LINK

I can see no upside to this.  Especially since any Mexican/Spanish beer I have tasted is next to nasty.

 

I'd be concerned if it was a company like AB Inbev that has a history of ruining good beer after taking them over.

 

And honestly there is so much good beer out there that if Founders quality goes down and I never have it again I am not sure how much I'd even notice.

Yeah, I'm with you there...just being one of the more notables from my native MI I take it a bit personally.

So add Elysian to the sell out list. AB InBev.  Interesting article on the impact of these takeovers.

 

http://beergraphs.com/bg/637-the-real-problem-with-anheuser-busch-inbev-takeove/

Thanks for that.  I never thought of the distribution leverage, but it makes sense (my co-worker's son works for a distributer and we are both into beer so I hear a lot about the goings on).

This actually is concerning to me, if this is InBev's true intentions.  With the massive increase in craft brewers, I've noticed over my last couple trips to the local beer store that shelf space is starting to become a real issue.  Their selection is getting worse as they concentrate on certain brewers....what drives those choices, I don't know.  But I don't have the selection I had a year ago.  A world where you have a great selection of InBev craft brews you have had ad nauseum to the exclusion of new choices would suck.

Interesting that you say that. If anything I have access to more beer now than ever. For example Boulevard just started distributing here. I have been concerned about saturation for some time now. Concerned because I am finding that I am enjoying beer from the smaller upstart breweries around here. Places like Troegs, Victory, and Weyerbacher are great but they are getting, well, big. I am just seeing it as becoming more difficult to get started. Some of that is just the natural progression of things and doesn't have a bunch to do with the AB Inbevs of the world.

 

My problem is with the bullying aspect of it. Win because your product is better, not because you're bigger.

Well, this is the couple local beer stores that got bought out by the same chain that bought out a lot around here.  They've kind of sucked them up, one store used to be better for booze/wine and the other for beer.  Now they both kind of suck it all around.  Same shelf space, less single bottles and less turnover in options between trips.

I know for a fact that distributors pull this in other booze.  Want a bigger Pappy Van Winkle allocation?  Better move higher volume of their lower-quality stuff.

Some more on the Elysian sale...

 

http://blog.seattlepi.com/thepourfool/2015/01/25/elysian-and-abinbev-greed-overweening-ambition-and-the-whoring-out-of-a-culture/

http://blog.seattlepi.com/thepourfool/2015/01/28/the-elysian-abinbev-sale-the-aftermath-and-a-happy-update/

Nah, dude's not bitter at ALL...

Another big craft brewer gets bought up.

 

http://www.techtimes.com/articles/107698/20151117/1-billion-how-much-constellation-brands-spends-to-snag-craft-brewer-ballast-point.htm

I think that we are going to see more of this,  But damn, 1 billion (that's with a "b").  Cannot blame them.

Things evolve.  The only real problem that I have is when these bigger companies (i.e., AB-Inbev) use their size as leverage to push around the little guys.  Other than that I'll still drink the beer if the quality stays good.

That said I seem to gravitate toward the small local breweries in my neck of the woods.  It helps that they are brewing some fine beer.  Interestingly when I was down south both in Charleston and Asheville the grocery stores that had beer had a local section and highlighted that fact.  So at least in the near term I do not see this hurting the little guy.

Wicked Weed.  Damn.

https://www.brewbound.com/news/anheuser-busch-purchase-wicked-weed-brewing

Good thing that there are a bunch of other places in Asheville to go to.  While I don't agree with the "selling out" argument (it's their business to do with as they wish), my focus will stay with supporting local.  So, happy trails Wicked Weed.

That said I just brought a bunch of WW beer home from vacation.  I ain't pouring it down the drain.

 

That said I just brought a bunch of WW beer home from vacation.  I ain't pouring it down the drain.

It was pre-buyout so you should be ok drinking that. Next month may be a different story.