Name: Cam Hines
Title: Co-owner Mountain Goat Brewery
Annual output: Approx 500,000 L
Web: www.goatbeer.com.au
I think it’s a good term to use when describing quality beer from breweries other than the big, mass producing operations.
I think it is a term that is used, however, predominately by big breweries to describe their highest end beers. Beers they might perhaps like to refer to as microbrewed but cannot due to their obvious scale. Usually these beers are produced in mid-sized breweries like Malt Shovel, Little Creatures, Bluetongue etc. There is definitely no link with craft and independence in this country but the biggest Australian brewers may very well be happy if the public think their craft brands appear independent as they never seem to name the parent company on any of the packaging materials, websites etc.
I think we do need a definition of ‘craft’, or consistently used terminology around beer to assist consumers to know what they are getting. It is very confusing for me and I am in the industry!
Right on Cam. We do need our own definition. I like the “independent” part of the US definition. We should probably adjust the “small” part to be something more appropriate to local volume. The “traditional” part should really apply to all beer, shouldn’t it?