WEEK 135---Actual or Cyber---there is such a thing as Craft Community

"There's is no such thing as the craft beer community"---this is the title of an article by a famous British blogger/author dismissing the "noises" by geeks( in particular those from the UK craft beer forum) in response to the sale of Beavertown shares to Heineken as quote"multiple nonsenses".

This is of course both sensational"click-bait" approach title as well a shallow/laughable one in the eyes of many beer geeks---be it in actual or cyber---to many beer geeks around different cities/corners of the globe---there is certainly such a thing as craft beer community/ craft culture and it's alive and kicking.

说喝craft beer可以是一件有点讲究有点特色文化的事很有可能被人笑，咋听之下好像是在扮高深又或者只是找个自以为有型的理由来美化简单不过的喝啤酒行为，

不错，尽管喝craft跟喝一般大厂啤酒在“为什么要喝啤酒”这个最根本基点上可以有天渊之别（比如说有人经常大厂啤酒随意喝只为解渴或者进食时当酒精冷饮，至于只为感受酒精上头感觉而喝的那就没什么好说了） （又比如有的人平时绝少喝酒又或者不会随便只要是啤酒就可以，喝craft时为的是不同风味啤酒蕴含的美味），可是，再怎么看，要说喝craft是比较有特色文化这件事还能只是懂的人才会懂。

对许多啤迷来说，喝craft这件事很多时候并不只是纯粹的喝酒社交行为，因为对不同类别啤酒美味层次的认同/追求，因为全球成几千千上万万家不同craft酿坊的独立运作存在（特别是个别啤迷心目中的好些大师级酿坊），加上绝大多数啤迷都认同的美味分享/传播精神，自然而然的就有了所谓的craft社区。

For the uninitiated---perhaps it's funny/laughable even to hear that the simple act of beer drinking can go as far as talking craft culture/ craft community---the truth is---for many geeks, drinking beer at times is no longer a simple act of socializing---it's more about spreading the message of beer can have many different choices--that beer drinking can be likened to an act of exploration of deliciousness--that it is no longer about quick gulp but rather about savouring the different nuances of what a good brew could bring to the palate enjoyment....

While all of those mentioned above might sound a little complicated or even pretentious to some---in it's most simplest form--craft beer drinking is nothing complicated---perhaps the single biggest difference when compared to casual Macro BEER drinking is that beer geeks are very particular about the quality of the beer they drink---same way as foodie would for deliciousness in what they eat.

或许有人会问”什么是craft beer社区/文化？“是不是像摄影爱好协会或世界武术协会那样有规有章，甚至是有会员制的群体？

说起craft社区这个概念跟我们一般了解的生活社区有点不一样，这里指的是，啤迷们并不一定是生活在一个地区/城市或者是生活中已经认识的朋友，更多时候这个社区是由互不认识的啤迷们组成，能把那么多陌生人连起来的主因很简单，因为大家喜爱有着数不清有趣美味的选择，分享美味/细味品尝都是craft文化共识。

其实，craft 社区有点像是介于实体和虚无之间的结合，说实体是比如说有些酿坊有会员制，而且还可能是分不同阶段可以买到不同限量版酿品的会员制。说虚无是因为这个社区内的啤迷来自五湖四海，互不相识，或只是网络啤友，不过这些现实生活中并不相干的陌生人都会做一件事，那就是自发自动的推广/分享/维护craft文化，当然有时候这些陌生人会在某个城市的啤酒庆典碰面共饮或只是短暂交换几句，对啤迷来说这些时光都是让人愉快的，也是这个社区文化的体现。

And it is exactly that common beliefs/objective of seeking for deliciousness in a beer which naturally connected the thousands upon thousands of beer geeks and craft breweries--be it in actual locality based communities or somewhat floating cyber style existence---in many ways---beer geeks are generally a bunch of drinkers who believe in high quality of a beer(or mead or hard cider)--who believe in sharing/spreading the craft culture of drink better brew--and many beer geeks are the staunch supporters of the independence of craft breweries.

说起来，跟社会认知的社区概念一样，craft社区这个无边界的“团体”的活动还不少：

In different corners of the globe--there are activities/groups/forums/ bars/taprooms/bottle shops--be it in actual form or cyber spaces--which connects the craft community:-

Beer Fest

If you love craft beer festivals--there's a lot of such activities to attend to year in year out though some of the best ones are mainly in Europe/US---take for examples MBCC in Copenhagen--this is one event where many awesome breweries from the States/Europe plus some outside of US/Europe come together for 2 days of absolute craft beer feast---geeks would flew in from far and wide(Asia---Brazil) just for that week---the annual pilgrimage is certainly a showcase of what geeks and craft breweries can achieve as a community( of course there's many more such beer fest from Asia to Europe to US).

啤酒庆典

大家习惯称为啤酒节的这个活动跟一般商业啤酒节最大的不同点就是，参与的酿坊都只会是独立自主的craft酿坊，意思是，在这样的啤酒节你不会看到比如老虎狮子等大厂啤酒参与。然后，你会发现，以鼓励喝少嚐多为出发点的啤酒节很多时候都有特制玻璃小杯子（而不是即用即丢塑料大杯子），来出席的啤迷们可以是来自不同城市也互不认识，但是大家的目标基本是一致的，都因为美味啤酒聚在一起。

BJCP & Cicerone

If a more formal qualification/examination body is what a social community needs then you have it right there---you can go through the necessary steps to be a beer judge by taking exams from BJCP or you can go on to be a certified beer server under the Cicerone program.

啤酒认证考试

在craft的世界也有类似球类运动或武术协会那样有专业认证课程，比如说啤酒认证裁判(BJCP) 或认证伺酒师(Cicerone) 这两种比较专业级别的资格课程给任何有兴趣深入了解的啤迷，

Craft Beer Groups/Forums

It is true many beer geeks never met/yet to meet face to face or sit down and share a few beers----but some of them are beer buddies already in cyber space via various chat group/focus group/forums--in a way, it's the same as any other social/interest groups/bodies---you might not have met in person everyone in the community but you bound to know some from the cyber space chat group. where common beliefs/topics can be shared.

网络群组

有时候，要说这个社区是有点虚无的也没错，很多啤迷其实在现实生活中没有关联也不认识，不过，在网络世界中，通过不同的craft群组/论坛，啤迷们有可以共聚的平台，有不少啤迷也因为那样从虚拟成为生活中见过面分享过几杯酒聊过天的朋友，这样说事情并不只是在同城啤迷之间发生，更可能是世界不同城市之间。

It's true beer drinking can mean different things to many people---to the beer geeks who believe in the craft culture and craft community--it is about drinking high quality brew---it is about sharing some brew  as well as spreading the info/ encouraging non-craft drinkers to give craft beer a try and so on----and at times to stand together to voice up against any encroaching MACRO giants who buy up craft breweries or anyone who try to ridicule the craft community by dismissing/proclaiming "there's no such thing as craft community".

*There's no such thing as craft beer community *，这是英国某知名部落客不久前批评啤迷表明唾弃卖给大厂啤酒公司craft酿坊写的一篇博文标题，这标题看在不少超级啤迷眼里，除了哗众取宠以偏概全之余也让人发笑，不管实体存在还是虚无相连，对很多啤迷来说，craft社区的存在是毋庸置疑的，而且还五湖四海互通互联。

The thing about craft community is that---be it actual or cyber( or you might want to call it fiction)---there is such a thing as craft beer community on this planet called earth and it's very much in existence to most if not all of us beer geeks/brewers.

WEEK 134----The black white grey of beer

This is a piece triggered by the Beavertown deal with MACRO giants confirmed last month--not going to focus on the sale---but rather using it as an example to try and take a broader look at why there's this line of separation between MACRO and craft---that every time a craft brewery with nice brew is sold geeks would react.

In fact-i was asked this question not too long ago by a friend who is more of a social drinker---"why do beer geeks care about who owns what?  i mean--do you do that when buying a hand phone ?"

6月21日对许多啤迷，特别是英伦啤迷来说是个有点遗憾的日子，就在这天英伦明星品牌Beavertown发布声明，证实了之前听到传言说这家Craft酿坊决定把少数股权（49%或以下）卖给大厂啤酒大公司Heineken，以换取四千万英镑”投资”资金。

消息一出，即刻引来各方反应，有祝贺酿坊的，有觉得未必是坏事的，当然也有骂声四起并宣布从此不再支持的。为什么一家小酿坊卖股权换取投资资金这样在商界司空见惯的生意策略/做法会引起这么两极化/甚至是看来有点过激的反应？

collab such as this will be thing of the past?

This friend has a valid point---how many of us go searching  for info on who owns what before shopping? But--like it or load it---since independence is key to how craft movement/culture came about/ moving forward---to some(if not all) beer geeks---the identity issue is a critical one, and there's a clear line of black or white----playing grey is not gonna work.

"After all---it is just beer."

"I just want a beer---i don't care who owns what"

"When did beer drinking become something you need to make a stand?"

These are some comments often heard whenever there's a sale of craft brewery to MACRO giants--and its very understandable no matter if the person saying that is a craft or non-craft drinker.

one of many independently run UK breweries

another independently run UK breweries

这要从源头说起，以最简化方式来说，啤酒的世界有两个，一个是普罗大众都知道的大厂啤酒(MACRO BEER) ，另一个是比较小众，在亚洲还是少人知道的Craft Beer (大陆港台用词精酿啤酒）。这是两个完全迥异的啤酒世界，大厂啤酒代表了大量生产单调简易口味选择，也代表低成本极大化利益啤酒企业文化，Craft酿坊注重真材实料酿造各种不同风格啤酒提供众多美味层次选择，批量/限量酿造是常态，流水作业大量生产抢占市场不是Craft文化。当然，绝大多数喝酒人不会觉得这两个世界有什么区别，又或者说不明白之间文化差异在哪里，但是对许多啤迷来说，两者之间差异是天地之间距离，也可说是不存在灰色地带的差别。

这次交易出售少数股权（不超过49%），酿坊发布声明强调创办人Logan Plant (殿堂级老牌摇滚乐队Led Zeppelin 主音Robert Plant 儿子）依然拥有控制权/酿酒自由度，意思是虽然拿了人家大厂啤酒钱，但仍自主，从生意角度看，拿少数股权换取资金还保持自主权是非常棒的交易，更何况产量提升，通过大厂啤酒公司行销力量/管道让更多人喝到“算是精酿”啤酒，既帮了自己业务，也让更多一般喝酒人更有机会接触到精酿啤酒，这么好的事情，一切听起来合情合理，可是为什么许多啤迷决定从此唾弃这家酿坊啤酒？

For the uninitiated---a quick and very simple scenario---in the wold of beer---there's 2 side----one is the(mainly) mass produced dull commercial lagers MACRO BEER---another side is the craft beer produced in much much smaller scale where the emphasis is always to seek out deliciousness/ experimental possibilities of a beer. It's obvious these 2 contrasting side of the beer world don't see eye to eye much.

another independently run UK breweries

Actually---one of the main reasons why someone started a craft beer brewery/movement(anywhere in the world it might be) was/is  because he/she can't stand not having better or much better choices when it comes to beers choices available where it's always being flooded with MACRO beers.

啤迷不认同原因包括：-

1）最初会有Craft Beer 出现的动力是因为有人厌倦了市场长期被大厂公司单调无趣千篇一律难喝啤酒霸占现象，于是尝试自酿好喝有趣啤酒，慢慢形成了Craft社区/文化，这是酿酒师/啤迷都有共识的社区/文化，大家因为欣赏好酿坊好酒而聚集起来，大家也有不用明说的默契，一旦任何酿坊决定跟大厂啤酒公司牵手，就等于自动脱离Craft社区/文化。因为，跟大厂啤酒公司的任何交易就像有机农场拿到农药制造商投资或手冲咖啡店拿到星巴克咖啡赞助那样，本质上自相矛盾，完全不对味。

2）大厂啤酒公司极力低成本生产极大化销售利益的企业文化和一些无所不用其极围堵市场/销售管道手法跟Craft 文化背道而驰，在无法通过酿造自家啤酒进入Craft Beer 市场竞争情况下，有什么策略好过收购现有Craft 酿坊？更何况是有一定知名度/口碑的明星品牌来减低近年大厂啤酒销量普遍下跌造成的股价/收益影响，同时也起到一定程度混淆视听作用，形成灰色地带的MACRO CRAFT，表面看起来是精酿品牌但背后是大厂啤酒支持（嗄，我们不只卖单调无趣大厂啤酒，我们也提供Craft选择）。

3）不少之前被收购的Craft 酿坊例子显示，在大企业强调利益最大化，成本尽量低情况下，这些之前强调精酿美味的啤酒都不同程度的走味走样了。

Magic Rock---another independently run UK breweries

Isn't it a good thing when MACRO giants is involved with craft brewery--bigger production, wide distributions meaning more people especially non-craft beer drinkers would have a chance to drink craft brew----but why would beer geeks  still saying NO?

Sure---anyone in business or understand how a business works will know that money is the necessary evil---in this case---BT secured the fund needed for expansion---plan to reach out to much bigger pool of drinkers---and "keeping total control" of the brewery--it's a good deal business wise----but why are geeks keep saying NO?

1) Most if not all of us beer geeks started with MACRO BEER---that's also how many craft brewers started(because we simply didn't know there's another beer world called craft waiting to be explored OR there's not much choices around except those MACRO)---it's kinda like a journey to revolution of beer taste/complexity/deliciousness where craft brewers/breweries are the flag-bearers ---and craft beer lovers are the cheering participants/supporters---there's never a place for the MACRO--but obviously craft beer is also a business and with the fact that MACRO can never enter to compete in the craft beer market with their own beer---what better than buying over the willing to sell craft breweries?

another independently run UK breweries

虽然有点另类，Craft说到底也是生意，任何Craft 酿坊都有不同现实问题和情况要面对，这次英伦酿坊交易当然不会是最后一次看到两个不同理念啤酒世界为利益联手，事实上，很多喝酒人也基本不管谁拥有哪家酿坊，或者说根本不知道/不理会什么是两个理念迥异的啤酒世界，反正，不就只是喝啤酒嘛，有什么那么复杂的？或许就像大多数地球人不懂也未必想了解什么是地球暖化/替代能源对生态人类影响之类的课题那样，大多数喝酒人并不理大厂啤酒和Craft社区/文化之间的黑白界限是不是会让被收购品牌带来的灰色模糊笼罩。不过，对了解并相信Craft社区文化理念的啤迷来说事情其实很简单，那就是，无论大厂啤酒公司砸钱买下多少家Craft品牌抢占市场都好，啤迷都会一视同仁的在两个不同啤酒世界的黑白之间划清界限对被收购的酿坊SAY NO，实际上，单单在英国就有不少保持独立自主的小酿坊在提供高水准酿品，那为什么要让理念不一/利益为主的大厂啤酒公司分一杯羹赚啤迷的酒钱呢？

2) The craft and MACRO scenario is a little similar to your neighbourhood coffee shop//breakfast shop vs the International big chain cafe/restaurants----obviously you can support both but in beer geeks case the choice is obvious--support craft breweries running on their own---not those already gotten fat payment from MACRO giants whose intention is clear ---using a craft brewery to fight a craft war they can never enter with their own brew.

3) One main complaints about MACRO involving with craft brewery is that---somewhere along the line after deal---somehow or rather---the quality of brew of that " once-a craft" brewery will inevitably go down hill---and that's quite sad to see.

how many breweries will trun up come Sept?

跟之前美国酿坊Wicked Weed 被收购时候一样，Beavertown 也有一个办的跟成功的啤酒节，在证实这个交易之前已公布90家参与酿坊名单，不少海外啤迷买了票打算专程飛伦敦参与，不过交易宣布之后已有不少参与酿坊宣布退出，好多买了票啤迷也呼吁主办方退票，这些都在在显示Craft 文化中的不成文规定，“只能是Craft 或MACRO ”，在许多啤迷和酿酒师心目中，两者之间的MACRO CRAFT（大厂拥有或幕后支持“精酿品牌”）这个灰色地带是不受认可的。

BUT---"isn't beer drinking supposed to be social activity that generates happiness? why make it sounding complicated? "

That's of course a valid point---everyone has the choice of just eat drink and be merry---or if you can be like some of us beer geeks who feels the need to draw a line (mainly due to the varieties of deliciousness available in craft beer choices) between the fighting for their own craft breweries OR those joining hands with giants to compete against once craft buddies. End of the day, why gives some of your beer money to the "hired-guns"(sometimes reffered to as "MACRO-CRAFT" knowing some of those money will be flowing to the MACRO giants?