a reputation for just being hop canons. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy their IPAs (mmm, Hardcore IPA) but what they really do best in my opinion is strongish dark malty beer. I guess their distribution on that front is nothing like as widespread?
posted by Dysk at 10:08 AM on March 24, 2016 [1 favorite]


Is hop fatigue not yet a thing in the UK? I keep seeing comments here along the lines of "at least it's got hops" while in my area of the US every other beer on the shelves tastes like grapefruit.
posted by werkzeuger at 10:26 AM on March 24, 2016 [2 favorites]


I am as vulnerable as anybody to jumping on the hate train over irrelevance so I was running along the tracks till I had a kind of epiphany. The tedious posey provocation of their ad/market/branding works apparently, apparently really well. So, isn't that really about the market and the disapointment that comes from observing crowds and their behavior? What I mean is: Why am I getting agrieved over cynical posing and boastfull doofery as branding? Its not like its their fault that the beer drinking market follows flashy lead lemings rather then Quality. I mean its not like the total dominance of SAB/Miller/INBEV etal is based on flavor. It might be my imagination but I think I recall a time when craft beer was not so Bro-ie so I suppose that I might talk my way into resenting the cooption of my own personal lifestyle memes by frat boys and hop badassery but....piffle. I increasingly feel like the key to happiness is just not caring, especially about things that don't really matter. Enjoyed the Article, thanks. Have no particular ambition to sample their beer or not.
posted by Pembquist at 10:36 AM on March 24, 2016


I went to the Newcastle branch once, and it's the only place where I've literally seen shit smeared on the walls. I mean, I've been to some horrific dives - my local used to have anti-climb paint on the top of toilet cisterns to discourage casual cocaine use - but the combo of shit on the walls and the bro-centric crowd meant that I do a little internal grimace whenever Brewdog is mentioned.
posted by The River Ivel at 10:50 AM on March 24, 2016


Funnily enough their new place in Leeds has the décor and charm of an unwelcome overnight stay in a coach station, so shitsmeared toilet walls would be completely appropriate.

I buy the Dead Pony cans in Morrison's because it's about £1 a 330ml can and it's a passable session IPA. The cheapest you can buy it in a proper beer shop would be double that.

I don't buy the 330ml beer they sell in a paper bag at £15 a bottle or the one they sell in a box for £20.
posted by asok at 12:57 PM on March 24, 2016


It's what plants crave!
posted by DrLickies at 1:29 PM on March 24, 2016 [2 favorites]


Don't be knocking Tescos bottled Ale selection. I mean it's not great, but it has some character, although they seem to skew much more towards the import lager end of things. Get on the Asda 4 for £5 range if you want some breadth and value at supermarket prices. Definite thumbs up, assuming Lidl's small range of Hobgobblers and Shepherd Neame ales don't suffice.
posted by comealongpole at 3:13 PM on March 24, 2016


The Guy Fieri of 'craft' brewing.
posted by MartinWisse at 5:40 PM on March 24, 2016 [1 favorite]


So much hops :(
posted by chrispy108 at 6:38 PM on March 24, 2016


Meh. It's mostly that British IPA were crap before they started copying the Americans and adding some hops. BrewDog rode the hops wave, that's all.
posted by jeffburdges at 2:18 AM on March 25, 2016


Top Gear Beer
posted by GeorgeBickham at 6:29 AM on March 25, 2016 [1 favorite]


I think there is some regional variance in what goes on supermarket shelves in the UK, areas with a lot of local brewing they will take on some of the local beer as well as having some of the mass market ales as well. At least that's what its like down in Cornwall where I am. Obviously if there are a lot of successful local small breweries it will tend to mean there is a lot of demand so this can be seen as being sensible about responding to that demand. Our little Tesco metro down the road is a bit meh but the local Sainsbury's and Asda have a pretty decent range of regional beer including some of the quite small breweries hereabouts; a selection of about 40-50 ales, stouts etc I would say. Certainly enough that I will generally enforce my policy of only drinking within the region.
posted by biffa at 10:46 AM on March 25, 2016


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