In the weeks since I spent some time musing on the price of beer over at World of Beer and Stan expended more than a few words comparing the cost of beer and wine at Appellation Beer, a veritable storm of discussion has ensued over the new breed of higher priced brews. The ratebeerians and Beer Advocates got into it, of course, but where the discussion really took off was over at A Good Beer Blog, where several writers, brewers and aficionados, including yours truly, waded in to debate the pluses and minuses of high priced beers.
Understandably, there are those, again, like yours truly, who value beer for the gustatory experiences they provide and judge the value of a brew based upon its dollar:pleasure ratio, while others are less understanding of the need for $30/bottle ales and lagers. Still others, of course, think that anything more than a couple of bucks per bottle is too much, an amount which you can probably reduce by two-thirds for the final tier of tight-fisted can drinkers.
But this posting mentions the truth, not opinion, so I’d best get to the heart of the matter. The truth is…it doesn’t matter what you or I think!
The forums, blogs and sites mentioned above are generally frequented by those with a passion for beer, once more including yours truly. And some of us, some of you, will be the ones lining up to pay whatever it costs to drink beers of excellence. However, and this is the important point, to my experience, it will not be any or even all of us who will determine the fate of these beers.
Like it or not, folks, there are a lot of people out there with significantly more money than you or I. (If Bill Gates is reading, I take back that last bit.) And as I have witnessed time and again, it is this group who will be paying top dollar for the beery elite, either because they are curious and have the cash to splash about or they simply value forty or fifty bucks on a par with how we see five or ten. They’re the ones who will be buying the lion’s share of the Cable Car, DeuS, Iron Hill limited edition ales and other assorted “expensive” beers.
And there ain’t nothing you or I can do about it, except to rush out and get our share before they’re all gone.
