Exploring just what makes some breweries innovate while others stagnate
Winemakers for centuries have known that a “stressed vine makes good wine”. Too much comfort (lots of water, good soil, moderate temperature) and the grape vine will focus on making big green leaves, long branches or extensive roots. Grape plants need just a bit too much heat or limited water for the plant’s resources to be diverted to the grape. Simply put, it needs stress to make luscious wine producing grapes. This concept has always intrigued me and I see it everywhere.
In the world of business, stress can be caused from just about anything ie., market competition, limited time or limited resources. The pressure to escape and survive this stress often drives great things. We see individuals, organizations and even countries do great things when they are forced to do so. The United States rallied together to help save the world in WWII. We had to or we could have lost everything. Likewise (and ironically), the Japanese automotive industry was forced to greatly improve itself after the war. Great areas of their country and industrial base were destroyed. They had to greatly improve their manufacturing efficiencies, design and most of all – quality in order to compete with the vastly out sized American automotive companies directly competing with them at the time.
Which brings us back to brewer innovation.
How many breweries do you know that have introduced one or several good beers and then stopped innovating? Personally, I see it too often. A brewer releases a good beer that becomes a market sensation and then they sit back for months and years with little to no innovation.
Sorry, but I offer no credit for variants. Too often they are like a musical re-mix. Changes things up but is rarely as good as the original.
So, why do some brewers stagnate while others continue to innovate? One critical factor is Stress. This stress is often derived from competition. A beer market with several or dozens of “Tier 1” breweries nearby drives them all to improve. Good breweries make more good breweries and good breweries make good beer. The market competition pushes them all to improve and innovate.
There’s a brewery located a couple of hours from my house. They make stellar beers, exceptional in my opinion. Their Imperial Stout serves as the benchmark for the style. Yet, they drive me nuts. They haven’t had a new offering of any significance in over 5+ years. They happen to be located in the middle of nowhere with no clear competition. Some may ask why they should innovate if their beer is so good. My answer is clear;
Success -> Complacency -> No Innovation -> Obsolescence
Remember, it was 50 years of complacency with the yellow fizzy stuff from the macros. Craft beer hit the market and everything changed. Keep innovating and I will keep buying. I personally embrace and welcome the constant change and innovation from breweries. I can’t wait to see what they have next.
I thought I’d include a pic of one of the best wines I’ve ever had. Made so masterfully that it retained great flavor and complexity after almost 4 decades. Made in 1978, I know it had to come from some nicely stressed California vines.
Enjoyed on the back deck
"We don't take serious beer too seriously"
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