While this was written last week, I feel that it is powerful to read at the beginning of this week. As we head into American Craft Beer Week, it is important to remember that it DOES matter who brews your beer.
Like Van Roy states, there is some great beer produced by the macro giants. But at the same time, this is an industry where we, the consumers truly have a good bit of power. Every dollar that we spend on macro is a dollar of power that we give to Brito.
I won’t ever tell someone what to, or what not to drink. But I do encourage every one of you to consider where you want your drinking dollars to go.
Prosit!
Brasserie Cantillon
Quintessence 2016 is over.
We had a great time thanks to all of you, Cantillon friends.
I won’t forget our volunteers who worked hard at every tasting spot, in the kitchen, shop, etc…
I have waited the end of the event to speak in more detail about the change in the organisation and why I decided to do it.
I got a lot of congratulations about the decision to cancel the inclusion of Del Borgo.
Some, even if they agreed, didn’t understand why I wouldn’t present beers brewed before Inbev took the Italian brewery over.
To be honest, my first intention was to cancel the Del Borgo presence and invite Leonardo Di Vicenzo as independent brewer with the beer he brewed before the Inbev repurchase.
I have a lot of respect for Leo and in my opinion, he deserved to be present.
But this idea was more due to our friendship and was not the best one to react to the last events. In such a case, a firm decision is the best, all or nothing.
It was nothing, and here are my personal reasons why.
It was first ideological but also due to our history, the history of the Cantillon brewery.
In the 60’s, 70’s and early 80’s, the big industry bought over a lot of small craft breweries.
At this time, because of contracts enforced with bars by the industrial breweries, the most important way of beer sales for craft breweries was closed.
Competition was no longer equal and a lot of small producers had a lot of trouble, and had no other choice to shut their doors or to join the industrial side.
In 20 years time, we lost a lot of beautiful breweries, a lot of great beers and a lot of history!
We are very fortunate to live today through a new craft beer revolution, but I have the feeling that the big industry will adapt, at a global level, with the same politics they used in Belgium forty years ago.
In Belgium, decades ago, the reaction against this monopoly arrived too late, the power was already in the other camp.
That’s why, in my opinion, we need to react as fast as possible and that’s also why I couldn’t accepted an Inbev member in the Cantillon brewery.
Today the big industry looks to craft brewers on how to build the best image possible, then says “look, we are like you”.
They are not, and if they need to emulate us, I’m sure we are doing well enough without them.
Understand me, this personal point of view has nothing to do with the beer quality.
Some “industrial” beer is well made and craft doesn’t always mean quality.
Small industry is mainly working with small producers from the region.
When you drink a craft beer, you give work to more than one craft producer!
Unfortunately, I’m sure it’s not the same when you are drinking a beer produced by big industry.
If we allow big industry to take over what we’ve built, history will repeat itself…and I hope we won’t live again the events of Belgium forty years ago.
Jean Van Roy
