‘Craft beer’ is a term that is starting to gain a bit of traction in Malaysia. As more bars and restaurants begin experimenting with their drinks lists, it will only be a matter of time before it receives mainstream acceptance.
But what exactly is ‘craft beer’?
The first use of the term ‘craft brewery’ can be found in Vince Cottone’s piece in the ‘New Brewer’ magazine Vol. 1, No. 5, September-October 1984, entitled “Craft Brewing Comes of Age”. The product that comes out of a craft brewery is a craft beer.
A craft brewery is defined by the Brewer’s Association of America (or the BA) as one that is small, independent and traditional.
The size requirement tends to vary by country (the US is, after all, huge and what is small there will be considered massive in somewhere like Australia) but the other two determinants of what constitutes craft beer are more consistent around the world.
An independent brewery is one that ‘less than 25% of the craft brewery is owned or controlled (or equivalent economic interest) by an alcoholic beverage industry member who is not themselves a craft brewer.’
Independence is important as it allows brewers and breweries the freedom to express themselves through their beer without interference of other commercial interests.
A traditional brewery is a brewery that produces the majority of their beer using all malt recipes and the use of adjuncts (or additives) is to increase and intensify flavours rather than to dull it.
The need to differentiate beer from small batch breweries and large corporate behemoths was necessary at a time when marketing played a bigger role in beer consumption than the taste of the beer itself.
And that leads me to the simple reason why you should embrace craft beer – it tastes better. And by better I mean it actually has a range of flavours other than ‘metallic’.
A big part of why people shun craft beer is due to their perception of how beer should taste. I cannot count the times I’ve been told that something ‘doesn’t taste like beer’. In terms of flavour, craft beer is a huge departure from typical mainstream macro-lager.
The varied use of hops, malts, water and yeasts lead to an endless combination of flavours. Add to that any other ingredient you can think of and you begin to see potential that craft beer has. I’ve seen beers use bacon, fruits, herbs, spices, vegetables and coffees amongst other things.
That’s the thing, as Malaysians, we are familiar with the concept of wanting the best when it comes to food. We travel (some might say) ridiculous distances just to have the best chicken rice or assam laksa. We never settle for bland or boring when it comes to our favourite foods so why do we have to settle for less when it comes to our beer.
With craft beer, we don’t have to.
Adrian Chong is a partner of Taps Beer Bar and aspiring beer nerd. He loves everything beer and has drunk over 5,000 beers to date.
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